6 Reviewshawaii truly is a melting pot of cultures! why? since hawaii is the ONLY minority-majority State in the United States where asian-americans, pacific islanders are the majority over caucasians and...
5 ReviewsJust to the north of St. Peter's Catholic Church on Ali'i Drive, this altar stands as a temple solely to the art of surfing. Here, offerings were made asking for gnarly surfing conditions. Even today,...
2 Reviews7 Feb 04 2045
Tonight we went to dinner and met this crazy middle-aged woman who was born in Australia, but raised in the US. I was given a lai (spelling??) by a big Hawaiian waitress. For good luck...
1 ReviewI don't think this picture has much to do with cultural tips, ha,ha....
But I liked it, and had to put it somewhere... ;-))
At least it is in the right City ;-)) .... We did stop at this store, in...
1 ReviewNot a cultural tip, just needed more space to show more......
This Lava tube is enormous, and although there is lighting, it helps if you have a torch. Otherwise it's difficult to see the puddles of...
3 ReviewsAs the sun sets in spectacular fashion to the West, a daily tradition enacts itself on beaches across Waikiki...
Summoned by the blowing of a conch shell, tourists are treated to a beautiful display...
6 ReviewsThe Big Island is Hawaii's place for Big Drives, so it's nice to be entertained by lava graffiti. Don't worry -- there is no paint involved. Rather, people gather up white coral stones on the beach...
6 ReviewsOk so this tip isn't exactly about how to speak "Hawaiian" itself, but more like what to expect when hearing locals talk. I myself DON'T speak "pidgin", but i know enough words to be able to...
1 ReviewThis pic was taken on my last night here. Sonja danced her Beautiful Traditional Hawaiian Dance, before the 'Hot Lava' Show began. She then wrapped her gorgeous 'Fresh Plumeria Lei' around me. She...
1 ReviewThis was a concert of a Hawaiin band outside the zoo at the park. It was a great band and great time partying with the locals.
Mahalo..
The banner says "THE WILDEST SHOW IN TOWN" sponsored by AT &...
4 ReviewsWhen giving a lei in Hawaii it is tradition to accompany the gift with a kiss on the cheek.
The wearer will be the center of attention and it is said that you will exprience good luck by passing your...
2 ReviewsGetting off the plane at Honolulu Airport all of us got a lei . We were told our silk leis will be a happy reminder of the Hawaiian vacation and the wonderful Island spirit of Aloha! The silk flowers...
2 ReviewsI want to tell you a story about Madame Pele. She is the Goddess of fire who makes her home in the Kilauea Crater. When angry she vents it by spitting fire and lava, thus creating the Hawaiian...
2 ReviewsPeople in Hawaii have adopted the Japanese custom of taking off your shoes at the door of a house. It makes sense when you think about what you've been walking through (ewww), and you'll feel more...
1 ReviewThe outrigger canoe is the traditional boat of Hawai'i and is still quite popular. On the shores of Hilo bay you find many canoe club 'sheds' full of various length canoes. You'll also find a few on...
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Reviews from VirtualTourist Members
Bringing home food after parties: Filipino custom
by joiwatani
This is one of the Filipino custom in Hawaii. If you attended parties, it is okay to bring home food. The family of the celebrant usually prepares a lot of food- usually double the attendees. This way, the attendees can bring home (take out) food!The practice, however, is to bring home food after all the guests have eaten and there are still left over food. Make sure that when you bring home food, you gave money gift (more than what was expected) to the celebrant.
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Filipino birthdays in Hawaii
by joiwatani
It is customary to give money in an envelope instead of gift boxes when you attend birthdays, baptismals, weddings in Hawaii. The custom and tradition are to give enough money to pay for what you had eaten! If the parties were held in the house, the average money given is $20 per person but when the parties are held in hotels, it is best to give a minimum of $50.00 You can also give $30 to pay for your food. Thus custom is to help the family of the celebrant pay for what they spent in the hotel!The envelope is then inserted in the box made by the family of the celebrant. The box looks like a ballot box! (Smile!)The great thing about this custom is the attendee is allowed to bring home left-over from the party.
