Post #802256 by joefla70 on Sun, Mar 20, 2022 4:43 PM

Hi everyone!

It's so nice that Tiki Central is back up and so many familiar faces are returning. I've been having fun looking at old posts and walking down memory lane. As I was looking at some of my initial posts when I joined in 2005, I noticed that some of the photo links were not working anymore, so I am starting to update them.

All of this reminiscing got me thinking about what brought all of you to Tiki Central.

My story is that my wife and I were expecting the birth of our first child in early 2005 and I was looking online for all things Tiki because I was planning on making a tiki-themed nursery for her. So, because I get obsessed with such projects, I scoured the web for ideas to decorate her room. This is what led me to Tiki Central. I had no idea such a repository of tiki existed and I was so happy to find it. Here is link to one of my posts with photos of my daughter's room:

https://tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic_id=14212&post_id=153344&start=0#post-153344

Until I found Tiki Central I really took tiki for granted. Growing up in the Ft. Lauderdale area I went to the Mai Kai all the time for birthdays, happy hours, etc. I didn't realize just how special and rare it was to have that grand palace in my backyard. (I can't wait for it to return). One day I was driving by the Mai Kai before it opened and I visited the gift shop to pick up a few things and Sven Kirsten just happened to be there visiting. He was kind enough to sign a copy of Book of Tiki for me and his tiki mug. I cherish both of those to this day.

Well, fast forward 17 years, and my daughter Sydney, who I designed the room for, is now almost ready to go off to college! Where did the time go?

[ Edited by joefla70 on 2022-03-20 17:10:34 ]