Been MIA because.....

My father was in town and we kept busy!

We went to the Honolulu Festival.....

And met Totoro.....

Practiced writing our names in Japanese.....

Went to a parade where Momo fed the lion.....

Waited for the fiery dragon......

Played splash wars at the beach.....

Hung out with Na Kama Kai and rode on canoes.....

Surfed for the first time......

Saw the most amazing sand sculptures being built.....

Sold Girl Scout cookies.....

Went on a boat ride and saw a rainbow.....

And a pod of five whales.....

Played at the park and climbed some trees.....

Went camping with the Girl Scouts and did a little fishing.....

 

And climbed more trees...

Told you we've been busy!

Now back to regular scheduled programming......

Honolulu Festival - A Cultural High!

When people ask what I love about Hawaii my answer is usually (not in any particular order):

1. The beauty of the islands (you wouldn't believe the vibrant colors of the sky, ocean, trees, mountains, etc!)
2. The weather
3. The people
4. The culture
5. The food
6. The music....

This past weekend included all of the above! We attended the Honolulu Friendship Festival which is a cultural event celebrating the friendship between the people of Hawaii and those of the Pacific Rim region including China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, Australia, Samoa, Tahiti, Alaska and a few more. Can you say a cultural high?!?

I was totally feeling the love! Here are some pictures.....

The girls wore their "Happi" coats and participated in the "Electric Slide"...

AMAZING Hirosaki Neputa Matsuri float...

One of my favorite performances by Kaze-Damari

The taiko drums were LOUD....Momo made use of the fans as ear plugs.

Festival equals cotton candy (on some wooden chopsticks, of course!)

The girls made a "hachimaki"...

They got dressed up in yukatas (summer kimonos)...

And they fished for water yo-yos...

On Sunday there was a huge parade down Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki. It lasted a good 2.5 hours or so!

Waiting patiently for the parade to begin.

BIG Dragon!

Flat Stanley came along with us. He wanted to dance with the beautiful ladies from Korea!

Countless number of hula dancers....mostly from Japan!

Carrying a beautiful mikoshi.....

Momo SQUEALED when she saw this pineapple mikoshi. Why?
Because SpongeBob lives in a pineapple (of course!)


More performers.....

The Hirosaki Neputa float all lit up....

The grand finale....and it was GRAND!

I definitely got me some culture! ;)