This is not the first post of these trees. But this photo offers a slightly different view and treatment. “Do they really look like that?” you ask. Well, I studied and taught philosophy just long enough to be confused by that question. So I’m not answering. . . .
The Painted Church, aka St. Benedict’s Roman Catholic Church, is officially in the town of Captain Cook, though I remember it as being somewhere on the side of a hill away from any kind of urban features. From the outside it is fairly nondescript. But on the inside it is beautifully painted, thus, the name “Painted Church.”
Rather than talk about the church I want to talk about photography. First, this is a hand-held exposure at 1/15 of a second. I don’t travel with a tripod and for interior photography in dimly lit spaces, you have to be lucky to get something acceptable with that shutter speed. Thank you, Image Stabilization!
I took this photo in 2008 and at the time, I don’t think I knew what HDR was. But but this scene begs for HDR treatment – not to make it seem someone surreal but instead to do a better job of exposing the who scene, including the windows, which are clealy blown out. “Blown highlights” is photographer talk for bright parts of a photo that have no detail because they are severely overexposed. If I had had a tripod, I would have taken one photo that properly exposed for the windows and one photo that exposed for the interior. And then in software, I would have combined the two into one well exposed photo.
Like so many other places I have travelled to, I need to go back to the Painted Church and do it right (or at least better). . . .
My Garmin Nuvi said the elevation at this point on Mauna Kea in Hawaii was 13,910′ though officially, I don’t think it is quite that high. What’s amazing about Mauna Kea is that you can drive all of the way to the top in your car. It was cold and windy up there and there was snow, which we South Dakotans were trying to escape the December we were visiting our son Jon on the Big Island.
You tell me the evolutionary intent of colorful tree trunks. Could it be to lure tourists to Maui from places like South Dakota, where trees tend to be utilitarian and bland?
Yes, it is a “big” beach but it really is known as Big Beach, though officially it is Makena Beach State Park. A few years ago, our family visited Maui and we spent a sunny afternoon enjoying the warmth and the waves of Big Beach.
Incidentally, in doing a search for “Big Beach” to find the official name, I found about 1000 other photos taken from this vantage point. So much for giving the world a different look at things in this blog. . . . And, incidentally, if I rotated 180 degrees and took another photo, I would be photographing Little Beach, where naked people abound. Officially, nudity is illegal on the public beaches of Maui but apparently the authorities look the other way. Do I have photos of that beach? Nope.
The answer to the question posed in the title is “plumeria.” Plumeria are the fragrant flowers that grow on trees – but not in South Dakota. 
These plumeria were growing in Hawaii. I was reading that in some Pacific cultures the plumeria is associated with vampires and in others the trees are said to provide shelters to ghosts. Ghosts and vampires must smell good in these places because the fragrance of these flowers is strong and pleasant.
This little guy briefly flitted into view, posed for this photo and then flitted back into hiding. This is a gecko, as you may know, and you find them in unlikely places in Hawaii, including bedroom wall and bathroom mirrors. They are harmless and, as you can see here, colorful.
I have said before that our youngest son Jon tends to take us to interesting places when he is in charge of the itinerary. Here’s a good example: we are in the Waipio Valley on the Big Island. Contrast this with the photo of Hawaii I posted a couple days ago and you will also see what I mean by “diversity” on the Big Island.
The Big Island of Hawaii is a remarkable place, with snow capped peaks, humid rain forests and barren terrain that looks like is could be from another universe. This photo was taken near the famous green sand beach near the southern tip of the island. Our son Jon took us there and I thought it was going to ruin the truck we we in. But I’m glad we went.