Today was probably one of my most favorite so far! Last night we stumbled across a booth in the mall for the Polynesian Cultural Center. We had booked tickets a few weeks ago, but decided to add on transportation to save us the hassle of the city buses and transfers. I am SO GLAD we did. We lucked into an awesome tour guide who really made our experience great! The bus picked us up at 10:00am here in Waikiki. We were greeted by our tour guide, Nisi, who immediately made every single person on that bus feel warm and welcome. We got to know each other a little bit to start off and the whole way there Nisi taught us things, showed us the sights and prepared us well for our visit. We got to see some movie filming sights, important landmarks, and a gorgeous mountain range. He taught us a few words in some different languages including some polynesian greetings. Little did we know that the whole bus ride he was prepping us for the activities and adventures ahead. He made sure we were familiar with our "Ohana" or bus family so that we could help each other out while we were there and make sure we all arrived back at the bus later that night. He had us remember three things before we left the bus. First, our stall number which was 21. Second, the time we were to be on the bus. And third, the number 150, which would be how much our cab ride would cost if we missed the bus. Since it was his last day at the center we got a discounted BBQ lunch and tour with him. You could tell he had been doing this for a while as he had everything worked out to a T.
We started out our visit at the center by going on a canoe ride to the end of the center. Nisi said this would help us avoid crowds and hit up the important and popular events. When we looked over at another boat he said, "What do we call those people? Tourists!" He was super efficient and super good at what he does!
The sights were beautiful! I love the water and trees here!
As we rode around on the canoe he told us about the different polynesian islands and reviewed their greetings with us. One of our first stops was this canoe.
Next up we learned how to hula to a cute little island song played on the Ukulele. Everyone was participating and laughing and looking good as we pretended we knew how to hula. It was nice being a part of such a warm, friendly group. We then met up in the shade, which Nisi refers to as the air conditioning, and made our way to the next place where we learned how to make music using bamboo sticks.
We did some spear throwing and basket weaving and then headed to the dances, which are popular. He coached us on where to sit to make an early escape and made sure we understood to leave after the green color performed so that we could get good seats at our next exhibit. The dances were great and full of culture. It was so great to learn about the polynesians, such a great people.
My heart totally ached for our guide as I watched him soak in his last day. He was trying to soak in the moment at each exhibit. He watched his friends teach us as if it was his last day living and you could instantly tell he was going to miss it here! He performed a dance with his people, the Tongans, who all dressed in red. While they were dancing one of the little paddle boys fell off the back of the boat as they were steering. Everyone cracked up. The other paddler kept laughing and teasing as the boy got back on, all in good fun of course. Just near the end of the dance, Nisi noticed this boy laughing and pushed him in the water too! They had two wet paddlers and the whole crowd was cracking up. Later he informed us that when it's your last day, usually you are the one to get pushed in, so he had to get the upperhand.
"Cousin Nisi" had us leave early to beat the crowds to the tongan drumming. He had us sit near the front so that we could make an early exit. The drumming performance was hilarious and totally enhanced by three random performers from the crowd. It was a total comedy act and I could have peed my pants laughing. It rains pretty randomly in Hawaii, even when the sky is blue it can be sprinkling rain. Just near the end of the performance we experienced this. Our guide was super prepared though and we left early to gather in a near by hut and learn about how they make clothing with a hammer and the inner bark of a tree.
Our second last exhibit was coconut husking. Again, a super comedic performance done by a Samoan boy with traditional tatooes from his knees to his hip. At the end of his performance we got to see a boy climb a tree and retrieve a coconut.
Then he started pretending he was a calendar boy and posing for each month. This was February.
Our final stop was in a big hut where we learned about the traditional Samoan tatoo and how the boys get them done when they come of age. They use a hammer, homemade dye, and a needle made of grass or something like that. For a few hours a day over a two week period the boy is held down by four men while they hammer the design into his skin. Crazy! At the conclusion of our tour Nisi asked to get a picture with all of us since we were his last group. He then presented us with kissing fish made from cocnut leaves weaved together. He talked to us about how respect is an important aspect of his culture and how it is something one should earn and not demand. That really hit home for me! Even with our children, we need to be living in such a way that we are earning their respect and not demanding it. Mike and I are going to work that into a family motto somewhere pretty soon.
He then walked each of us to our different dinner destinations and gave us all a hug goodbye. Thanks to him we had a super amazing experience at the center! I highly recommend it to anyone who visits the islands! We finished off our evening with a delicious buffet and the show. The dancers were amazing and the fire throwing was unreal! We returned to our hotel crazy tired, but the experience was so worth it.
