Hokulea Emerges as Testament of Hawaiian Navigation and Spirit

While this blog will attempt to mostly focus on US policy, I will once in awhile add a few other things that catch my eye. As the blog name might suggest, I am from Hawaii. I attended an all-Hawaiian school from kindergarten through twelfth grade and subsequently am very proud of my Hawaiian roots (though my patriotic, pro-American character seems to overshadow the Hawaiian pride more often than not). Nonetheless, when I saw this article, I was reminded of how proud I am of the accomplishments of the Hawaiian people.

The Hokule’a made its maiden voyage in 1976 from Hawaii to Tahiti and back, highlighting the likeliness of ancient Hawaiian’s ability to navigate using the sky and stars and negating suspicion that Hawaiians accidentally stumbled upon the Hawaiian Islands and by chance were able to navigate from Tahiti and resettle in the newfound islands. In 1980, Nainoa Thompson, who was trained by the revered navigator Mau Piailug who navigated the 1976 voyage, successfully navigated the vessel from Hawaii to Tahiti and back and was the first Native Hawaiian to navigate without instruments in modern times. Nainoa Thompson continues to symbolize a hero to the Hawaiian people and served as Trustee for the Bishop Estate, the organization in charge of my school’s lands and funds. I have met him several times and worked with him as student. I have always admired his dedication and humility as a leader of the community.

As the article writes, the Hokule’a will be returning to the sea, traveling to Micronesia then Japan. Like its first voyages, the Hokule’a seeks to retrace historical routes. The voyage between Hawaii and Tahiti represent the Hawaiian people settling in the Hawaiian Islands from Tahiti and this current trip, according to the article, “commemorate[s] Hawai’i’s historical links to the Japanese nation, which date to an 1991 visit by Hawaiian King David Kalakaua to Yokohama.” Though it seems to get little press on primetime or nationwide media, double-hulled canoe that docks several miles from my own house is symbolic of the Hawaiian people, quiet but strong, overlooked but utterly amazing.