Archive for the ‘HOLIDAYS’ Category

Friday June 11 was a holiday to honor the King.

Kamehameha the Great is lovingly remembered by Hawaiians as the ruler who united the people of these islands under one government.

Every year on the 11th of June, now officially a Presidentially proclaimed day of honor and remembrance, the statues of Kamehameha are bedecked with hundreds of celebratory leis and garlands.

President Obama signed the proclamation asking that  all Americans celebrate “the rich heritage of Hawaii with appropriate ceremonies and activities.”

The original statue stands tall in Kapaau on the Big Island but copies are found in front of the Iolani Palace in Honolulu and in Washington DC.

Traditionally a holiday in Hawai, there are races, parades and special events to mark America’s only King.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Obama proclaims Friday Kamehameha Day (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

Ready, steady, go! You’ve got 24 hours, like Jack. How to make the most of the day off? Well, start with a list!
Number 1 has got to be: Beautify
Get to the salon or DIY but get those mani/pedi chores done. Same goes for waxing, ahem…
2? Clean out one closet or one drawer. Just one. There. Feel better now?
3 is reserved for emptying out the Inbox, mail tray, Spam folder and junk file. Clearing up the clutter on your computer is almost like a closet, see 2 above, for the after-glow feel good factor. Extra bonus: back up files.
4: Bag up to give away any tee shirt with a) a stain, b) a hole, c) stretched out/shrunken sizing, d) really corny, outdated design/slogans. Bet that pile is bigger than you expected. Natural disaster victims will love you.
5: Bake some cookies but give them all away, wrapped nicely of course.
6: Read, read, read.
7: Take a nap. Then watch old movies. Then nap some more.
8: Call an old girlfriend up for a chat and do not , repeat, do not, say ‘well, I have to go now’… Talk ’til you drop.
9: Drink only juice all day, fruit and or veg. Trust.
10:Go to bed early. By 9. Really.

Both Hawaii and Florida once again landed two beaches each on the eponymous list from Dr. Beach as he names the best beaches in the USA on the start of the official first day of the beach and pool season, Memorial Day weekend.

Surprisingly the number one spot this year  is Coopers Beach in Southampton, New York.   With its grainy white quartzy sand and high dunes and sea grass it is shielded from those cold Canadian streams pouring down from Labrador.

Coming in at No. 2 slot for a second year in a row is Siesta Beach near Sarasota.  Time for a snooze there, seaside, in a hammock.

The doctor known as Dr. Beach is Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman, Director of Florida International University’s Laboratory for Coastal Research, and he has administered the list for 20 years with no beach allowed to take the top spot more than once.

Florida was also represented on the annual list with the number 10 slot taken by Cape Florida State Park in Key Biscayne.

The rest of the top 10 are number 3, Coronado Beach in San Diego, Calif., 4, Cape Hatteras in the Outer Banks in North Carolina, 5, Main Beach in East Hampton, N.Y., 6,  Kahanamoku Beach in Waikiki, Oahu, Hawaii, 7, Coast Guard Beach in Cape Cod, Mass.,8,  Beachwalker Park in Kiawah Island, S.C.,and 9, Hamoa Beach in Maui, Hawaii.

Many had made showings on the 2009 list, and some would argue that though former winners are not eligible to be included on the list, the beaches in Hawaii are finer than Dr. Beach admits. We could show him one or two he might have missed!

Related articles by Zemanta

• Top 10 Beaches in U.S. (cbsnews.com)
• Hamptons beach tops best beaches list (cnn.com)

December 21– the Winter Solstice–the shortest day of 2009, and the one that has the least numbers of daylight. Er, that is, the least number of hours to grab those last minute rays of sunshine before the Christmas hols are upon us.

There may be 12 days of Christmas, but they are going to be dark ones, unless you are in the tropics.

With the Eastern cities socked in by unseasonably high piles of snow and coldy temps as far south as SoBe, any beach-bound lass is grateful for the tingly warmth of winter sun, and the light it brings.

Best place to head is for any tropical latitudinal band, or any land, that sits squarely near the equator.

Hop over to Hawaii and sing ‘Mele Kalikimaka‘ a title that roughly means Merry Christmas in Hawaiian (their 12-letter langauge does not have English phonemes like ‘r’ or ‘s’).

The song written by Robert Alex Anderson in 1949 is a prime example of a style of Hawaiian music known as hapa haole, or half-foreign, meaning in common vernacular, of mixed Hawaiian and Caucasian blood.  Many crooners have made covers of this song, like Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters in 1950 for Decca on 78 rpm’s, Bette Midler, herself a Hononlulu-born honey, and even at one time, The Beach Boys.

Top up the tan, bask in the glorious sun, and count those hours of this shortish day. It won’t be long before the Christmas star shines brightly!

Wear these Hawaiian-print bikinis in Hawaii

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Mahalo. Mahalo nui. Thanks from the heart.

As the nation turns its thoughts and minds to giving thanks, Kikidoll is ever aware of all the many people who have been supporters, family and friends who have given so much this past year.

To them all, heartfelt thanks.

Now, for the feast to celebrate!

In Hawaii, Thanksgiving is another chance for the extended ohana to gather for a day of family fun and games, traditions and of course the luau meal, replete with turkey, kalua pig and poi, a purply-grey paste that off-islanders usually hate and locals love.

It is not uncommon to see 150 members of the same ohana at the beach having their Thanksgiving cook-outs; all generations– grandparents, aunties, uncles and cousins all playing games and sharing aloha on their guitars called ukeleles.

Some take grills and smoke the turkey beach-side, but the purists are more adventurous and make a pit called an imu to bake the turkey and other meats or fish like mahi-mahi under the sand, on smoldering rocks covered in banana or ti leaves while the bird sizzles, traditional style.

For the at home gathering, try a pineapple juice and mustard glaze on the roasting turkey with a macadamia-nut bread stuffing.  Glazed sweet potatoes of course. Tarts in coconut and pineapple. Sweets in the form of mochi, (sticky flavored rice balls) and manju–a custardy fruit filling on a crispy pastry base, with guava, mango and papaya shave ices rounding up the dessert table.

Share aloha, give thanks, live life!

Happy Thanksgiving.

Kikidoll at the beach

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