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MOST RECENT POSTS
The Polynesian Cultural Center’s most symbolic structure
The Maori whare tupuna or ancestral meeting house is perhaps the most symbolically rich structure at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, Hawaii.
Hawai’i students keep Samoan traditions alive
Hundreds of Hawaii high school students participated in 27th-annual We Are Samoa festival at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie.
2019 Fireknife: Women, junior, and intermediate winners
Winners of the women’s, intermediate, and junior divisions in the Polynesian Cultural Center’s 2019 Samoan World Fireknife Championships.
Penesa wins 2019 World Fireknife Championship title
Falaniko Penesa of Samoa, by way of Disneyland Hong Kong, won the 2019 Polynesian Cultural Center’s World Fireknife Championship title in Hawaii.
MOST POPULAR POSTS
Mango Otai Recipe
Previously we shared the traditional Watermelon Otai recipe. This time around the Polynesian Cultural Center is excited to share its close relative, Mango Otai which is both refreshing and delicious! It is a favorite on Oahu, and is sure to be a favorite of yours!
Polynesian Cultural Center Review: Through an Aussie’s Eyes
Here is a great blog by a recent visitor from Australia, Helena Kreis, an aspiring travel blogger. Thanks, Kris! We know your experience will help others looking at coming to The Polynesian Cultural Center.
PCC Pioneer Cy Bridges Receives Chanter Award
The Moanalua Gardens Foundation, which sponsors the annual Prince Lot Hula Festival, presented widely respected Hawaiian culture expert and Polynesian Cultural Center retiree Cy Bridges with its inaugural Nāmakahelu Oli master chanter’s award at the Iolani Palace bandstand in Honolulu on July 16, 2017, during its 40th anniversary event.
Visit Laie: New website explores Oahu’s north shore treasure!
Visitlaie.com — a new website about Laie, home of the Polynesian Cultural Center — consolidates visitor information in one convenient place.
The Village Approach: Māori Child Rearing
Maori culture is built upon the premise that…“Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari, he toa takitini” (“my achievements are not of myself, but because of the many”.) Māori culture personifies the belief that “it takes a village to raise a child”.
Polynesian Cultural Center pioneer: Patoa Benioni
More than 50 years ago, Patoa — who was born in Aitutaki in 1941 but spent most of his boyhood on Rarotonga in the Cook Islands — played a key role as an original Polynesian Cultural Center performer. Today, almost everybody calls him Patoa or Uncle Patoa, but like some Polynesians, his actual name is much longer: Te Are Toa O Te Patoa o Maouna Tama Pikikaa Benioni.
Long-time friend Pulefano Galea’i remembered Patoa … as “a great singer, leader, composer, and a great drummer. But one thing he always had in mind, he wanted to bring people here from the Cook Islands.
“Yesterday Patoa and I sat together watching a full-fledged Cook Island group. “Patoa, you can never be forgotten for all that you’ve contributed to the Polynesian Cultural Center, to Laie, and to all of us,” Galea’i said.
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