Northeast Tiki Tour (NETT) 8/25/07

Luke,

its like your in my head man.

I HAVE already been thinking about next year!

And I'm pretty much thinking of everything you've got on there with one addition....

Guest speakers/seminars.

We'll see. That may be a bit aggressive. Maybe more of a year 3 thing.

Also, Im thinking late September for our event in the future. Less competition from other events, and New England in the fall is beautiful. Sill have nice warm days, etc etc.

But enough of that, I've still got THIS year to worry about!

On 2007-05-21 19:37, Bargoyle wrote:
I HAVE already been thinking about next year!

The sign of a true visionary!! You haven't even gotten through this years event and you are already thinking of bigger and better things for next year! This event can be nothing but successful with positive thinking like that!

WANTED: Lone tikiphile with $35 and a hankering for rum and thatch to take our last, single seat on the tour bus. We've already got a waiting list for 2-seat openings but if you're gonna be spending August 25th alone--why not spend it alone with us? Who knows--you might even be part of a tiki hookup yourself.

ALSO WANTED: People to sign up for the Hu Ke Lau show in Chicopee on August 24th. This a great way to warm up for the big show the next day. Not sure you wanna commit to the Big Show? The Friday show is a great way meet up with the local ohana and make your own escape if you find they're weirder than you.

http://www.northeasttikitour.com/signup.htm

OK, slight change of plans... It just dawned on me how far Chicopee is from North Attleboro. SOOO, please sign Jill & myself up for the bus on friday night.(unless there's no bus, in which case I'll drive)

Mahalo!

P.S. Should I make reservations at the Hu Ke Lau? Or will the Grand NE Tiki Organizers take care of that?

Ok folks,

Its official. The Saturday Tiki Tour bus is SOLD OUT!!

We've got about 10 people on a waiting list, so if you want to secure your seat, get those payments in!

Full details on friday's HuKeLau show to come really soon.

If you cant be on the bus, you can still join us on Friday night for an evening of Polynesian music & dance!

Thanks to everyone for their interest in the Tour. I'm kind of overwhelmed by the response we've gotten. Nice to see the Northeast representin'!!

Mahalo & AlooooooooooooHA!!

Are there any attendees from the NYC area? I'm in Manhattan and a bit transportation-less. If anyone wants to give me a ride (I will share expenses) to this event, please PM me.

Paranoid123, sending you a PM. :)

Martiki-bird (Gina & Damian)

Aloha NE Tiki Tour types!

If you are in need of a warm-up/shake-down activity to prep you for this great weekend in New England (and especially for the NY/NJ/PA crowd), I am having my annual Birthday Luau on 23 June here in Allentown. The address is 2892 Sweetbriar Ct. if you want to Mappquest it (zip 18103). I know some of you are already plnning to attend but anyone else who wants to join in the fun just PM me for details.

Matt, if I was single and child-less, I'd dash off to Allentown for your luau. (also to Maui and the Marquesas). You married fathers understand.

It's running up to LAST CALL time for the He Ke Lau show on August 24th. This is the not only the first part of the Tiki Tour, it will undoubdtedly be the largest single (modern) gathering of Tikiphiles ever! (until the following day...)

Anyway, SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY we count up all those who expressed interest and see if there are enough to get a bus and we start that ball rolling. I understand there are people who are gonna find their own way there, people who'll use the bus if we get it and people who can ONLY go if there's a bus. First, let's just make sure we've got the list of everyone who's expressed interest. If you're not on this list and wanna go, PM me! (Please specify how many, if you don't want bus, if you'll go with or without bus or if you NEED bus)

The Hu Ke Lau Show List:

Bargoyle (2)
Pappy (1)
johnman (2)
SB (2)
Lukeulele (1)
Thunderlips (2)
Granite (2)
Primo Kimo (2)
Martiki-bird (2)
Leisure Master (2)
Tiki Cat (2)
Paige (2)
Stephanie Johnson (2)
Timothy Obert (4)

If you can't PM me, e-mail me: [email protected]

Mahalo.

Special mahalos to everybody who is donating swag and raffle items for the tour.

OK, there's been some confusion about the Friday (August 24th) Hu Ke Lau show for which I take full responsibility. For that show we just made reservations for the show and we needed a head count. There are no tickets and no money is changing hands. I made the reservations today (they will be under 'Kennan'). The restaurant will charge each of us a very modest $3 each to see the show which will be on the bill.

