Day #3 - Hawaii Five-O

Sorry for the delay. I've had some interesting issues trying to "blog" these last couple of days. And since I'm sure you are anxious to know more about our trip, I've been stressing about it. I also got an interesting comment on my previous blog - which disturbs me a bit. I need to see if I can delete comments...

Read Zack's blog! He has posted some pictures that will give you a good idea of what we did and where we were. He has really enjoyed the photography thing, and his writing is a wonderful compliment to the photos.

So, Day 3: This is our day at the Polynesian Cultural Center, or PCC. If you want to sound like a local, you would call it "da PCC".

We were still waking up a little early, and the PCC doesn't open until 11:00. At least, that's when the shops open. The day was a little rainy/misty. I drove over ahead of time to see if they still operated in the rain - silly question. It would be like Calgary shutting down in the snow! So we made our way over, and wandered through the gift shops and waited for our 12:15 call to get our tour guide. Initially, I thought having our own guide would be fun. His name was Gabriel, and he was so nice. But in retrospect, I think wandering on your own is a little better. I felt a little stressed trying to keep the group together, making sure we were on schedule, etc. I didn't want to feel that way, and I tried not to express it. When we walked in the front entrance and looked around, Mom asked if it looked familiar. Honestly, when Becky and I lived there we never went in the front door - we always went in the back gate. And since we were friends with the security guards, they let us in. So, the answer was no, nothing looked familiar at the front gate. There have been some rennovations since we've been there, too. I also noticed that everything seemed a little more "commercial" - like they've fine-tuned the art of merchandising. That bothered me. The presentations in the different villages were fun, and I think everyone enjoyed the day. Another one of my observations? I think the reason I had such a love for the PCC and the shows is that I knew so many of the people that were performing. I looked at the performers, staring at their faces trying to see if there was anything familiar. Then I realized my mistake: I was looking into the faces of 20-something year old people when I should have been looking at the 50 yr old faces. Jolt to the system! We got "tatoos" and learned how to weave palms leaves and ate a few Pineapple Deelights - a nummy ice cream treat, not to be confused with a "Whip". When I lived in Hawaii years ago, the Deelights were served in a fresh pineapple bowl - the actual pineapple. Now they have plastic pineapple bowls with the PCC logo. Merchandising. We do have a new set of cereal bowls, though. Unlike most people who throw those things away, we had to hoard them and take them home for future use. Jeff and Alisha performed with the Tahitian dancers - nice job- and some of us learned a hula. I know how it felt, but how it "looked" is another issue. Emma and Sadee even got the hang of the hula. We took a "canoe" ride back through the villages just in time for our luau. When we got to the end of the ride, at the other dock, I suddenly recognized that area! The last week we spent in Hawaii in 1978, we did nothing but hang out at da PCC, at that canoe landing with friends. Yes, I do have some memories after all. The luau was pretty good - see Zack's photos. They had a program, and at one point the MC asked for all couples celebrating an anniversary in December to go up on stage. Sarah and Jared's anniversary was the 28th, the day before, so they went up and danced along with the other couples. They were so cute. Sarah's little tummy kept right up with her. Jared even dipped her! Back at the table, Sadee was not a happy little girl when she realized her parents were on stage. She didn't make any noise about it, but oh my, if looks could kill - she gave her parents quite the stink eye. We had pretty good seats for the night show. By the time it started we were already at the end of a very long day, so it felt good to sit down. Sadee watched the entire show, Emma fell asleep towards the end. Again, a very good show, but there were no familiar faces. What did we do after our day was over? Back to the house and get ready for bed. I don't remember the particulars. So this was Friday. Tomorrow, Pearl Harbor.