If
you haven’t been to Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park in a while, you probably remember
its visitor center as a tired 1970s relic-old displays, old decor, old information.
That is about to change.Next month, the Kïlauea Visitor Center reopens,
entirely updated with interactive, multimedia displays. Chief of interpretation
Jim Gale spearheaded this major upgrade, ushering the visitor center into the
21st century. Normally enthusiastic, Gale is even more animated when discussing
the changes. “Ours is going to be a masterpiece of exhibitry, using all the arts
and sciences combined to let people fall in love with the park.”
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A
look at the new exhibit, “Kilauea’s Rain Forest,” under construction.
Courtesy Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park |
A large lavascape greets visitors upon entering the double glass doors.
To the left sits the ranger information desk; to the right, the Hawai’i Natural
History Association’s bookstore, now in its own room. Arthur Johnsen’s painting,
“The Goddess Pele,” hangs beside the fireplace. The volcano deity-aglow with warm
oranges, browns and reds-strides through molten lava. Beyond is the exhibit
space, with pale blue walls and a midnight-blue ceiling. The room is dim and hushed,
pools of light illuminating individual displays. In the center, for example, the
exhibit “Against Enormous Odds, Life Arrived,” explains how life came to Hawai’i
via wings, winds or waves. Fiber-optic maps show jet streams and bird migration
patterns, and touch boxes illustrate how snails might attach themselves to the
muddy legs of a plover. Gale particularly likes the “Kïlauea’s Rain Forest”
exhibit diorama. “Chase Studios worked for a year to replicate the most beautiful
plants possible, so the color and even the fine hairs on leaves and stems are
absolutely accurate.” Visitors can identify plants in flipbooks or push buttons
to illuminate forest birds and hear their songs. Outside on the länai, current
eruption and vog updates are available 24 hours a day. A large 3-D map of the
island shows underwater topography 10 miles out from shore. Gale stresses
that these renovations are the collaborative effort of more than 20 advisory teams
and 100 individuals, including scientists, rangers, writers, artists and küpuna
working together to develop the new visitor center. “Kïlauea and Mauna Loa arose
out of the sea and gave rise to a community of plants, animals and people. It
takes everyone to take care of it.”
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News
of the Islands’ Christmas tree shortage travelled far and fast, as this excerpt
shows, from a Dec. 21, 2004, article “Hawaiians pay up to £140 (about $264 in
U.S. dollars) for Christmas tree cheer,” by Catherine Elsworth. This appeared
in the British online newspaper telegraph.co.uk, from the publishers of London
dailies, The Daily Telegraph, The Sunday Telegraph, The Spectator.
Hawaiians
hankering after authentic festive greenery are having to pay up to £140 for a
Christmas tree because of a shortage.
The
latest shipment at the weekend, a batch of 130 noble firs from Oregon, was met
by a queue of hundreds of people who had camped through the night in Honolulu.
The
announcement of the prices-from £80 for a 4ft tree to £140 for one 6ft to 7ft-drew
cries of dismay from the crowd and police were called to keep the peace. …
Mele
Kalikimaka Turner, a tree salesman who flew in the additional 130 trees-his forenames
mean “Merry Christmas”-insisted that his prices were fair.
“There
is a lot involved in bringing a tree to Hawai’i,” he said.
Barbara
Taylor, one of the people queuing, said: “He thinks he’s got us because he has
the trees. But we have the money and maybe we won’t pay.”
Another
customer, Mike Swenson, did buy a tree but admitted that he had paid “way too
much” at £90.
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