Following last week's ingredient spotlight on the Oahu Gardenia, I bring you a personal photo of my trip to the island from 1998. This was before I actually learned a thing or two about photography, so apologies if the photo isn't of the highest quality. I remember the trip started with a bought of food poisoning (eating a pineapple pizza from a dingy restaurant wasn't the best idea)...but the rest of the trip made up for it. The island of Oahu is beautiful, quaint, and peaceful, and the land is overall respected by its inhabitants. One of the highlights of our trip was getting to visit the Polynesia Cultural Center in Laia, Oahu, which is a center for authentic polynesian traditions and activities—a day of educational shows, activities, and feasts ends in one of the best luau's of the island (though I've heard in recent year's the center has gone a bit downhill and has become a tourist trap). Not surprisingly, I remember really enjoying learning about the usage of herbs and plants in Polynesia for treatment purposes at the medicinal hut also known as "Hale Hana." (Fun Fact: Indian Mulberry, aka "Noni" used to be one of the most popular plants for healing of various ailments and disease.) One of the others things I found most fascinating about Hawaii, was the landscape, particularly seeing the spontaneous-looking rock formations created by lava eruptions that slowly flowed and solidified in the surrounding waters. The idea that new land is and can still be created in this over exposed planet is exciting... and hopeful. While all the volcanoes on Oahu island are now extinct, the Kilauea volcano on Hawaii's Big Island has been continuously erupting lava since 1983, adding more than 500 acres of lava rock to the island's topography with no signs of stopping. I never got around the visiting the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island, where you can get up close to an active volcano, but I certainly have plans to return there. What Hawaiian islands have you visited? What would you recommend as the top sites/activities?