日本語
The 17th Annual Honolulu Festival was held for 3-days from Friday, March 11 through Sunday, March 13, 2011.
The Educational School Tour was scheduled on the first day for the local schools in Oahu. It was opened to public in the following day where there was a lot of visitors.
Go Beyond the Boarder: United to support the victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake
The Great East Japan Earthquake had occurred in the day before the 17th Annual Honolulu Festival on March 10 (March 11 JST). Thus, the participating groups from Japan couldn’t make a visit to Hawaii, which disabled them from attending our festival.
And Yet, we have decided to host the festival as scheduled to support those victims of the earthquake among the participating groups from the countries of Asia-Pacific region and visitors from around the world. Also, the disaster relief fund was set up where there was a donation box in each site of the Stage Performance which a lot of donations were made.
The theme of the 17th Annual Honolulu Festival was “We are all neighbors, around the world”, which served its meaning by supporting the victims.
Various Festivities at 5 Locations
These were the 5 locations where the Stage Performance was held in the following dates:
March 12
- Centerstage, Ala Moana Center
- Waikiki Beach Walk
March 13
- Waikiki Shopping Plaza
- DFS Galleria
Main Venue
- Hawaii Convention Center
The Hawaii Convention Center was the main venue which is the same as last year. The performers from various countries such as Japan, Hawaii and others performed on stage. Also, there were events such as the Ennichi Corner, Craft Fair and Anime Corner inside the venue. In addition, the Film Festival was held on Saturday, March 12. The bon dance was also introduced for the first time on the same day. Moreover, the Hawaii Music Festivals was held on the 3rd floor, where the atmosphere was different compared to other events on the first floor.
[ Hawaii Convention Center ]
The unique costumes of the ASSSESS Cheerleading Team from Inha University stood out.
The members of Filcom Banda Kawayan played the traditional Filipino musical instrument that is made of bamboo, which created a gentle sound.
The vigorous little dancers of the Sukakko Soran were everybody’s favorite.
The audience enjoyed each performance. A lot of visitors arrived earlier than the previous years.
They are the members of the steel drum group, Global Drums- Pangea from Canada.
We felt the bright light and the power of Okinawa from the lively expressions by the members of Okinawa Drum Dance Artists Churasa.
The energetic voices echoed with astonishment during the performance by Creative Dance Company Takarabune.
The members of Baton Club from Sanyo Girls’ School, Senior High gave their bright and innocent smiles to the audience which was impressive.
[ Waikiki Beach Walk ]
The members of Yutaka Hula Halau performed a hula dance with their delight smiles.
This is a scene were Japanese god called Susanoo-No-Mikoto is defeating the dragon which was performed by the members of Nichinan Kagura (Noh) Dance Jinkosha.
Everybody’s eyes were fixed on the yosakoi dance by the members of Yosakoi Team Tokiwa, which they performed beautifully and stylishly.
[ Waikiki Shopping Plaza ]
The members of LOVE JUNX danced with a joyful exuberance.
The members of Descendance performed Australian Aboriginal dance and Australian folk song.
[ DFS Galleria ]
The members of T.G.P fully used the stage during their performance and excited the audience.
The members of Taiko KOZO played various shapes and sizes of Japanese drums in a freely manner.
The venue was crowded than before!
There were more visitors than the previous years. It was so packed with people that you may have difficulty moving around in some areas. There were about 16,300 visitors during a period of 2-days at the Hawaii Convention Center alone.
The queue was starting to form in the morning before the doors opened, which is a typical scene during the festival period. Also, everybody was looking forward to receive a figurine of this year’s Chinese Zodiac animal sign (rabbit) which was made of ceramic and the availability was limited. It can only be received during this time, which explains the reason behind the long queue every year.
There was a long queue before the opening.
There were hordes of people entering the venue as soon as the doors opened.
A figurine of yearly Chinese Zodiac animal sign is given to the visitors, which is very popular that it runs out quickly every year.
The merchandise of the Honolulu Festival such as our original T-shirts and other goods were also popular.
There are many applications of lottery to win a hotel voucher and logo goods of the Honolulu Festival every year.
The Hilo Hattie’s gigantic aloha shirt was displayed by the entrance. Size; XL, chest 4.3 m, waist 4.1 m, neck 1.5 m.
Furthermore, the Ennichi Corner was thriving as usual. Both children and adults challenged on various traditional games of Ennichi such as the goldfish scooping, yo-yo fishing, shooting gallery and kendama. Also, there were booths for hands-on experience of the Japanese arts such as origami (paper-folding) and Japanese calligraphy. Many looked concentrated as they listened to the instruction and carried out their given tasks.
In addition, there was a donation box set up by the Ennichi Corner since it is one of the popular events where a lot of people gather around.
The children struggled to fish out their floating water balloon because it spins on the water.
The children looked distracted by a various choice of prizes.
These two local girls from Honolulu made the wall hanging with their own name. Please decorate your room with it!
The man questioned “Don’t you think mine is better?” and the woman answered “Yeah but I think you cheated a little” by the booth of Japanese calligraphy.
There were various food booths next to the Ennichi Corner. One of them was Crepes No Ka’ Oi from Kailua.
A Donation Box for the victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake was set up by the Ennichi Corner.
Cultural Experiences, Cultural Exchange, Craft Fair and Cultural Exhibitions
More than half of the area inside the Hawaii Convention Center was used for Craft Fair and cultural exhibitions. There were booths of vendors and participating groups from various countries and Hawaiian islands, which provided a place to enjoy many cultural exhibitions, hands-on experiences and buying cultural goods.
Also, the Cosplay Cafe was held this year. It was a great place for taking a rest after a nice walk around the venue. The children were taking pictures with their favorite mascots which they seemed to be enjoying.
This is a demonstration of Japanese calligraphy. Many people stopped by to see the smooth brush stroking technique.
This Japanese armor took half a year to make it. You can feel like a samurai simply by wearing it.
The firework shell of the Nagaoka Fireworks was huge. There are numbers of small gun powder organized in an orderly manner inside the shell.
The products of made in Hawaii were also been sold. One of the attractions is that you can get to taste many samplers of food and drink.
Lucy Deniz, who is a winner of Miss Kona Coffee 2011. She came from the Big Island.
The Taiwanese traditional arts such as songs and dances were performed at the booth of Taiwan. The colorful costumes of the performers attracted the audience.
They are the members of the Cosplay Cafe. Even the Spiderman gave a hand heart to us.
All the characters were willing to take pictures even with adults.
The Very First Bon Dance of Spring in Hawaii
The bon dance was held on Saturday, March 12, which was the first time at the Honolulu Festival. We had set up a scaffold called yagura on a corner of the venue which was decorated with paper lanterns. Also, the members of the local bon dance club offered their hands and we were able to create an atmosphere that is similar to the bon dance during summer in Japan. In addition, the Honolulu Festival’s original happi was given out to the first 100 people who participated in the bon dance to raise their spirits. Gradually, a lot of people gathered and enjoyed dancing. It only lasted for about an hour however, everybody was dancing vigorously with excitement.
Everybody danced in circle around the yagura.
The members of the local bon dance club.
No matter what the season is, the bon dance is always enjoying.
Everybody was grooving to the sound of the taiko drums.