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The Filipino food in Hawaii
by joiwatani
Eighty five percent of the population of Hawaii are Filipinos. So, of course, you will find thousands of Filipinos living in all the islands of Hawaii. You can hear them speaking in Ilocano, Visayan or Tagalog. There are many Filipino restaurants in the island but I love mostly the homecooked meals! When I go to Hawaii, I attend parties and eat all the Filipino food I want!There are many Filipino vegetables in the islands, too- brought by the Filipinos who immigrated years ago.
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The Hawaiians take pride of their flowers
by joiwatani
There are so many flowers in Hawaii and they string them into leis and given to tourists and visitors, to friends and relatives on graduations, birthdays, weddings, retirement parties, conferences, conventions, meetings, funerals, etc. Most of the leis are made of plumerias and orchids (pikakis). Some are made of the buds of sweet smelling Dendrobium orchids tied in Ti leaves.There are also some Hawaiian flowers that last a long time and are sent from Hawaii to the Mainland United States for special occasions like those that are found up in the mountains of Hawaii.These Hawaiian flowers are truly beautiful.
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Spam
by stephenshephard
Spam is bizarrely popular in Hawaii... according to the Waikiki Spam Jam website it is the Spam capital of the USA. Something to do with the War and the fact that it keeps well apparently. Sadly I was not there for the Waikiki Spam Jam event.
Wearing of the leis
by joiwatani
Special occasions like birthdays, weddings, etc., the locals tend to dress up with their nice Aloha shirts and Mumu dresses with matching leis!The leis are made of Pikaki flowers and these are very expensive. They smell so good, too!The cheaper leis are made from plumeria.There are many flower stores in Hawaii that sells this leis and can be shipped anywhere in the world!The men usually wear those necklaces made of nutshells, black in color. Leis are also worn on graduation time. They give these to the graduates as gifts. The leis are sometimes made of wrapped candies and even made for dollar bills!
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The Slippahs (slippers)
by joiwatani
Most of the locals wear slippers even when they go downtown. It is a very casual thing to do. The residents don't bother to put on their shoes. They just slip on their slippahs and off they go!This is nice because the locals don't have to deal with the change of seasons! Most of the residents don't have foot problems either!
The Mumu Dress
by joiwatani
Most of the local women dress in Mumu - a very comfortable dress. Most of the designs of the dresses are the hibiscus flowers, palm trees, puka shells, sea turtles, etc.The dress is long with short sleeves. It is an easy cut dress that keeps the person cool the whole day long!
The Pidgin English
by joiwatani
Most locals speak the Pidgin English so don't be surprise to hear those while you are taking the bus. There are many cultures and ethnic groups living in Hawaii and they surely changed the English language. Here are some of the words you might like to know:1. Where you went? (It means where are you going?)2. Brahdahs and sistahs -means brothers and sisters3. Pau Hana - Finished for the day4. Da kine - referring to something5. tita - referring to a female sister6. haole- Caucasian. 7. No can- unable to8. Stink eye- Dirty eye7. try - means Please Example: Try wait? 8. slippah - slippers9. no moa - no more10. Like beef? - You like to fight with me?11. Da cute - precious. Example: Oh her child is da cute!12. Howzit? - How are you?(P.S. My brain froze. I will add more later!)
Eat breadfruit!
by joiwatani
While walking down the Aloha Tower, a breadfruit just fell down in front of us! I was so glad the fruit didn't fall on my daughter's head. Sierra gladly picked up the fruit! Anyway, the breadfruit tree has huge leaves and has huge fruits. The local people gather them to eat. The riped fruits get bigger. The fruit is boiled and the meat of the fruit is eaten. We dipped the boiled fruit in sugar! It is high in calories and good carbohydrates.
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