Windward O'ahu and the Polynesian Cultural Center

Sacred Falls

This was originally the agenda for the day:  hike Sacred Falls, and then spend the evening at the Polynesian Cultural Center.  Sacred Falls was a trail that I found in 'O'ahu Trails', one of the guidebooks in the apartment.  It sounded like a great hike with a dramatic waterfall at its conclusion.  We were having trouble finding it from the road so Matthew decided to do a little research on the iphone.... this was the headline he was met with: "May 1999, 8 hikers tragically killed, Rockslide at Sacred Falls".  The park has been closed ever since.  This is what I get for a) using an out-of-date guidebook - it was published in 1999 and b) trying to do a hike that none of the previous residents had written about in the 'black book'.  I will now try to double-check all planned ventures with the internet. 

Plan B:  Kualoa Ranch and Chinaman's Hat

Not a bad back-up plan, huh?  Kualoa Ranch - the stunning range on the windward side of the island - has been featured on several movies (Jurassic Park, 50 First Dates, Godzilla, Pearl Harbor).  Native Hawaiians always considered this a very sacred part of the island.  They did not understand the concept of land ownership and sold this land to a missionary for $1300 or so.  It is still privately owned and there are several overpriced tours you can take of the ranch.  The mountains are too steep to climb, and all the tours occur right at the base of the rock formation.... I think this view is best, from the public beach across the street.  

Chinaman's Hat is the island just off the shore of Kualoa Ranch (pictured below).  This is an island that you can wade out to during low tide.  Low tide is at 5:00 am this time of year, so we just appreciated it from the shore.  Matthew wants to return early one morning.  You can also kayak out.  Many visitors climb to the top with the aid of climbing gear.

Kahana Valley State Park

After walking the beach we were still itching to do some sort of hike through the rainforest.  So we drove up the road to Kahana Valley State Park.  This park is home to about 150 native Hawaiians who engage in sustainable agriculture in this valley.  We weren't prepared to do the full loop hike of the valley - it's a 4 mile hike and we were starting too late in the day.  Also it soon became apparent that we had forgotten our bug spray:).  We just made it a short way up the trail before turning back.

Polynesian Cultural Center

Island Village of Fiji.  Great grass dwelling!

We went ahead a made reservations at the Polynesian Cultural Center for a Luau and evening show.  I had alot of reservations about doing this because it was a little expensive and it seemed like the ultimate tourist attraction, the Disney of the Polynesian Islands.  But I think it was worth it.  Our package included the Luau with performances and an all-you-can-eat buffet with all the traditional Hawaiian foods, admission to the 'island villages', and a seat at the 'Ha: Breath of Life' evening show.  Most everything was better than I expected and for the most part they refrained from making this too cheesy and stuck to the educational mission of their portrayal of island life.  We probably should have spent more time touring the villages, which shows the vernacular architecture, crafts, and customs of each of the different Polynesian Islands.  Many elements of the islands are similar to each other while other customs are completely different and unique.  As soon as I think I have a grasp of the culture I am surprised by something new!

A couple of images of the Luau.  They cooked a pig, which is a favorite among the island foods, by burying it in a pit and cooking it all day.  Our review of Island food:  Poke:  Great - basically marinated raw fish.  Poi:  Not great - that's the purplish paste oozing on the plate.  Poi is mashed taro root (if from the south you would know taro as elephant ear).  The Hawaiians love taro.  The purple loaf of bread is taro bread - quite good.  The pig was fantastic, as well as the white island fish.  Also pretty good - some clear slimmy noodles they called 'chicken rice noodles'.  Not quite sure how that is made, but it tastes like chicken noodle soup.  Matthew also liked the marinated beef, which was similar to beef jerky in flavor.

 The biggest surprise of the evening, and the part I enjoyed the most, was the evening show.  Titled 'Ha: the Breath of Life', this was a highly choreographed musical presentation.  It showed the various celebrations and traditions of island life through dances, songs, and chants.  The celebration of a new birth, the death of a loved on, preparation for war, falling in love - each has a different costume and style of dance and rhythm of chanting.  Really a dynamic show, very fun and engaging.  The finale featured dances with fire - batons with fire at each end.  All in all, a great production.

 Sarah - I thought of you the whole time - would have loved to watch with your commentary - I know you learned some Maori dances while in New Zealand.