It was a beautiful day for a May Day celebration in Kapiolani Park! The bandstand was decorated…read morewith an abundance of colorful pua (flowers),happy craft vendors,fantastic food vendors and the restroom trailers were brand new,convenient AND air conditioned!!!!! Ha ha ! There was an alternative covered stage with slack key guitar only...it was so mellow,u know--back yard kine paina style !!!! A sweet little local kupuna approached me and I thought she was going to tell us to move to the side or something but she kindly asked if I was a former May Day Lei Queen!!!!! Oh my goodness I was speechless & embarrassed! My husband was just beaming with smiles. I said "nooooo",I'm just a retired hula dancer & so happy to see the entertainment from a spectator's view !" She said she could arrange for me to dance hula impromptu right now. I graciously declined and giggled all the way to find a seat to watch the performance. My husband said " you're MY queen " Aww ! So sweet! Here's a pic of our mountain of a plate lunch! Aloha!

Great carnival especially considering this is the 1st year that the school is doing it…read more FOOD: Let me start by saying majority of the booths are run by groups from the school like Band Booster, Athletics, & Project Grad so you know it will be a little bit more. So let me tell you that I was presently surprised how good the Poke Bowl and Flying Saucer was especially considering it was probably made by volunteers. PARKING: $3. When we went in the afternoon it wasn't hard at all to find parking. Loved that there was a lot of handicap parking that was really close to the actual event. SUGGESTION: I would have loved to see local fruits & vegetables and maybe baked goods for sale. Definitely will come back next year.

"Geek Paradise- Hawaiian Style"…read more Initial event here in Hawaii. As described on their Facebook page: "a curated craft market specializing in "hand"-themed crafts of all kinds; clothing, accessories, toys, home decoration, furniture, art... if it's geeky and made by hand, it can be found at a GeekCraftExpo. This expo can be found around the country in areas such as Seattle, Portland and Madison Wisconsin. They feature items made by local artisans so each expo is unique unto itself. This initial Hawaii expo features 29 artisans and occupied one of the ballrooms on the third floor of the convention center. As the Facebook page indicated, they kept it small for this initial expo to gauge response and help it to grow. Always nice to see the creativity of artists in the community. Of particular interest was the remarkable miniature origami figures that were made used to make more intricate figures- this was located at the Seiartsu table located at the mauka/Ewa corner of the room. The admission fee for those over age 12 is FREE if you preregister through event brite- otherwise it's $5 at the door. A promising beginning and a great way to spend some time this weekend to feed your inner geek.

I'm a veteran when it comes to running in races. But for some reason, this race made me super…read morenervous. I had nightmares the night before on waking up late and/or being in the wrong spot when my teammate needed to pass off the sash to me. I think I was mainly nervous because I'm used to running in races as a solo runner and only I mattered. But running in a team puts more pressure on me to perform because now I have my entire team depending on me to do well! Plus, this was my first time running in this event, so I didn't know what to expect. The Honolulu Ekiden is a 26.2-mile (42.195 km) course divided into six sections. Each relay team can have up to 2-6 runners. There's 5 relay stations along the race course. That is where team members pass off the sash to the next person who will complete the next section. The first leg starts at Kapiolani Park and runs 3.3mi to Kaimuki Middle. The 2nd leg then runs from that station to Maunalua Bay Park to run 5.6mi. The 3rd leg then runs to Sandy Beach for 3.9mi. The 4th leg runs back to Maunalua Bay Park for another 3.9mi. Passed off to the 5th leg, they make their way back to Kaimuki Middle for 5.6mi. And the last leg takes the sash back to the finish line at Kapiolani Park for 3.9mi. Even though this event is catered more towards the Japanese, this event was a lot of fun to run in and very well-organized. Because every station is shattered and start/finish stations are not the same location, the organization provides free shuttles. Transportation to each station are done in 3 ways: 1) park near Kapiolani Park, then catch the shuttle to your leg start station (shuttle times for each leg station is listed on their website), complete your leg and then catch the shuttle back to the park from your finish station; 2) park near your leg start station, complete your leg and then catch the shuttle back to your leg start station; or 3) get dropped off at your leg start station, complete your leg and then get picked up from where you are. At Kapiolani Park where the finish line is, they have food, music and games for all participants. Because I was the 5th leg running from Maunaloa Bay to Kaimuki Middle, I made sure to make my way back to Kapiolani Park and enjoy the festivities. You can also join your last teammate as they make their way to the finish line and run to the end with them! Not to mention, this year was the first time they passed out medals to the entire team :) The last leg gets their medal when they cross the finish line. And it is the Team Captains job to pick up the rest of the team's medal. The tent was located near the finish line area. Origins of the Ekiden date to early Japan when important news was relayed from distant provinces to the capitol using a series of messengers, each of which would carry the message for an individual leg of the journey. Today, the tradition of Ekiden lives on as a sport, which, in addition to being highly competitive, is also used in Japan to promote unity as a team along with personal perseverance.

