What a day! - Day 24

Day 24 was definitely not a relaxing day! We packed a lot into the day because it was all on the east side of the island and we are staying on the west side. We were up an out early for our 1 hour drive to Kualoa Ranch (a private nature preserve s well as a working cattle ranch with more than 600 head of cattle, 120 horses and 200 sheep). Established in 1850, Kualoa Ranch sits on 4000 acres of amazing property named Kualoa, Hakipu’u and Ka’a’awa. We were particular interested in going to the ranch because it has been the site of over 70 Hollywood movies since the 1950’s. Films such as Jumanji, Kong Skull Island, Jurassic World, Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom, Jurassic Park, Windtalkers, Pearl Harbor, Godzilla, and 50 First Dates have all been filmed at Kualoa Ranch. TV shows like Hawaii Five-O, Magnum P.I. and LOST have also been filmed there and it is nick-named “Jurassic Valley”. The ranch is known as Hollywood’s “Hawaii’s Backlot.” During WWII, the Kualoa Ranch was used as a miltary base for 5 years after the bombing at Pearl Harbor. They do both horseback riding tours and UTV tours as well as other activities. Julie and I chose the horseback riding and Jimm and Matt did the UTVs. They were both two-hour tours through this beautiful property. It was Julie’s first time horse back riding, so it was fun to share my love of this activity with her. Check out the Photos and Videos pages to get a glimpse of our excursions and this beautiful property. After finishing up at Kualoa Ranch, we headed to the Polynesian Cultural Center to get immersed in the the culture of Hawaii and greater Polynesia. The are outside of the center is filled with food trucks and merchants. The cultural center is split into the islands villages of Tonga, Tahiti, Hawaii, Fiji, Aotearoa (New Zealand) and Samoa. They have shows and activities at each of the villages and a canoe ride that winds along the water between the villages. It was a fun experience getting to talk to some of the native people working there, many who are college students here in Hawaii. Part of our ticket included the Alii Luau, a celebration of Hawaii’s cultural heritage. A whole roasted pig was baked in an underground imu and then presented as part of luau experience. They had delicious traditional food as well as a show held in a beautiful covered outdoor venue against a backdrop of waterfalls. We were lucky enough to have almost front row seats which enhanced the experienced. We drank out of pineapples and enjoyed the entire ambiance of the event. Then it was on to the Pacific Island Stage where we watched “Hā: Breath of Life,” a stunning show featuring over 100 Polynesian natives, special effects, animation and surround sound. The performers were amazing and you could tell in their faces how happy they were to be back doing shows again. The overall experience of this show was amazing. We were all so impressed with all the aspects of the event. We were exhausted by the end of the day and after an hour drive back to the Aulani resort, we all pretty much headed straight for bed, very happy with the day.

Aloha! Deb