Hula Mai

We just got back from a long Valentine Day weekend in Honolulu where we were mainly shopping for Hula Mai, but, as they say - you can't be all business all the time, especially in the Islands, so we managed to pack a few other projects in, too.

The social highlight of the weekend was the 90^th birthday party for Auntie Pat Bacon, a cultural icon at the Bishop Museum.  Petite, and still spry with a cute twinkle in her eyes, Auntie Pat danced the hula and was the center of the "talk story" of the evening. 

Eddie Kamae (Sons of Hawaii, please see our Resources page) serenaded Auntie Pat and strummed his big custom-made uke. I had just finished reading his story, Hawaiian Son, the day before on the plane! Eddie, a musician turned filmmaker, and his wife, Myrna, worked closely with Auntie Pat and her mother, Mary Kawena Puku'i, to document the stories and traditions from old-time Hawaiians - a priceless legacy.

We spent one day at the Polynesian Cultural Center which now has a spectacular show called Ha, Breath of Life, featuring dances from all over Polynesia and climaxes with some incredible fire dancing of Samoa.

The 10 kukui lei are gone, but I still have some of the white shell lei and will keep bringing them to class until they are gone, too.   

We got a good start on our costumes for our June 25 Ho'ike . Linda and Minta came over to our place the next morning and decided on the fabric for our costumes. They ordered 122 yards that afternoon --- we are going to look SO good!!!