The Aloha Festival
In Hawaii, September also brings the Aloha Festival. Food, arts and crafts, music and dance. Canoe races, hula competitions and parades. Streets are closed off for Ho'olaule'a block parties, where people can sample cultural foods, buy lei and island handicraft, and enjoy exciting dancing and entertainment. What islander has not experienced this statewide cultural extravaganza that includes over 300 events on the six major Hawaiian islands?
The Aloha Festival was started in 1946 by the Jaycees as a celebration of the myriad Pacific and Asian traditions that make up Hawaii's unique cosmopolitan heritage. What started out as a week of celebration has expanded to a two-month festival with the help of nearly 30,000 volunteers, and draws nearly a million celebrants.
Fall was chosen because it was the time of Makahiki in ancient Hawaii. Makahiki was a four-month period beginning in the middle of October, after the harvesting season, when tributes were paid to ruling chiefs and wars and battles were forbidden. Instead, people gathered for sporting competitions and contests and paid hommage to Lono, one of the four major gods brought from Kahiki (Tahiti).
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