There’s only 9 public parking spaces, and we were lucky to get one. Once you park, you take a short walk through a secret garden to find the Paradise Cove.
It’s definitely walkable from Ko Olina, just make sure you wear toe covered shoes because this is a natural Cove and the sand is sharp pieces of broken shells, not the soft beautiful sand of the Ko Olina Lagoons, but it will be worth your trip to find snorkeling on this side of the island. The minute we arrived, two giant sea turtles swam around Grandma, Cole, Carson, and Curtis!!!
I didn’t see the turtles because I was looking up, mesmerized by the beautiful rainbow above us.
Amazing!
The boys were super excited to bust out their underwater camera that they received from their cousin Sabrina for Christmas.
We saw the most beautiful fish wading in the calm waters of Paradise Cove.
We had more planned for the day, and Mommy never found her sea turtle, so we’ll definitely be going back...with toe covered shoes and sunscreen this time! We packed up our snorkel gear and headed back to Beach Villas just in time to spot another double rainbow over the lagoon while in the hot tub! Wow!!!
We knew this was going to be a pretty late day, being New Years Eve, so we went back to the condo to eat lunch, nap, and relax for an hour before heading the hour and fifteen minute drive to the North Shore for our day at the Polynesian Cultural Center.
I have to say, we’re looking very “Hawaiian tourists” in our awesome Hawaiian shirts, and loving every second! My Mom and Dad visited PCC approx 10 years ago. She remembered 6 small villages with hands on crafts and a show at the end that was outside in folding chairs. Oh wow! The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, aka the Mormons, have really outdone themselves in this 10 years time span. If you’re visiting the island of Oahu, make PCC a must on your to do list. There’s a crazy amount of options to buy from $80 a person up to $250 a person. We opted for the cheapest (Admission and Show with Free Dinner), and explored everything the $250 Super Ambassador Luau Tickets with s little higher up seats for the evening show, “Ha: Breath of Life”. I can see if you’re coming from another country and need a translator that the more expensive tickets would pay off with the private tour in your language. Tip #2, download the free app PCC onto your phone! It has the schedule of shows, activities, and interactive map. Everything you need to explore your day at PCC. Tip #3, arrive by 1:30pm to have time to mingle through the marketplace, pick up tickets, and get a good seat for the 2:30pm Canoe Show “HUKI: A Canoe Celenration!” Ok, back to our experience! We left at 12:30, and made it just in time for the canoe show. Thankfully, Cole, Carson, and Grandma were super cute with their matching shirts, so the guides let them squeeze in the front while Curtis and I were shoed to the back.
We didn’t have the best view from the back so we enjoyed a mango pineapple smoothie while watching.
The canoe show was a story telling if the 6 Polynesian countries coming together...Hawaii, Figi, Tahiti, Samoa, Tonga, and Aotearoa!
After the boat show we headed straight for Samoa to see the fire throwers and tree climbers!
Ouch!!!!
You thought I was joking, right? This place is awesome!!!! We had 3 shows we couldn’t miss:
1. Samoa - Family and Dury (The Fire Within)
2. Tonga - Drums, The Heartbeat of Tonga
3. Aotearoa - Ceremony and Symbolism
The best part is you have free entrance into the park for 3 more days to catch the islands and shows you may have missed the first day! You absolutely cannot see everything in one day. Unfortunately, it’s well over an hour drive from Ko Olina, so this was a one stop shop for us. After the show, the boys tried their hands at starting a fire.
We then tasted Samoan bananas and milk and even tried a fresh coconut!
After our visit to Samoa we headed for Tonga. I actually made a list of all the music shows and Curtis said. “Come On Christi, this isn’t TMEA”...ha! I bet we could get Professional Developmemt Hours here! They started with a playing of the nose flute....my 5th graders are going to love that!
Then went to a showing of the drums.
After the Tonga show, we had time for one more (alas, Figi, Tahiti, and Hawaii will have to wait for another time), but we couldn’t come to PCC without seeing the HAKA!
This show came recommended from the coconut husking lady and it was amazing! Curtis took lots of videos so we can show our classes. The started with a stick passing Maori game, and one of the FISD Music Teachers shared a similar game at our last PD, so I was excited to see this in action.
They sang songs, and ended with the HAKA. It was super intense and amazing!
We were their last show of the year, so it ended in a big celebration!!! After the show, it was time for our free dinner buffet. Inside the hall were beautiful paintings and murals. We feasted on pork, mahi mahi, fried chicken, pasta, it was great! Once dinner was over, we took the tour around BYU Hawaii, where all the cast mates and workers at PCC attend school, and we even got to walk around the temple....not inside, of course, but it was BEAUTIFUL!!!
We made it back for a strum and walk around the Ukulele Experience.
It was very tempting to buy one, but between our family and two schools, we have almost 100 ukuleles in our possessions, so we passed on one more, but we did find this awesome Color Chart Ukulele with painted chords! Add this on the “to do” list for the next work day!
Ok, enough music teacher geaking out....after the Uke shop, we hit the Candy Store for Dole Whip! Oh yes, we did!!!!
We went with Vanilla/Pineapple Swirl.....YUM!!!!! We had a bit more time in the market, so I got a sarong to match the boys cute Hawaiian shirts, then it was time for the grand finale show...”HA: The Breath Of Life” inside the 3,000 seat auditorium. No pictures were allowed, but you can check a clip out here:
This show amazing! The only thing I could possible compare it to in size and grandeur is the Prestonwood Baptist “The Gift Of Christmas” show with flying Santas and neon flying drummer boys. Yep, this show was like that, except change the theme to Polynesian and fire! No cameras were allowed, so you’ll have to go see it for yourself! And definitely go!!! After the show was over, it was time for our drive back to Ko Olina. Oh boy, this was exciting! Oahu is filled with people of Asian culture, and they love their fireworks on New Years! Our hour and a half drive was a full light show of fireworks the whole way! They were shooting off everywhere! We pulled up at 10:45, just enough time to relax for an hour before our AMAZING firework show at Ko Olina! And yes, we had perfect viewing right off our balcony! They had double shows setting off between lagoons 2 and 3?!?!?!
What a magical day to end our 2018!!!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR, 2019!!!!
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