Post #448887 by TikiShopPua on Wed, Apr 22, 2009 11:43 AM

Aloha Expo, like Ho'olaulea, is always a wonderful event. For islanders who are now mainlanders, it's a great time to have your "homesick blues" take a back burner. However, it's a great place for anyone and everyone to come get a dose of Aloha. The food vendors are awesome. Sure, you can get malasadas, kalua, lomi, poi..but it's the only time of year I can get pasteles here. Yeah, they're inherently Puerto Rican delicacies, but we love them in Hawai'i! It's a terrific time for the whole family and a very nice day full of Aloha.

It was hot last year, but not too hot to enjoy. I expect it will be the same this year. Bring your lawn chairs or blankets and find a nice, shady tree near the stage and enjoy the beautiful music and lovely dance. The halaus have much talent to share and the keiki hula is always a joy. There's no rum, or other alcohol, so you'll wanna leave your tiki mugs at home. Quite a nice marketplace for shopping, but to be honest, there's not much in the way of Poly-Pop or Tiki culture, although I have seen a couple of handpainted "Tiki Bar" signs in the past couple years. Still, there's beautiful artwork, Hawaiian heirloom jewelry, dance implements, beautiful gourds, handmade pahu drums, t-shirts, etc. The main draw, however is the music and dance and often, there's a nice emphasis on Hula Kahiko (ancient hula) which is always fascinating to watch. Especially men's Kahiko! ::nice::

E Komo Mai! It's a nice time!

Pua

[ Edited by: TikiShopPua 2009-04-22 11:46 ]