Weight=178.6 pounds, Steps=13,183
If you live in Puna, chances are you know where to find Uncle Robert’s. No need for directions—everyone knows that his family’s four-acre compound can be found at the end of Kapoho-Kalapana Road (the "red road"). It is the site of Uncle Robert’s Kava Bar, Kalapana Cultural Tours, and a popular farmers market. Uncle Robert’s is a well-known community gathering place and a hotbed of the Kingdom of Hawaii sovereignty movement. Uncle Robert who died in 2015 was a big proponent of returning Hawaii to its original independent island status.
There are visitors all week, but the Wednesday Night Market is the party night. As you arrive, prepare for lots of traffic at the end of the road. The local staff will guide your car to a parking spot out on the lava ($3.00 parking fee). But one can park on the shoulder of the main road outside the compound and walk in (about 10 minute walk). Live music (Hawaiian and country) goes all through the evening under the giant palapa-like structure, with dancing for those inclined, There is plenty of seating all around the area on wooden picnic tables (ohana family style) if you get there early enough to grab a spot.
The market itself is crammed full of all kinds of vendors, from local honey to tarot card readings, to jewelry, and so much more. The mainly-ethnic food offerings being prepared right in front of you at a furious pace are too many to count. You could wander through and stuff yourself by sampling from these vendors easily. Walk around and look at everything, as some food stalls are mixed in with the vendor booths. The sights and smells of the different ethnic preparations from Asia and Hawaii are a feast for the senses. Vegan gelato anyone? Be careful with local "cleansing brews" (ginger and other herbs, who knows what) which can be very strong. Glance at the picture gallery below for a sampling of the wares. There is also an adult beverage bar near the entrance and a kava bar in a nearby hut.
By 7PM, Uncle Robert's is in full buzz mode. About 75% of the crowd come from the local Puma district and the rest from all areas of the USA and rest of the globe visiting the big islaqnd. It feels more like a festival rather than a farmer's market...it is also a social market, of sorts.
If you live in Puna, chances are you know where to find Uncle Robert’s. No need for directions—everyone knows that his family’s four-acre compound can be found at the end of Kapoho-Kalapana Road (the "red road"). It is the site of Uncle Robert’s Kava Bar, Kalapana Cultural Tours, and a popular farmers market. Uncle Robert’s is a well-known community gathering place and a hotbed of the Kingdom of Hawaii sovereignty movement. Uncle Robert who died in 2015 was a big proponent of returning Hawaii to its original independent island status.
There are visitors all week, but the Wednesday Night Market is the party night. As you arrive, prepare for lots of traffic at the end of the road. The local staff will guide your car to a parking spot out on the lava ($3.00 parking fee). But one can park on the shoulder of the main road outside the compound and walk in (about 10 minute walk). Live music (Hawaiian and country) goes all through the evening under the giant palapa-like structure, with dancing for those inclined, There is plenty of seating all around the area on wooden picnic tables (ohana family style) if you get there early enough to grab a spot.
The market itself is crammed full of all kinds of vendors, from local honey to tarot card readings, to jewelry, and so much more. The mainly-ethnic food offerings being prepared right in front of you at a furious pace are too many to count. You could wander through and stuff yourself by sampling from these vendors easily. Walk around and look at everything, as some food stalls are mixed in with the vendor booths. The sights and smells of the different ethnic preparations from Asia and Hawaii are a feast for the senses. Vegan gelato anyone? Be careful with local "cleansing brews" (ginger and other herbs, who knows what) which can be very strong. Glance at the picture gallery below for a sampling of the wares. There is also an adult beverage bar near the entrance and a kava bar in a nearby hut.
By 7PM, Uncle Robert's is in full buzz mode. About 75% of the crowd come from the local Puma district and the rest from all areas of the USA and rest of the globe visiting the big islaqnd. It feels more like a festival rather than a farmer's market...it is also a social market, of sorts.
The market is a family affair and many of Uncle Robert’s extended family can be found working either behind a booth counter, the bar or directing traffic and parking, or up on stage performing. The market had an unlikely beginning and it was a lava flow in 1990 that set in motion events that culminated in the eventual founding of the Wednesday Night Market -- still the only night market in the islands.
Lava moved slowly through his village of Kalapana between April and June 1990 as an ongoing event of the eruption of Kilauea Volcano which started in 1983. The slow-moving lava gradually spread through the community, burning homes and covering parks, roads, and gardens -- a major devastation for the Kalapana villagers. The only structure which was spared belonged to Robert Keli‘iho‘omalu (Uncle Robert). As a man of great faith, he believed that divine intervention spared his compound. The lava stopped short, just shy of his family’s home and turned direction heading toward the ocean. Twenty seven years later you can still see where the lava flow stopped and changed direction.
Hidden at the end of the road, this tiny local community is everything that the real Hawaii is all about: friendly people, music and dance, home made food and friendship. Every Wednesday, locals and tourists get together at Uncle Robert's to share a moment and enjoy the simpler things in life. Be prepared to go back in time to the 70s. The aloha spirit is still strong here.
Lava moved slowly through his village of Kalapana between April and June 1990 as an ongoing event of the eruption of Kilauea Volcano which started in 1983. The slow-moving lava gradually spread through the community, burning homes and covering parks, roads, and gardens -- a major devastation for the Kalapana villagers. The only structure which was spared belonged to Robert Keli‘iho‘omalu (Uncle Robert). As a man of great faith, he believed that divine intervention spared his compound. The lava stopped short, just shy of his family’s home and turned direction heading toward the ocean. Twenty seven years later you can still see where the lava flow stopped and changed direction.
Hidden at the end of the road, this tiny local community is everything that the real Hawaii is all about: friendly people, music and dance, home made food and friendship. Every Wednesday, locals and tourists get together at Uncle Robert's to share a moment and enjoy the simpler things in life. Be prepared to go back in time to the 70s. The aloha spirit is still strong here.
A visit with Uncle Robert:
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