We grabbed a shake at the restaurant downstairs on our way to catch the bus for the Polynesian Cultural Center. They were delicious and very filling. We got onto a really nice PCC tour bus at 10 a.m. a block away from our hotel. It was really nice. Our tour guide, Cousin Steve, was so awesome! He was so fun and down to earth. He walked around barefoot which was fun to see and originally from Samoa. For our 1 hour 10 minute ride together, he told us jokes, had us sing songs together, asked the whole bus where they were from and talked to them all. About ¾ of the bus was a family from Canada. He said that in Hawaii they believe that everyone is family and they have a saying that nobody is left behind. He told us to call him, Cousin Steve. He ended up offering a tour given by him for those on the bus for an additional $25 and actually got all 52 people minus Byron & I to do it with him. It was a massive group and since we had already been there decided to do it on our own at our own pace.
We had a great time going to each of the 6 main countries. We started out with Tahiti and I was able to learn how to dance using my hips – pretty crazy but fun. Then we headed over to Hawaii. There were many myths that this guy was talking about Hawaii and it was cool to hear about them. Hawaii’s dance is called the Hula and doesn’t include moving your hips around like the movies portray. It is actually really a beautiful dance. This guy also talked about how “ukulele” and “Honolulu” is pronounced wrong by most people. If we pronounce them with the short vowels, that is the correct way. After Hawaii, we went over to Fuji and enjoyed their presentation. We learned a song by hitting long pieces of bamboo onto the ground with 3 basic beats: 1,2,3 very fast; 1,1, 3,3,3; and 1,2,3,4 (all even). I don’t think I saw this country last time there and was very fascinated. I also learned that Fuji is made up of many little islands and one of them is divided by the international dateline. So if you forget Valentine’s Day or an anniversary you can always remember the next day - -I’m not sure how things work there, but it would be very confusing to be divided between yesterday and today in one place.
After this country, we headed over to eat some lunch. I had a turkey sandwich and a cup of fruit while Byron got a hotdog with some nachos and a slurpee. The food hit the spot especially after having a very light lunch and it was 2:00 by now.
We walked over to enjoy the Canoe pageant where each of the countries is on a canoe with a platform on it. They dance while a narrator tells about each country. What beautiful costumes and dances!!!
We then went to Tonga and enjoyed hearing the very large drums. Attended the Aotearoa country which is also known as New Zealand. This countries dancing fascinates me as they make their eyes very large while dancing and they also are known for the Haka. Their costumes are a beautiful. We then attended our last country, Samoa as we loved watching the guy create fire by a stick and a coconut. This same guy, Kap, was the main one when we came 6 years ago and we loved watching him last time. He is hilarious and full of energy. Another guy also climbed a coconut tree.
After attending the counties, we enjoyed a short canoe ride. We went to dinner at a buffet which was held in a massive building – probably the size of a football field. The food was absolutely delicious. I enjoyed some yummy salad, potatoes, gravy, chicken, pork, corn, roll and dessert. We attended the Luau last time we came, but decided we wanted something different this time. There was a huge downpour while eating which made us very happy we were indoors at the time. After eating, we went and enjoyed some shopping while we were waiting for the show, “Ha - Breath of Life” to start. We purchased a picture from the main guy in Samoa, Kap, who is also a well known painter. He signed a picture we bought of his on the back and let us get pictures with him.
“Ha, Breath of Life” started at 7:30 p.m. – we were on the 7th row back on one side – the perfect seats. The show was amazing!!! Each of the countries was depicted as a child’s life was depicted through birth to death. The dancing, songs and costumes was all great. Kap also performed the fire dance and was amazing! I can’t believe that he can’t be afraid of fire as he steps on it, and plays with is while turning around torches very fast. Cousin Steve also performed with the fire in a different part. Byron enjoyed eating a pineapple sherbet while waiting - it was so yummy. The fresh pineapple was so good.
We headed back to the bus to get our ride back home. I could barely keep my eyes awake on our hour trip. I slept most of the time. Back at our hotel room I fell asleep immediately around 11 p.m. It was a very fun and enjoyable day. I am so glad we went back to the PCC – the staff is first class. I love seeing the college students perform these amazing dances and how they learn so much about their culture.
The beautiful views in the bus on the way to the PCC.
Byron doing the men dance in the island of Tahiti.
Island of Hawaii - such beautiful dancing.
The canoe pageant
Kap - Island of Samoa - amazing with fire
This bread is so yummy - I took a picture of it so I can make it at home.
Going for a canoe ride.
Dinner - the place was massive and all you can eat - delicious!
Byron with his ice-cream during the show.
This guy is multi-talented - he paints also and has such gorgous work - we purchased one and had him sign it. He also was in the Breath of Life show and pretty much the star of the show with his fire dancing.
Byron next to a Moi.
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