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Published: February 5th 2009
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Day 3: Saturday
Rajesh had spotted a Hawaiian breakfast place called Perry Smorgy’s and he wanted to check it out for breakfast. So we went there and they served a breakfast buffet, set amidst Hawaiian surroundings with tropical plants, fish ponds etc. The ambience was superb and so was breakfast.
We needed more beach time to whet our oceanic appetite and so we headed out to Kamehameha highway again, but this time towards the opposite side to spend some more time in a couple of the deserted beaches. The Kamehameha Highway was named for King Kamehameha the Great, who conquered and unified all the Hawaiian Islands. We stopped at Kiulima cove and spent some time there, kids played in the water, while I read Jefrrey Archer’s latest Novel sitting on the rocks and Rajesh chewed on some Manikchand. Next we stopped at Pupukea Beach Park, where the shark’s cove provides some tide pools fit for snorkeling. Niki tried to do snorkeling; I had bought her a kit at Albany itself. She felt it was hard to breathe with the tube in her mouth and so she ended up swimming as well as swallowing a lot of salt water. She
said that she saw 6 different fishes and a creature with tentacles that poked her on the chest and caused a small scratch.
It was time to proceed to the Polynesian cultural center where I had booked tickets for a Hawaiian lu’au (feast) and a show as well. We reached the PCC and proceeded to check out some of the villages inside it. There was a hula contest going on in the Pacific theater. Our first stop was at Samoa, where the natives caused fire by rubbing sticks, broke the coconut with their bare hands and also served us some delicious mango and passion fruit ice cream in a large bowl. Next we moved on to Aotearoa to be welcomed by the Maoris of New Zealand with their ritual. The chief screamed something in native tongue followed by a dance and welcomed us and took us into his village where they performed a musical with pin balls and sticks. Niki loved it and Rajesh said he was coming back to visit the Maoris once again later.
There was a pageant to take place in the canal, so we proceeded there to get first row seats. We watched the
native Polynesians representing their respective villages treat us with dance and music of their cultures on canoes. Niki liked Tahiti the best and I voted for Fiji. Rajesh was loyal to the Maoris. We were full from the buffet breakfast and the ice cream, so we skipped lunch and decided to save space for the lu’au at 5:30 pm.
We went to the other villages - Tonga, Tahiti, Hawaii and Fiji. All were colorful, though I think Hawaii could have done better. Niki learnt to dance the hula. The drums at Tonga were very entertaining, 3 guys - a Jap, a black and a white were called upon from the crowd to beat drums and entertain us comically. We saw the chief’s dwelling in Fiji and got native tattoos on our ankles as well. In Tahiti, Niki learnt the art of native fishing and we got to taste their coconut bread and watch native fire-eaters. Megna had no clue as to what we were doing. She was busy singing her school songs and following us around the villages.
Niki got excited seeing the Rapa Nui. I had no idea who they were and she said something about them being
from the Easter Island and wanted to take a picture with them. I still did not understand who they were. But it’s with pride that I realized that my daughter knew something that I didn’t. Well, it was 5 pm and Rajesh went to see the Maoris of NZ again while me and kids went to the lu’au area. There was a line waiting to get into the lu’au and so I called mom and shared with her some of the experiences.
We were welcomed with traditional leis (flower garland) and led to our seats. The place where the lu’au was held was a 3-tier terraced garden and we got to sit on the uppermost tier. We were entertained with some hula performances and then a native explained to us the tradition of the lu’au. The chief came in first with his men, followed by his wife with her ladies in waiting. They spoke something in their native language, welcomed us to their feast. Then the roasted Kalua pig was dug from the fire pit and brought out by 2 natives. We were told to greet the other members at our feast table by saying Aloha. There were 2
other couples who shared our table. Finally, we had to hold hands and say Thank you for the feast and then we were free to proceed to our buffet.
The feast was delicious, there was Pipi kaula (kinda like beef jerkey), Kalua Pu’aa (fire-pit roasted pig), Teriyaki chicken, Lomilomi salmon (a marinated tangy salmon), Taro rolls (purple colored bread made from Taro flour, it was warm and yummy), Poi (a root, their version of potato), a variety of salads and of course abundant pineapple. We ate a hearty meal and the dessert was delicious too - coconut cake, pineapple stuffed cake and a soufflé that I didn’t try. They served tropical drinks at the table - pina colada, passion fruit juice and water melon juice.
The day ended with the show - ‘Horizons, where the sea meets the sky’, a beautiful performance and a musical and dance medley by the Polynesians, that would remain etched in our memories forever. A detailed info on the show can be found at http://www.polynesia.com//shows/horizons.html
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Wash Esh Kom Darwin Sanada
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contact from the great lakes
i am in michigan(9897996512)and would like to contact a local native spritual person