My Stint as a Royal Prince

During my senior year in high school, I was chosen to be the first ever prince in the royal court on the Big Island of Hawaii. While sitting directly across of Uncle George Naope (former kumu hula, master Hawaiian chanter, co-founder of the annual Merry Monarch...

Polynesian Men Do All the Cooking?

Up and until the time I entered college, I had no idea that men do all the cooking anywhere.  Certainly not in my home, though my dad was a good cook himself.  Unfortunately, his genes never got passed down to me.  It wasn’t until I started working at the Polynesian...

Fire Walkers are HOT!!!

www.expeditions.com In 1996, the firewalkers from Fiji were invited to perform and share the art of walking on fire at the Polynesian Cultural Center. For many of us it was our first time witnessing the legendary fire walk. There was a lot of excitement and buzz...
Maoritanga — The Maori Way of Life

Maoritanga — The Maori Way of Life

Māoritanga — Māori culture — is very much alive  Occasionally, a travel writer may describe the Polynesian Cultural Center as a “living museum”: That is, a place where we’ve recreated the past, but that’s not really accurate. Granted, most Polynesians now-a-days live...