By Ombretta Di Dio
Meant to celebrate, keep alive, and maintain the Hawaiian culture, traditions and customs, the Aloha Festivals are spread through the month of September and take place in different islands of this archipelago. Starting with a Royal Investiture and related opening ceremony on September 6th at the Royal Hawaiian Center, proceeding with tons of stage performances and activities in Pearlridge, just to finish with a floral parade on September 22nd in Waikiki, these amazing events offer the opportunity to immerse in the Hawaiian lifestyle for almost a month.
Every year a different theme is chosen for the festival. This year’s theme is “Ho‘onui ‘Ike” which means, “to enrich and increase knowledge.” It will especially honor the 125th anniversary of Kamehameha Schools.
Aloha Festivals were celebrated for the first time in 1946, when dances, traditions, and typical Hawaiian music were made the object of a week long event that has happened yearly ever since. Nowadays, the attention goes to all the cultures that are part of the Hawaiian scene: Filipino, Japanese, and so on.
It’s not a coincidence that these festivals are in the Fall: indeed, it was exactly during makahiki time, the ancient time of music and feasting, that war was not permitted. These special celebrations are also an occasion to attract tourists after the summer.
If you want to try the real taste of Hawaii, September is the perfect time to visit these dreamy islands.
