A Bona Fide Lu`au

I can now add to the number of eccentric older famous geologist celebrities that I've met. Yesterday, Jack Lockwood (a friend of Walter Alvarez, so Jack was excited to meet other Carleton graduates) invited us volunteers to a special lu`au celebrating the release of his new volcanology textbook, as long as we helped dig the imu oven and prepare the pig. It seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so most of us jumped at the opportunity. This wasn't some fake lu`au organized for tourists where they aren't allowed to give the tourists the roasted pig meat and there are hula dancers everywhere. This is bona fide.

We drove out to rural Volcano to a huge, sprawling and messy farm where they killed the pig (I set up the tables so I didn't have to watch the slaughter and become a vegetarian) and we helped to set up the oven. It was basically a big pit under a tin shack where we piled `ohi`a tree wood high and covered it with stones. I didn't post any graphic pictures of the pig.

These are the materials - a pit, rocks, banana stumps, tea leaves, `ohi`a wood, and dirt.


Here's Katie and the pit pre-wood...


We piled the kindling on, but apparently it wasn't enough for the giant pig, so we had to take all of the rocks and larger pieces of wood off and start again. This time we did Pele proud. I've also learned that volcanologists tend to be pyromaniacs.


We were at the farm from 10-3 for this stage of the process. At 6 pm they lit the fire, and we returned at midnight to help put the pig on the rocks. We definitely earned our invitation!

At midnight we smashed the banana stumps to cover the glowing rocks (the wood had all burned away), and we carried the 100-lb pig to the pit using hooks thrust through the lower legs. Frank (an HVO geologist who was in charge of the whole process) cut pockets in the shoulders and rump of the pig, and we put thin round glowing rocks inside the pockets and belly to facilitate the cooking. The entire pig was smoking, but it didn't really smell like bacon.

The final stages included covering the remaining glowing rocks with the squashed banana stumps, wrapping the pig in tin foil and wire like a giant hot pocket, and covering the pig with banana leaves, tea leaves, wet burlap sacks, a tarp, and finally piling dirt back on top. It was extremely smoky due to the rocks in the pig as well as the burning wood.

We'll see how it turned out soon! We start eating the pig at 2 pm. I'll post more pictures and let you know how it went later today.