The Queen of Tonga visits the PCC-Cultural Night

The Queen of Tonga Visits the PCC

March 28, 2014
and
Cultural Night - March 28-29, 2014

This is the Queen's Hut at the Tongan Village, all ready for her arrival.

Notice the Tapa cloth mat and woven mat for the queen to walk on.

People waiting for her arrival.

Men from the Fiji Village are in costume and acting as the guards for the Queen.
They are walking in ahead of the Queen and behind her.

The Queen is in the center wearing the sunglasses.

President Grace, the President of the PCC, is in the Red shirt
and his wife is following, wearing the orange dress.

This is the Queen being escorted to her hut.

The Queen of Tonga in the doorway to her hut.
This is where she sat to watch the program put on for her.

This is a huge pig and some Tapa cloth mats given to the Queen.

This is a chief from the Hawaiian village introducing the girls doing a traditional hula for the Queen.
This is also where my camera ran out of batteries and I couldn't get pictures of the hula or of any of the dances or gifts from the other Villages.  I had a front row seat, these pictures were taken from where I sat.  There was a lot of ceremony and a great program put on for the Queen.

The Cultural Night Program

March 28-29, 2014

My battery was still not charged the first night.  there were performances from students from Africa, China, Taiwan, Micronesia, Cook Islands, Japan, Mongolia, Samoa, Hawaii, Fiji and maybe other countries.  Here are some pictures from the second night of Cultural night.

Students from Korea performed dances from their country.

More pictures from the Korean students.

Korean boys dancing.

I am not sure what country these girls are from, they  might also be from Korea.

These are dancers from Aotearoa. (New Zealand)

More from New Zealand. 

These dancers are from the Philippines.

This was fun to watch.  They danced in and out of the poles as the people holding the poles put them together and apart to the rhythm of the music.  It really took skill.

My roommate, Luz Flores is from the Philippines and she helped with making a lot of the costumes.  This was one of my favorite dances.

Tahiti girls and guys doing Tahitian dancing.

Tonga put on quite a show too.

The kids from Tonga really seem to enjoy doing their dances.

Tonga  finishes off the Cultural night.

My Line of Doll Clothes

My Line of Doll Clothes

Plus a picture of my roommates.

I decided to start making 18" doll clothes for the Mission Settlement store to sell.  

Here is what I have  made so far.

This is my model.  We got her from "Give and Take" It is on BYUH campus and students give things to it when they leave and new students go there and work for 1/2 hour and then can take 10 things.  She will not be going to the Mission settlement store, I don't think she looks Polynesian.   The outfit will be sold there.

 This is the doll I bought for the Mission Settlement.  

She is modeling a muumuu out of material from the Hawaiian Village here at the PCC.

This is another new doll that Sharon bought for the Mission Settlement modeling another muumuu out of material from the Hawaiian Village.  All the muumuus have matching pantaloons.  This one has flip flops too.

I think this doll should be called Lelani.  Lelani is wearing a hula dancing costume.

Here Lelani is wearing a muumuu made from material from the Tongan Village.

She is wearing a puletasi top and a lava lava skirt.  

This is the style and material worn by the workers in the Fiji Village.

This doll is wearing a puletasi top and lava lava skirt in the Tongan Village material.  

(Oops I forgot to change her flip flops.)  I was also told that the top needs to be much longer and not flare out at the bottom as much.  (Knee length.)  So I have not perfected the patterns yet.

This is a picture of all my roommates at Tessie's "Graduation" party.  From left to right: Teresa Wang, Luz Flores, Tessie Crummett, me, and Janet Johnson.  Notice that I really am the tallest one of the bunch.  Now that Tessie went home I also have been here the longest and I am the next single sister to go home!  When someone's mission is over and they are going home, they call it "Graduation."

More Family Comes to Visit

More Family Comes to Visit

Starting on March 10, 2014 with Sandra's family, then Mark and Kelli came on March 19th and Julie's family came on April 2, 2014.

*Sorry, for some reason my pictures are not sharp and clear like my camera used to take.

Sandra, Quinn, Jack, Chase and Tessa on the Arizona Memorial at Pearl harbor.

