Midway (CVA 41) - Naval Cruise Book

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The sun is the predominant feature of Hawaii. Even though there is much rain, there is hardly a day when the sun doesn ' t break through the clouds during the afternoon. Dur- ing our stay everyone had the opportunity to spend a few of those afternoons beside the pool ar at one of many natural beaches. I softened by sunlight . . . The sun is not the only distinguishing feature of the islands. They also quietly boast of the wettest spot in the U. S. Rain is nearly as common as clear weather. The most common however is a combination of the two — rain around the mountain peaks and sun over the beaches. The strange sounding possibility of crossing the street into a rain squall is not as impossible as it sounds in some parts of the island. But through it all is the constant tropical breeze that makes even high temperatures comfortable, and around it all is the blue Pacific mellowly whispering its cooling message to all on the islands. This was the land that Captain Cook sailed upon in 1778. It was occupied by 200,000 nature loving Polyne- sians who had done little to enhance or destroy its natural beauty.

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. . . a land The South Pacific isn ' t a paradise, in the sense that Eden wasn ' t either. There are always apples and snakes . . . So wrote James Michener. He also said, . . . it rose from the sea in sharp cliffs ... It contained deep-set bays and tree-rimmed shores of glistening sand. It was so beautiful that it seemed impossible that it had arisen by chance ; gods must have formed it . . . But even the gods have taken ages to accomplish the feat. The land was once a rugged, rocky lump of lava. It has taken centuries of sea, wind, and the weathering of the hot Pacific Sun, to round out the scenery of Hawaii. For Hawaii is a land of scenery. The Nuuanu Pali, Diamondhead, Moana Loa, and the many beautiful bays and beaches all fit together to form a chain of islands which lie in the sun and breathe relaxation.

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. . . then molded by man into a playground