We hope to know about the bus ASAP (check your e-mail everybody).

mucho obligado,
Pappy

I think I've been hitting the rum too hard tonight... (Appleton 21-year-old, can ya blame me?)

But I'm all confused, and the web site doesn't help. (All those buttons and reading - it's too complicated....)

So Friday night is HuKeLau, for those who are interested, right?

But the Big Bus is gathering on Saturday, right? What time are we gathering on Saturday, and where? And are we seeing a HuKeLau show on Saturday?

It's probably all buried back on page 3 or something....

Saturday, the bus leaves the SUper8 at 11:45 am.

No HuKeLau on Saturday.

The hukelau show is friday night only.

The bus on friday is just for those who are staying at the Super8 on friday night (if there's enough interest), and it will be an additional cost. As of last count, there was NOT enough interest in the friday bus.

Hope that clears it up

All right, I didn't think I made it THAT hard to follow.

Friday, August 24 is the Hu Ke Lau in Chicopee for the Polynesian Show. It's basically just another New England Tiki event except with more people.

Saturday, August 25 is the bus tour starting and ending at the Super 8 in Attleboro. Five stops. Waitiki concert. We WON'T be going back to The Hu Ke Lau on Saturday.

Morning, Bargoyle!

Mornin' Pappy

[ Edited by: Bargoyle 2007-06-05 06:19 ]

You two are up too early. 4:14 AM. Sheesh.

Damn west coast bias.

What did you guys do sleep in today? 4:14 Pacific Standard Time I'm in the car on my way to work!

Tikisgrl

And I gotta thank you. Those donuts are always great.

What you don't like my Coffee? I'll save you a nice chocolate cruller for tomorrow!

Tikisgrl

Hey tour fans! Just an update on the HuKeLau show. We're going to take advantage of the HuKeLau's generous cancellation policy to keep filling seats and hopefully, we'll reach the Magic mumber (20) for people who want the shuttle bus.

Coming soon: Raffle Items! (Oh, baby. Wait 'til you see...)

Always a day late and a dollar short, I'm too late to get on the bus, but was wondering if there were enough people on the old waiting list if a second bus or other form of transportation could be arranged to accomodate us procrastinators??

thanks!

SOX, pm'd you.

There is definite interest on the part of Waitiki for the Friday Show. We would get ourselves there and back. Just interested in the hang, and the warm-up. We're all about the warm-up!!!

Bargoyle, didn't receive a pm. Maybe it didn't go through? My email is [email protected]

thanks!

Sox, PM shows as gone through, but unread. Login & then there should be a little flashing envelope in the upper right of the screen...next to personal messages. I'll email it to ya too.

MAYOR!!!

Glad to have you aboard! I know Mr. Ho cant make it, how about the Prof & Smilin' Jimmy?

Wish I could get out to the Block next week to see ya, but too much going on to take off for an island for a few days (such is life).

You guys got any public gigs in New England after you're back from FLorida? Or is the Tiki Tour the first one? ...if thats the case, we may have to remedy that somehow. :wink:

[ Edited by: Bargoyle 2007-06-07 13:12 ]

AloooooooooooooHA!!!!!

Hope those who went to Hukilau had a fun & safe journey, and welcome back to our Northeastern shores!

I figured I'd whet everyone's appetites with a quick peek at some of the Raffle items our TC vendors have been generous enough to donate.

Lets start with.......

Mugs....

Anyone out there like mugs?

Well, here's a nice Skull Monkey donated by Munktiki:

And our friends at the Farm (Tiki Farm, that is) also sent along some nice raffle items:

and

and

We also got some mugs from our buddies at Bartiki:

and

and the limited edition Bartiki logo mug as well (#89)

So, now you're saying, "But Bargoyle, what am I gonna put IN those mugs if/when I win them?"

Well, the good people at Triple 8 distillery have got you covered there (and they've even thrown in something to wear while drinking!). We've got two bottles of their Hurricane Rum, distilled right here in New England!! And that bottle on the left is a super rare vintage 2003. Good luck finding one of those in the wild!

"Zowie Bargoyle!! Thats great! I've got a mug full of rum, and I'm clothed, but what can I do to occupy my time while drinking this fine rum out of this wonderful mug?"

Dont fret! The many artisans of Tiki Central have got you covered there as well. Do you appreciate Art?

