Aloha, Hawaii

Visiting other countries is one of my favorite activities. I feel happiness and excitement when I learn and play during my visit to other countries. I have been to many countries, but the place I felt most satisfied with was Hawaii. I had such a wonderful time in Hawaii, so I want to visit again! Do you want to know why? Then read some spectacular facts about Hawaii below!

Hawaii is made of many islands. But some of the most famous and biggest islands are Kauai, O'ahu, Maui, and Big Island. The Hawaii islands were discovered sometime between 124 and 1120 AD when the islands were first settled by Polynesians. Polynesians are a group of closely related people who were native to Polynesia. These voyagers developed the Hawaiian cuisine, Hawaiian art, and the Native Hawaiian religion.

The culture of the Native Hawaiians is about 1500 years old and has origins in the Polynesians who voyaged to end settled in Hawaii. One of my favorite parts of the Hawaiian culture is the hula dance. Hula is a Polynesian dance form accompanied by chant or song. Hula dancers wearing skirts and lei* look quite unique.

One of the reasons I like Hawaiian people is because of their greetings. Some of their greetings are Aloha, Mahalo, and Shaka. Aloha is often used to say, "Bye," or "Hello," but it also means to give love and kindness. Mahalo means, "Thank you." Say it to people who help you out and get one of those friendly Hawaiian smiles. Shaka is a hand symbol that is often used to ask, "How are you?" or "How is it going?". You can gesture it by folding the fingers between your thumb and pinky. You feel more welcomed if you hear these greetings because these have deeper meanings than just a greeting.

There are many countries in the world. You may think really hard when you are planning to visit another country. If you want to visit somewhere beautiful and amiable, I powerfully recommend Hawaii. First, it might be kind of strange, but once you meet their history, culture, and people, you will want to visit again. Then Aloooha!

*Lei: Lei is any series of objects strung together with the intent to be worn.