Learning to dance the hula is as easy as 1-2-3. In Hawaii the hula is an integral part of the Hawaiian culture. It is beloved by all and studied in the most serious fashion by students in a hula halau (school). Marriott's Spirit of Aloha tour team, along with Houston's own KHOU news anchor Lucy Noland, visited the Children's Miracle Network children, families and staff at Texas Children's Hospital today. Here we are with adorable three-year-old Diamond Williams and eight-year-old Caleb Copeland.
When dancing the hula, there's always a story to be told with the hands. It can be seductive and suggesting. In fact, Protestant missionaries in Hawaii denounced the hula as pagan and its performances were banned because of the gyrations and scantily clad dancers. Luckily it was revived.
All in all, the hula is purely poetry in motion --- a beautiful art form with its own body language. The Polynesian Cultural Center dancers showed patients the secret language of the hula including how to say:
1. I love you
2. I'm thinking of you
3. Go away
4. Come here, let's go
5. Speak to me, talk to me
6. I'm happy
7. I'm sad, unhappy
8. Rain
9. Sun
10. Surf, water, beach
Today, hula is celebrated by the young and old, both men and women.
JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa General Manager Dan Banchiu presented a vacation package of a five-night stay at JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa at Ko Olina on Oahu, roundtrip airfare for four on Hawaiian Airlines, and four passes to the world-renowned Polynesian Cultural Center to John Scales, senior vice president of development for Texas Children's Hospital.
Click here to watch Lucy help the children with lei-making. She also shared her son's inspirational stories.
Life Care Manager Jamie Byrd learned how to make a lei with Dan. Jamie is getting married next year and we tried to entice her to spend her honeymoon in Hawaii as she's never been before!
Mahalo and aloha to Texas Children's Hospital and also Lucy Noland!
Learning the secret language of the hula is the perfect way to get in the mood for your stay at Maui luxury hotels. In fact, you can practice before your trip. Get a DVD package and learn to practice the hula in your living room. For added family fun, throw in a hula skirt and learn to shake those hips. It's a great way for the entire family to get ready for their stay at an ocean resort hotel Waikiki. Practice makes perfect. Hit the hotels on the beach in Hawaii as a hula dancing master. Impress the locals, and learn to jive that Hawaiian island vibe.
