By recommendation of the Lonely Planet Kauai books, we attended a Polynesian infused Hawaiian Luau at Historic KiloHana Plantation. It was a Guilar family favorite. Not only did we enjoy the food, crafts and music but we also LOVED the plantation train ride, and (to be sure) the dancing. Tiago is still mesmerized by the fire dancers and asks the burning question, "How do they do that?"
We were given the warmest of Hawaiian greetings. Tiago was invited to play drums and Natasha learned how to spin the fireballs (sans actual fire).
It was a fantastic way to celebrate Earth Day! Tiago was pleased that he got a bracelet made of palm leaves (especially after being told that the leis were for women only). He was especially pleased to meet the beautiful Hawaiian Hula Girl who tied the bracelet on his wrist.
Before our train ride, we looked at the artisan crafts and got ourselves some tropical beverages.
Blue Hawaiians and Maita'is (virgins for the kids-- fruit punch, basically).
During our train ride, tour guide Kai informed us about the island's history and some of its secrets. For example, did you know that pineapples don't grow on trees? Well, perhaps that is not a secret. But, we had no idea that they take two years to grow to full size!
We also learned that over 90% of the plant species on the island is not actually native. For example, this Rainbow Eucalyptus is not native to Hawaii. Neither are pineapples.
We also learned that wild boars are quite destructive to the land and become fair game during the annual boar-hunting season. I suppose it's a good thing that they are hunted, if you like luaus with fresh pineapple and roasted pig! With pineapples taking up to two years to mature, and wild boars stomping all over the bushes, its a win-win, right? Well, Kai assured us that we wouldn't actually eat these cute little guys after our train-ride. In fact, the plantation captures these boars and uses them as living composters. Ironically, they were originally deliberately introduced to the islands, then became feral, now recaptured so that they don't destroy the non-native plant species. We stopped to feed them some left over bread (part of the train-tour)! True to nature, they were quite ornery. It's a good thing they're on their way to being re-domesticated. Tiago and I tried to feed the ones furthest back from the fence, the ones being bullied away from the food.
After stopping to admire Kauai's beloved little pests (the pigs and chickens), we hopped back on the train to see the rest of the terrain. And what beautiful landscape it was!
Even the taro ponds in the foreground look beautiful.
Our train returned to the luau just in time to hear the sounding of the conch-horn...and, wait, what's that behind them? Weren't we just feeding little Wilber a minute ago?
And what a tasty array of sweet foods. The papaya and pineapple were my favorite (I tried to eat the pineapple very slowly--out of respect...the pork too). Interesting was the salmon ceviche and purple mashed potatoes. Everything in Kauai seems extra sweet. I thought I knew what it would taste like but I didn't. I remembered, "this is not Peruvian food." I kept expecting garlic, onions and aji. Instead it tasted like brown SUGAR--oh, right!
The performance was amazing. Just as Tiago started to slouch on my lap, not able to fight off the sand-man any longer, a dancer slid a blazing baton across his mouth, twirled the flames high into the air and caught it just before tapping it onto the floor and pouncing barefoot across the sizzling floor. Tiago sat up straight and remained wide-eyed for the remainder of the show, "I. Want. To. Do. That."
*We're having technical difficulties with uploading our video of the fire dancer. But the following link provides a short 45 second clip of the cast that we watched (for those interested cut and paste the following link into your browser): http://vimeo.com/46384667
The talented performers sit to pose with the audience.
(above: Polynesian Princesses)
Hangin' Loose with the fire dancer and drummer.
(Will update with better quality.)
