Heaven on Earth

When I was young, I listened to music lots on tapes, vinyls (back then, no CD).  One time, my brother bought a Santana album, MoonFlower, which I loved it (and  still listen to it sometimes). However, the album  cover is what amazed me with the picture taken above the cloud with mountains in the far distance in sunset. I dreamed one day, I could be there. Yes, it's just a dream until 2016, when we, my wife and I,  visited Hawaii's Mauna Kea. Prepared ourselves with jackets, snacks, water,  and of course, camera and tripod, we drove 2.5 hours to the top parking  and hiked to the top of the mountain before the sunset. There are quite a few of people were there but it was so quiet. Just the sound of the wind blowing. Everyone picked a place to sit down waiting for the magical moment, when the sun sets. I set up my  tripod, camera and waited for the moment and when it came, it just blowed my mind. I couldn't describe it. It was so amazing.

My Mom read me a fairy tale when I was little kid ( miss you, Mom) about that guy who married a fairy and lives with her in a mountain. After a while, he missed home but forgot how to go back to home town on Earth so he just stood on mountain top and looked down, tried to look for home. This picture reminds me of that story. Suddenly right after the sunset, the cloud got broken out and the lighted city appeared right in the eye of the cloud. It happened so quick that I could only had time to take 3 pictures, which I deleted two of them because of out of focus, before the eye shut. This opportunity would never happen again in a life time.

I decided to go back for the sunrise but my wife refused to go with me because she didn't understand how can I just take pictures of the same thing for hours :). By the time we got back to hotel, it's midnight. I had 2 hours to sleep and left the hotel around 2:30am, drove alone back to the place I just left not too long ago. I was happy I did that because sunrise was completely different but equally amazing and beautiful with sunset. This picture really made my childhood dream come true. I thanked to my brother (who already passed away) who introduced me to that album of Santana. If you had a chance to stand in front of beautiful view, you will sure feel why I called this Heaven on Earth.