Tonga, the Friendly Islands

Tonga, the Friendly Islands

Malo e lele! Welcome to the friendly islands of the Kingdom of Tonga. There are about 171 islands in the three main island groups of Tongatapu, Ha’apai, and Vava’u. Tonga has the distinction of being the only island nation that was never formally colonized by a...

Tonga Time

Tonga, like it’s cousins across the Pacific, has it’s own approach to time. Today may mean tomorrow. Half an hour may be more like two hours or in some cases two days or even a week. If you are a foreigner this may take a bit of adjusting to, but remember you...

Tongan Feast For Christmas

Tongan feasting: A serious custom [Author’s note: I have attended Polynesian feasts where they cooked 200 pigs, and fed thousands of people . . . but the first time I sat down at a Tongan kaipola feast, I was truly impressed.]   An expression of love and...

2016 Polynesian Football Hall of Fame Inductees

The Polynesian Football Hall of Fame announces the Class of 2016 The Polynesian Football Hall of Fame (PFHoF), which partners with the Cultural Center on a permanent museum exhibit near the front entrance, announced its Class of 2016 on October 7. The new inductees...

Training with the Heart and Soul of Polynesia

Over the years the Polynesian Cultural Center has used various human resource training programs, many of them recognized around the world, but recently the PCC is taking a new tack — or more correctly, is turning to ancient Polynesian values to instill a PCC-specific...

Welcome to Fiji!

    “Bula Vinaka” and welcome to Fiji! This phrase means more than simple hello or greeting, and the speaker proclaims “good health” or “good life” to the hearer. The approximate 330 inhabitable islands of Fiji are spread out over more than a million square...

Laie News September 2015

Laie continues to celebrate its sesquicentennial: In our July e-Newsletter, we mentioned that Laie is celebrating its Latter-day Saint sesquicentennial this year (1865-2015): It’s been 150 years since The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints purchased Laie...

Polynesian Football Hall of Fame

Polynesian Football Hall of Fame  The Polynesian Football Hall of Fame, which partners with the Polynesian Cultural Center in showcasing the organization’s permanent exhibit gallery near our front entrance, announced its roster of 25 finalists who will be on the...