Lindsay Weiss-Allen - last blog on the Polynesian cultural center

Polynesian Cultural Center

This field trip was sadly the last activity of our trip. We
all met at Jefferson Hall which is a building at the
University of Hawaii. The bus for the Polynesian Cultural
center picked us up at approximately 12:50. It took us
around an hour to get to the cultural center. We actually
visited the Mormon church that founded the Center. It was
started for students from Brigham Young University-Hawaii.
The students that attend the college work at the Center as a
part of their program. The students are not paid to work and
they receive free schooling in return. The Polynesian Center
is a non-profit organization.
Before we were let off the bus the driver told us the bus
number we were on and what lot we would be in when the
night ended. We were dropped off in front of the building,
and upon entering there were various shops where we could
purchase items that were related to the Polynesian culture.
We all huddled as a group and took a photo with lei's on.
After the picture we were advised that we had two hours to
explore the Center before it was time for dinner.
The first main activity that was taking place was a canoe
pageant which featured all different cultures. These canoes
were not ordinary canoes, but they had flat tops so the
members from each culture could dance and chant\sing, while
riding in the water.
After the pageant was over Gabby, Carly, Sandra and I
branched off from the rest of the group to explore the
Center. We all decided to go separate ways, so Sandra and I
went to go see the IMAX feature film on a documentary about
the oceans coral reefs. The screen was gigantic and amazing
to look at it. I always love watching IMAX movies, because I
feel as if I'm actually apart of the movie. I'm sure
many can relate.
The movie lasted for an hour so we had another hour to
kill. We decided to ride on the tropical canoe tour. We
passed different villages that surrounded the water. We
basically got to see the whole center in a fifteen minute
ride. The scenery was beautiful and they really did a
terrific job of making the place look like actual villages.
After the ride ended Sandra and I walked around and decided
to try some poi, which is known as taro. Poi is the staple
food of Hawaii and its made from the corm of the Kalo plant,
which grows in Hawaii. It tasted like a mix between mashed
potatoes and pudding. It had a very odd taste to it.
Sandra and I ran into Gabby, Grace and Carly. After meeting
we decided to get some shaved iced because we were all
pretty hungry. Desert before dinner sounded great! 5:00 came
around as we were all eating our ices and ice cream. We ran
to meet up with the rest of the group for our Luau dinner,
which is a Hawaiian feast. This luau was huge. There were so
many people.
We were all seated at tables and were asked what we wanted
to drink. Then the Natives came onto the stage and did an
ancestral welcome of song and dance. They were supposed to
be representing the King Kamehameha. The entertainment
lasted through out the time we were feasting. This luau was
buffet style and the foods consisted of salad, raw salmon,
potato salad that seemed to be mixed with Poi, pig, white
rice, chicken long rice (which are noodles), chicken, and
for desert they served coconut pudding, coconut cake and
carrot cake.
Dinner was interesting to say the least, not what I expected
but the food was average.
After dinner we made our way to the auditorium in which the
evening show would be held. This show included Hula dancing,
live instruments were played and singing\chanting was
performed. There were fire sticks used that men performed
special stunts with. Overall it was an amazing show. All of
the dancers had on these beautiful costumes and all had the
biggest smiles on their faces. Although there was one thing
that I was not so pleased with, and that was that they told
us we were not allowed to take pictures. I mean we all dealt
with it but it would have been nice to have some pictures of
the dancing. The show lasted for about two hours and it was
time to find the bus and head back to our hotel. We had a
long day of flying ahead of us and getting to sleep early
was a must.
Overall the luau was the best activity we did on the trip,
well besides from the beach. I mean who doesn't love the
Hawaiian beaches? The luau was a great way to end our trip.
It was definitely an event that I will never forget and I
hope everyone else feels the same way. Thanks to everyone
for making this trip enjoyable and one that I know I will
never forget! Mahalo!!