You will, after you see the wonderful hand signed prints that Sam Gambino has donated:

Whats that? You've still got some wall space that isn't covered with Tiki? Then Henrik over at VanTiki has got a super cool way to fix that. Check out the killer hand made tiki tiles he was nice enough to donate:

Or if those arent spooky enough for you, he sent these as well:

"Zoinks Bargoyle, the Tiki Central artists are amazing. I want to cover my entire house with their work"

Well, right you should!! And with the stuff donated from the Thor Stor, you'd be well on your way:

We've got a DOZEN different 11 x 14 matted prints (ready for framing)

As well as FOUR 9x18 Idol prints, and TWO canvas Idol prints!!

and, as if that wasn't enough, they also threw in a bunch of Wobblers!!

"Sweet Jeebus, Bargoyle, thats pretty cool. And I LOVE little trinkets like those wobblers"

Then boy-howdy are you in luck, as Stuff-o-Rama was kind enough to give us some cool trinkets. KeyChains...Shag Hint-mints...'fridge magnets...oh my.

and in case you can't see any of it well, they also sent along this super-swank Hula-Girl Lamp to light your way:

"Heysuess Marimba, Bargoyle. Thats quite a bit of stuff you've got to raffle off. But what about carvings? I didn't see any carvings"

Whoa, settle down there friend. We've got carvings. Flat Earth Trading has seen to that.

We've got a nice big mask for your wall

or maybe you wanna jam out on the Tiki-tar?

Or have that little bit of wall space that still needs covering?

And thats just the begining! New raffle items are comming in all the time. Some of our own NE Ohana are making special items to add to the raffle, and we havent even got into Swag!!!

And in case you were wondering, EVERYONE gets a raffle ticket with their admission to the bus.

Additional raffle tickets will be available for purchase at a reasonable price ($5 for an additional arms length of tickets, or something like that)

I cant thank all the TC vendors & Artists enough for their generosity. Please support these people with your spending money whenever you can.

See you all in August!

Bargoyle

http://www.northeasttikitour.com

Simply Bodacious!!!!!

...as I unpack my fabulous trade and purchase goodies from Hukilau (a duffel bag full {with nothing breakable}), I'm over come with just how deeply and insanely this passion for tiki has become! the Ohana spirit there was so sweet!...and this next "fix" is not till August?!...no way! I must also create,collect and spread the mana ...Bargoyle and others are mixing up another batch of "kool aid"and I'm drinking !! holy F____ng Wow !

OK, maybe now I am the one drinking too many mai-tais.

Was there any new discussion about arranging Friday transportation to see Waitiki for those not willing (or more accurately probably not able) to drive to and from the hotel?

If not, how far is the show from the hotel? Is it taxi-able without a huge cost? If there are others in the same boat arriving on Friday, let me know and maybe we can arrange a mini-van taxi or something.

Excellent job on the swag and thanks to all the contributors. The stuff looks unbelievable.

By the way, the Hukilau was a good time and there was talk of the NE tour. In fact I was able to meet others coming along - looking forward to catching up and raising another drink or two.

In fact, here's a picture of me with my Mai Kai mystery bowl. Yes, I am an idiot, staring at the bowl and not the girl, but it was hot and I was thirsty.

Hory Clap, Bargoyle! Dat sum swank schwag dere! If I weren't already coming to play, I'd come just to ogle da mugz! And the Gambino prints, and the trinkets, and some of the other things, not to forget the drinks, but...

Can't wait!!

On 2007-06-19 10:46, leisure master wrote:
OK, maybe now I am the one drinking too many mai-tais.

Was there any new discussion about arranging Friday transportation to see Waitiki for those not willing (or more accurately probably not able) to drive to and from the hotel?

If not, how far is the show from the hotel? Is it taxi-able without a huge cost? If there are others in the same boat arriving on Friday, let me know and maybe we can arrange a mini-van taxi or something.

Friday is the HuKeLau Polynesian Show. Waitiki will be attending (some of em at least) but not performing.

Right now I have a bus reserved to drive us from The Super 8 to the HuKeLau on friday night. Anyone who wants in on the HuKeLau Bus is gonna have to shell out an additional $25 ea, and the bus will be leaving the Super8 at 4.30 on friday afternoon. We need at least 20 people or it doesnt happen.

This will be the cheapest way to get to the show from the hotel. A cab will cost at least triple that, each way. Its about 1.5 hr drive, so refreshments WILL be served on the bus (Mai Tais, I think), and with the way the Huke mixes drinks, us bus people will probably be the only drunk ones at the show!

