Leslie Lang | Talk Story Press

East Hawai‘i, of course, has so much interesting history, and one of the fun things about our tours is that we can sneak people into places one doesn’t ordinarily get to see.

Waiting for a tsunami to arrive.

Macario will teach a continuing Beginning ‘Ukulele class at the East Hawai‘i Cultural Center starting Saturday, June 6.
The series of 1.5 hour classes, which will meet on five consecutive Saturdays at 10 a.m., cost only $25 total for the public and $20 for EHCC members.

“You don’t have to know anything about the ‘ukulele,” says Macario, who played music professionally in Honolulu and on the mainland for 16 years. “You need to have your own ‘ukulele and bring a pen or pencil, and that’s it.”
He says he will teach some basic theory and chord …

We learned yesterday that our daughter was accepted at Kamehameha Schools for kindergarten in the fall. 

This is huge. There are only two kindergarten classes at the Big Island campus, so they only take 20 girls and 20 boys. The application process, therefore, is very competitive and admission is far from a sure thing.
I know there are a lot more than 40 smart, talented kids on this island and I feel for every one of them whose families really wanted this opportunity for them. I wish the school could take them all.
It …

Edited on 4/21/09 to add: And an earthquake, too! My visiting friend is having the full Big Island experience.
From the USGS: A light earthquake occurred at 4:58:09 PM (HST) on Tuesday, April 21, 2009 . The magnitude 4.2 event occurred 7 km (4 miles) NNE of Ka`ena Point.

I have a dear friend visiting from the mainland, and today there is big time vog here in Hilo. It look as if you might have to push through the voggy air with your hands in order to walk.
I feel terrible when a friend is visiting our …

Aunty Dottie Thompson and George Na‘ope, together credited with starting Hilo, Hawai‘i’s Merrie Monarch Festival 46 years ago, are both looking frail this year, and both attended the festival briefly on the final night in wheelchairs.
Still, one can always count on Uncle George to look absolutely resplendent.

Re·splen·dent   (rĭ-splĕn‘dənt)
adj.
Splendid or dazzling in appearance; brilliant.
[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin resplendēns, resplendent-, present participle of resplendēre, to shine brightly : re-, re- + splendēre, to shine.]
Splendid. Dazzling. Brilliant. He definitely still shines.
 

Because I like multi-tasking, I will again be tweeting live from the Merrie Monarch tonight (Fri. April 17th) during the Kahiko competition.

Follow me at @LeslieLang, or follow #merrie.
Off I go to pick some orchids for my hair! We’re leaving for the Edith Kanaka‘ole Stadium soon.

It’s Merrie Monarch week and it’s absolutely the best week of the year here in Hilo. 
We went down to the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel this afternoon and watched the free hula performance by Puanani Crumb’s Halau Hula O Hilo Hanakahi.

It was wonderful. The music, the hula, the crowd. Hula Legend Uncle George Na‘ope was there, wheelchair-bound now, wearing a green running suit, white Crocs and then of course his hat and his wide gold bracelets running up his arm. 
I just love it all. The tiny kids who dance. The older ones who dance …

It’s almost Merrie Monarch week here on the Big Island. I love this week, when Hilo town shimmers and comes alive with people and flowers and hula everywhere.
Over at Big Island On The Cheap, we are going to be hitting Merrie Monarch hard. We’ll have a bunch of features — where to eat, half- and full-day trips to take around Hilo, all the exciting things going on with Merrie Monarch itself, some great local coupon deals that are exclusive to our readers (whether residents or visitors),  and some other surprises, …

Does anybody have extra Merrie Monarch tickets I could buy from them (at cost)?
One year my friend was on a mission to get Merrie Monarch tickets and asked a stranger in line at Starbucks, and said stranger indeed had extra tickets.
I haven’t asked at Starbucks yet, but how about you, online world? Surely you’re more effective than hitting up strangers at Starbucks!
I’d throw in a signed copy of my Exploring Historic Hilo book, if it helped.
Please ask around, tell your friends, all that. Let me know! I would really appreciate any help.