Tessa, Chase and Jack in front of the box that had the names of the survivors that have died at a later time, starting in 1983, and have had their ashes returned to the USS Arizona to rest with their fallen crew mates.

Boarding the boat leaving the USS Arizona Memorial.

A nice picture spot.

On the hike to Waimea Falls.  Chase, Jack, Tessa and I are in front of the "Rainbow Tree."  The bark naturally grows many different colors.

 Jack, Sandra, Chase and Quinn are in the back, swimming to the falls.

Waimea Falls

Tessa didn't like the cold water so she sat with me, watching her family swim.

Trying on costumes at the Theater Wardrobe Department where I work in the afternoons.

Sandra and Quinn dancing with other couples celebrating anniversaries, at the Samoan Luau.

Jack and Chase getting ready to join in the dancing.

On the Pineapple Express, a little sight seeing train at the Dole Pineapple Plantation. 

I thought these flowers were interesting and beautiful.

Jack and Chase in front of the Pineapple Express Engine.

Posing for a picture in front of the Pineapple plants.

Finally we found a turtle resting in the sand.  We looked for them 3 or 4 other times with no success.

Enjoying a canoe ride at the Polynesian Cultural Center.

Tessa wearing a pretty headband.

Sandra and Quinn's family in front of a waterfall at the PCC.

At the Fiji village.

At Seven Brother's Backyard Burgers.  

Everyone likes this place and wants to eat here more than once.

Mark trying on a sailor hat for me at the shop at Pearl Harbor.

Mark and Kelli getting a closer look at the waves.

Still climbing trees.

Watching the sunset at Sunset Beach.

Another pretty Sunset.

Kelli wearing the tea leaf skirt that I just made in Theater Wardrobe.

Julie, Elsa, Eli and Canyon enjoying the rope swing at the beach by their rental home.

Canyon taking a turn.

Elsa looks cute posing on the swing.

It was windy at Laie Point when we went there.

Julie, Elsa, Eli, Canyon and Brent at Hanauma Bay.

I spent the morning of April 4, 2014, my 67th Birthday, snorkeling at Hanauma Bay with Julie and Brent's family.

The kids had fun swinging from the hanging vines.

On the trail to Manoa Falls.

This natural arch is one of the interesting things we saw on the hike to Manoa Falls.

We spent the afternoon of my Birthday on this hike.  Hanauma Bay and Manoa Falls

 were both things I had not done since coming to Hawaii for my mission.

The hike gets a little harder.  The hardest part was at the end when we were climbing 

up on muddy large rocks.  I should have taken a picture of that part!

I made it, with Julie's encouragement!  I was focused on making it to the top, but didn't think of how I would make it back down.   My sweet, thoughtful son-in-law Brent carried my flowery purse on his shoulder and walked backwards down the large muddy (slippery) rocks holding both of my hands to help me get back down.  Thank you so much Brent.

It is a beautiful 160 ft. waterfall.

Canyon, Elsa and Eli at Manoa Falls.

Stopping to have fun on the way back from the falls.

This tree was growing over the trail.

On the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.

Julie is giving Canyon a back massage while the other kids play at Pearl Harbor.

Outside Matsumoto's Shave Ice store in Haleiwa.

Elsa ran ahead and got to the beach first.  She started pointing and Julie asked if she saw a turtle.  She said, "No, but I see a statue of a turtle."  Julie saw it and said, "That is a real turtle."

We were lucky and saw a turtle on the first try.

Julie and Canyon taking a picture close up.

Just sleeping away.

Watching the sunset in Haleiwa.

At the Aloha Luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center.

This is the pig they just took out of the imu.  (underground oven)

This girl is wearing the tea leaf skirt that I made earlier in the day.  

They dance in the tea leaf skirts at the Aloha Luau.  I make 2 new skirts each Monday.

Up on stage with the dancers, following along.

After the night show with some of the cast.

Paddling the small canoe.

We went to Sharks Cove for a picnic dinner and to watch the sunset.

This sink hole filled and emptied with each wave.  

The previous picture shows it full.  It cool to watch.

We saw quite a few whales in the distance spouting out water.

This was the Sunset we enjoyed.