So, at last run through, the people who wanted a friday Hukelau bus were:
Bargoyle+1
Pappy
Johnman+1
Granite+1
Leisure +1
Martiki-bird+1
Tikicat+1
Paige+1

So, thats 15. Anyone else staying at the super 8 on firday night who wants in? Primo? Thunderlips? 5 more and we are go.

Wow, amazing stuff! I'm already excited for this!

Unbelievable! Great job getting all that swag!

Nice gathering on the glorious prizes Bargoyle!

Miss and I are in for the bus on Friday night.

[ Edited by: johnman 2007-06-19 18:55 ]

holy crap! what a haul. nicely done!

um, is there any way to buy raffle tickets if circumstances have occurred that make it impossible for you to attend the tour but want to support the effort?

hmmm?

..sb

Since the Sat. bus is sold out, I am wondering if it is possible to hit the last couple of stops by car including the Waitiki concert, and stay at the motel, or if this participation is only possible via signing up for the now sold-out bus package.

Thanks,
Kiki
P.S. It IS the weekend right before my birthday!

Hey Kiki,

I'm sorry but we cant allow any bus following, or meeting up at "just one stop" mainly for legal reasons. The liability for those on the bus falls squarely on myself, the bus company, and the restaurants, but there's a measure of control in that all of us will be on the bus and monitored. If you're not on the bus, you're not monitored, but the restaurants & I would still be sue-able entities. I just cant have that.

Also, I think it would dilute the experience for you by just following us. We've got alot planned for the rides between stops, including the raffle items, swag, cocktails, entertainment, etc.

And lastly, it certainly doesn't seem fair to those who have paid their way that others can "crash" the party.

I'm working on the logistics of adding a second bus to the tour, and while its a longshot, I wouldn't rule it out completely.

This is the first of (hopefully) many of these tours and in the future we'll be hitting places in NY & NJ as well. Also, with the amazing response we've received, I'm thinking it may even run twice a year.

I hope you understand, and be sure to sign up for the Waiting List on the web site. It helps us guage interest in a second bus, and those who don't make it on and are on the list will get first crack at seats for the next one.

Mahalo

Bargoyle

http://www.northeasttikitour.com

That does make sense! Thanks for the thorough reply. Hope you guys have an awesome time!

Ok folks, we've only got 14 people who want/need a bus from the Super8 to the HuKeLau in Chicopee on Friday night. The bus cost is $500 (cheaper than a limo). That works out to $36 each !!! Yikes!!

Can people live with that number? Obviously, the more people on the bus, the less the cost.

If it comes down to it, I can look into renting a Passenger Van and getting a buddy to drive it...or I can stay sober for the night & drive it, but we're still looking at a few hundred bucks and can only tote about 10 or 12 people, so it'll still be $25 to $30 a head.

Ok, ignore the above message.

I rented the passenger van. It'll be $15 a head and I'll be your driver for the evening. Tips gladly accepted! :D

[ Edited by: Bargoyle 2007-07-03 05:25 ]

Ok folks, only two (2) spots left on the passenger van from the hotel to the HuKeLau for the Friday night show! (Those of you who got the Bargoyle Express email are counted & on)

So, if anyone else is doing the full NE Tiki Experience, and needs a lift, speak up now!!

Also, to those who are staying at the hotel Friday night, the night does not end with the HuKeLau show......

Primo Kimo has stepped to the plate & been the first to officially open his room to the Tiki Drink Round Robin. He'll have Mai Tais, and a second drink too (I think). He's gonna be in charge of the late night festivities on Friday.

Any other takers out there? Let me know if you want in, and what cocktail you'll be making (we'll try to not have duplicates)!

Great call on the round robin - we are in. Drink(s) to be advised after we peruse the grog log.

Is there an estimate of how many people staying over on Friday so we make sure to get enough booze?

Primo Kimo has stepped to the plate & been the first to officially open his room to the Tiki Drink Round Robin.

Fabulous! We're in, but I'll have to confer with Da Man as to what we'll be serving...

Count us in for the round robin too! I'll need to spend some time in the lab to determine what I'm bringing...

OK, I am sure everyone has been unable to sleep, waiting to learn what other drinks will be in the round robin.....

After a long, grueling weekend literally pouring through the bum's books (we don't have the new one yet - damn that slow boat from China that didn't make it to the Hukilau), we proudly (but quietly due to the hangover, please) announce that whatever room we are in will be serving JUNGLE BIRDS.

But not this kind (unless they are at least 21)...