Last year a group of friends and I completed the Rainbow Ekiden and had a blast. This year a…read moredifferent group of friends invited to me participate in this relay marathon Ekiden. BLUF: I prefer the Rainbow Ekiden to this one. Let's start with the positive: This race had plenty of bathrooms and drink stations. Bathrooms are so essential! If you've ever had to run five miles on the brink of a poop, you understand. I also appreciated the detailed race map with elevation gain that the organizers provided. This made it easy for our group to decide who would do which leg. However, these positives can't make up for the race committing the biggest no-no in running: They ran out of medals. Yes. You read right. Ran. Out. Of. Medals. So let me just asterisk by saying that there were people completing the entire 26.2 miles alone - by themselves. Being someone who has also completed a marathon by myself, I find this unforgivable. So instead after running in the hot, hot heat, our team captain wrote her name, number, email address, and number of medals needed on the back of a sheet of paper. Will we ever hear from them or see those medals? A week on and that remains to be seen. Another negative is that the buses took a really long time. When we finished a leg, we had to wait on a bus to get to the next leg or rally point for the team. There were over 11 buses yet we waited twenty minutes for one to come by. Last negative is that they were out of food when we finished. Mind you, we weren't even close to being the last teams/runners to finish, yet no medals and no food. They made "been there, done that, got the T-shirt" a reality because that's all we got from this race. My take: there are better, more organized races in Hawaii. Do those instead.

"Listening to the Christmas Spirit"…read more Maybe it's easier for people in colder climates to get into the Christmas spirit. There's that white stuff they call snow and all those fancy clothing they get to wear like mittens, "ear puffs" and scarves... What are galoshes?? We, here in Hawaii, have to imagine "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire", "Frosty the Snowman", and "White Christmas". While these are familiar tunes, we really have no hands-on experiences. What's a "sleigh bell" in a "Winter Wonderland"? Therefore, the music is a very important part of Christmas Spirit. What we lack in temperature and visuals, we can make up in song, imagination, and feeling. I just close my eyes and enjoy live music like that from "Tuba Christmas". Thanks to fellow Yelper, Ric C., for mentioning this concert to me. I was unable to attend the one at Ward Warehouse because it was the same time as the 5th Annual Yelp Hawaii Cookie Swap. Fortunately, I was able to get to the one at Kahala Mall. It was fabulous! The Emcee was so entertaining and informative! He introduced the eldest and youngest tuba player. He recognized the band member who travelled the farthest; the one who played in the most US states, the first timer, etc. The audience learned about the various types of tubas and their unique sounds. The Emcee stated that they never know how many tuba players will show up. So although the seats on the stage were all filled, many more chairs were set up around the stage to accomodate MORE tuba players! It was an amazing FREE concert which I highly recommend. Just go to their website: www.tubachristmas.com to find their location (all over the USA) and dates/times. It's a real Christmas treat!!

"Heavy Metal, Hawaiian style"…read more "TubaChristmas" is an annual concert event that is held around the country that allows players of that largest of brass instruments to strut their stuff and is held in December of each year. Tubachristmas was conceived in 1974 by Harvey Phillips as a tribute to his teacher and mentor William J. Bell a legendary Tuba player who was born on Christmas Day in 1902. Participants contribute $10 to the Harvey Philips Foundation and get a cool Tuba Christmas button, a chance to jam with other Tubaists young and old, and get the satisfaction knowing that your money will go towards a scholarship for a deserving music student. A great way for ex-Tuba and euphonium players to bring out their horns for an annual toot! Not too many places for us tuba players to play. In it's 41st year, TubaChristmas here in Honolulu is usually played at Kahala Mall and also Ala Moana Center or Ward Warehouse and sometimes at other venues. Concerts have also taken place on Maui. So if you would like to hear a fun and different style of Christmas music come to a TubaChristmas concert, you will be glad you did :)

