LIHUE, KAUAI, HAWAII | A cup of coffee seems a sensible way to start the day. After all, I am on the island of Kauai, and the arabica beans cultivated here produce a beverage with malty flavor, fruity notes and plenty of caffeine.
But I am going even deeper from a cultural standpoint by also participating in a weekly sunrise ceremony at the Ocean Course at Hokuala. The idea behind the activity is to better connect visitors to this isle by greeting the dawn together as a local woman recites a poem aloud, in the Hawaiian language.
The words translate in English as follows:
“Awaken. Arise, the sun in the east from the ocean, the deep ocean. Climbing to heaven, the highest heaven in the east. There is the sun.”
All smiles after the sunrise ceremony.
John Steinbreder, GGP
We chant a rhythmic prayer as we cup our hands and clap. Then, each participant puts a handful of Kukui nuts into a bowl. These dark, oil-rich fruits of the state tree are traditionally stacked on top of each other to form a sort of candle. As such, they signify light, and by putting them into that container, one is metaphorically putting light back into his or her life. Once that is done, we hug the two women who have led the ceremony, being sure to touch our foreheads to theirs, and then exchange breaths, inhaling the sea air at the same time.
“We call it ‘honi,’ the breath of the divine,” said Tom Freestone, the director of golf at the Ocean Course at Hokuala. “And that is what aloha means, in addition to hello and good-bye, with ‘Alo’ translating into ‘divine’ and ‘Ha’ to breath.”
I feel strangely energized after that event and in the perfect frame of mind for the golf game on the Jack Nicklaus-designed Ocean Course that followed soon after. So, perhaps I should not be surprised when I go on to play some of my best golf of the trip.
I am particularly strong on the back nine, with pars on Nos. 10 and 11, both of which abut the airport at Lihue and afford us up-close-and-personal looks at the commercial jets that take off and land. That proximity cheers the plane junkie in me. But even better is my experience a couple of holes later on the par-4 13th, which plays slightly downhill to an ocean-backed green. Just as I prepare to hit my approach, I spy several humpback whales spouting in the waters beyond and keep watching them as I walk to the putting surface.
It’s hard to keep one’s head down in a setting like this.
Then comes No. 14, a Cypress Point-gorgeous par-3 that runs perpendicular to the previous hole, hugging the rocky Pacific coast as it does so. The 15th and 16th follow the same shoreline before the course turns inland again. But water remains in view – and in play – the final two holes, in the form of a massive lake.
Our round complete, we head to the oceanfront restaurant called Hualani’s for lunch. I go Hawaiian surf and turf for this repast, starting with braised short rib potstickers swimming in a butter sauce and Macadamia-encrusted pink snapper served with Asian slaw and pineapple salsa.
It’s 2 o’clock when our plates are cleared, and some of my dining mates begin wondering what to do next. Take a swim, perhaps. Maybe indulge in a massage. One individual even suggests that a nap is in order.
But I cannot even contemplate a next move because I am so happy with all that has transpired to this point.
This day could not be any more perfect.
John Steinbreder
