Hula, The Beautiful Dance Of Hawaii

                        Books by Patti Liszkay available on Amazon:   
     "Equal And Opposite Reactions"      http://amzn.to/2xvcgRa
     "Hail Mary"                                           https://www.amzn.com/1684334888
     "Tropical Depression"                        https://www.amzn.com/B0BTPN7NYY

​Hula, The Beautiful Dance Of Hawaii

      How do I love Hawaii?  Let me count a few of the ways. I love Hawaii for its palm trees,

...along with its other vibrant tropical flora,

...and fauna;

...for its brilliant blue sea;

...its velvety mountains;

...its rainbows;

...and for its spirit of aloha that in the Hawaiian culture means the gentle power of peace, friendliness, and caring that binds us all to each other.

     And I especially love hula, the lovely, expressive dance brought to Hawaii a thousand years ago by the first ancient sea voyagers to arrive on the islands and still alive and present today.

       On a visit to Honolulu a few years ago I discovered the Halekulani Hotel in Waikiki,

     View from the lobby

...where every night on the patio cafe musicians and dancers perform Hawaiian music and hula. 

      And so on this trip, as on past trips, we went one evening to the Halekulani Hotel patio with its twilit ocean view, 

...and panorama of Diamond Head off in the distance,

...for some splendid desserts,

...and for the sublime singing and dancing.

         We were fortunate to be in Hawaii for the week of the Merrie Monarch Festival, a cultural celebration held every spring in Hilo on the Big Island. The premier event of the Festival is the hula competition held nightly and televised on all the islands.
          And so each night when it was time for the hula competitions I was sure to be back in our  hotel  room in front of the TV in time to watch the competitions. As always, the dancers were captivating,

...enchanting,

...mesmerizing.

       On the Sunday that was our last day in Honolulu Tom and I walked into downtown Waikiki to the Royal Hawaiian Center,

...and stopped to have a look at the historic pink Royal Hawaiian Hotel.

      While we were cutting back through the courtyard of the Royal Hawaiian Center,

...a group of little girls entered the area.

       We learned that they were a group of young hula dancers, accompanied by some older dancers, performing in honor of Merrie Monarch week. They were accomplished, 

...graceful,

...and lovely.

        I believe that hula is the most beautiful dance in the world.