Hawaii Tesol is a wonderful nonprofit made by in-service teachers who truly believe in helping…read moremainly new student teachers learn how to be better English as a Second Language teacher. It really is all about the events that TESOL presents- mainly the teaching ESL conference held in the spring. I was lucky enough to be able to present at the spring conferences a few times- all the participants are eager to learn and eager to share. Many practical lessons and a bunch of real research one could use in their college studies. The fall get to know you events are the most fun and most laid back- there is food and more food and then a chance to talk and meet some of the different organizers- many are Professors at UHM or BYUH or HPU and some are admin for private ESL schools here in Oahu. Anyway it is a wonderful way to get to know more ESL teachers and get more resources. There really are great folks that are so interested in good teaching- some know other languages and some that are only English speaking- it takes all kinds of teachers and it really improves (especially teachers that have never really taught before) abilities to teach English better. Why do I like it? I am not so much as learning more about ESL but being able to talk and share about my own ESL teaching experiences and reflection- being a part of a learning community is really important too. If you are a student- wanting to teach English, ESL or another language but are in school here in HI - I would highly recommend looking into joining the group events. Past events 14 Feb 2014 Hawaii TESOL Spring Conference 2014 13 Nov 2013 Fall Professional Development Workshop: Online Education 04 Oct 2013 Call for Participation to Hawaii TESOL Conference 2014 30 Sep 2013 Fall Activity Exchange/ Round Table Discussion 15 May 2013 Spring Language Experience 02 Mar 2013 State Conference Follow up Workshop 16 Feb 2013 Hawaii TESOL Spring Conference 2013 08 Nov 2012 Call for Participation to Hawaii TESOL Conference 2013 07 Nov 2012 Fall PDW--The Problem of Orkish: Exploring Second Language Acquisition in Virtual Environments 24 Sep 2012 Fall Activity Exchange/Round Table Discussion What is Hawai'i TESOL? Hawai'i TESOL is committed to building a community of professionals teaching ESL (English as a Second Language) in the State of Hawai'i. Hawai'i TESOL works to promote the highest standards in employment and instruction, improve professional support and interaction, and increase public and government recognition of the ESL field. Hawai'i TESOL provides ESL professionals in Hawai'i with opportunities for networking and professional development. We welcome all who share our goals to join with us in our efforts. Hawai'i TESOL welcomes all interested individuals to active membership and seeks the involvement of all its members. Hawai'i TESOL offers four major activities a year.

The Prince Kūhiō Festival, which includes several cultural events and a Commemorative Parade, is…read moresponsored by the Hawaii Tourism Authority and Kamehameha Schools. Annually, this festival occurs to celebrate the birthday and legacy of Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaole who was also known as "The Citizen Prince". Just who was Prince Kūhiō and why do the people of Hawaii honor him? "Prince Kūhiō was a prince of the reigning House of Kalākaua when the government of Queen Lili'uokalani was illegally overthrown in 1893. He later went on to become a politician in the Territory of Hawai'i as delegate to the United States Congress. Prince Kūhiō founded the first Hawaiian Civic Club on December 6, 1918 and led the passage of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act of 1921. The people of the State of Hawai'i acknowledge his many contributions and have memorialized the Prince by naming schools, buildings, streets, and beaches after him, and designating his birthday as a state holiday. " - see www.princekuhiofestival.com The parade started at Saratoga Road and Kalākaua Avenue and continued down Kalākaua Avenue. Unfortunately, it was drizzling and then the rain really came down so we left early. We walked back to our parked car near Kapiolani Park. We knew that there were more planned events at the Kapiolani Park Bandstand that featured local hula hālau, live entertainment, Native Hawaiian arts, crafts and exhibits. Uh, sorry to say that I'm a fair weather consumer so we just "buzzed" in and considered purchasing a Hawaiian plate lunch from one of the local food stalls. However, many of the vendors weren't quite set up and everyone else was scrambling around to keep their merchandise or artwork protected from the rain. Still, in spite of the ugly weather, there were many who came out to enjoy the festivities and to honor Prince Kūhiō. Thanks again to the HTA and the Kamehameha Schools for annually sponsoring this festival. We'll certainly return for this event next year.

Inaugural event. So definitely room for improvement. They definitely need more space for people to…read moresit and a bigger dance area. Also maybe open up the event earlier so that there is not a sudden rush for the food booths/trucks that there are long lines the whole night. Other than it was a great event with lots of live and recorded music.

*Disclaimer: This review is from the viewpoint of a volunteer…read more The Inagural Megabon Festival was a large community project hosted by Jaycee chapter JCI Honolulu. Most local chapters were there providing volunteer support, especially my chapter the Hawaii Kai Jaycees. Before the day of the event volunteers such as myself picked up their volunteer packets, which included detailed information of the roles and responsibilities we were assigned to and our volunteer shirt. Upon checking in our group was directed to our game tent. We were in charge of the yo-yo sukui game. We were feed somen noodles (thank you!). Key take aways and room of improvement: 1. First of all, I congratulate JCI Honolulu on hosting this successful event! Looking forward in this being an annual event in the years to come. 2. I hope the space gets expanded next year, there was a point where I felt it got over-crowded. 3. Some of our volunteers in our group were augmented away and we felt short-handed at our game station. We did receive assistance later on that evening but my hope is that more volunteers will be recruited to cover. Again, great community event!