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Fascinating Facts: |
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Hawaii is the name of the island as well
as the state. To reduce confusion, the Island of Hawaii
is referred to as the "Big Island." |
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| Big Island is the youngest
of the Hawaiian Islands, at just over one million years
old. |
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| The closest continent is more than 2,500
miles away, making the Hawaiian Islands the most
isolated spot in the world. |
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| Big Island is 4,028 square miles (10,473
square km) and still growing. It has 266 miles (428 km)
of shoreline, is 95 miles long, and 80 miles wide. |
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| World’s tallest mountain is Mauna Kea;
its height from the ocean floor measures 33,476 feet
(10,203 m) and it is 13,796 feet (4,205 m) above sea
level. |
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| Big Island has the world's biggest
telescope and has more scientific observatories in one
place than anywhere else in the world. |
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| Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is the
only live volcano flowing in the U.S. |
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Population of Big Island is 171,191 (as of July 1, 2006
census).
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Transportation - Rental cars
available at both Kona and Hilo airports and some
hotels. The public bus is Hele-On and travels around the
entire island for FREE.
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Big Island is the most ecologically
diverse of all the islands, with natural environments
ranging from the desert plains of Ka‘u to the rain
forests above Hilo, to snowcapped Mauna Kea. There are
said to be 13 climatic regions on earth and the Big
Island has all but two, the Arctic and the Sahara.
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Parker Ranch is one of the
largest privately held ranches in the United States.
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Big Island is the Golf
Capital of Hawaii with 20 golf courses and several more
scheduled for completion.
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Ka Lae (South Point) is the
southernmost point in the United States. |
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| Kona is home to the Ironman
World Championship every October. |
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| Big Island is the only place
in the United States where vanilla beans and cocoa beans
are grown. |
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| Red Lehua Ohia is Big
Island’s Flower. |
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Just in case you did not know...
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Time Zone - Hawaii Standard Time, HST.
GMT-10 hours. 2 hours behind PST, 3 hours
during Daylight Savings Time. Hawaii does not
observe Daylight Savings.
Clothing - CASUAL! NO SUITS or TIES! Hawaiian
shirts and slippers (flip flops) are the norm.
"Resort wear" for fine dining. Layers and
jackets/warm clothing needed for Volcano, Waimea
and visits to Mauna Kea.
Currency - U.S. dollar. This place feels like
another country, but it is the 50th State!
Language - The only state with TWO official
languages - Hawaiian and English.
Area Code - 808 for all land and cell phones. |
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