aloha mai!

First things first.

'Olelo Hawai'i
Yes, I am Hawaiian, born + raised. My dad has black hair, brown eyes + skin, is of Hawaiian, Filipino + Korean descent, and is originally from Palolo Valley on Oʻahu. My blonde-haired blue-eyed mom from Hermosa Beach, California is English, Irish, Scottish, Swedish, German + Norwegian. So Mom + Dad = one hapa haole hula girl! I definitely relate more to my Hawaiian ancestry than any other nationality running in my koko. While I have danced hula and studied Hawaiian culture and language for most of my life, I am NOT a kumu; I am a perpetual student. "Kumu" is a title reserved only for the very special few who have earned it! Interspersed throughout my blOGG are Hawaiian words and phrases. Unfortunately, technology has not yet found a way for diacritical markings to be viewed correctly across all browsers + platforms, thus, the kahakō may sadly show incorrectly throughout (if at all), and the ʻokina may sometimes actually just be an apostrophe. Translations may be found by visiting Ulukau, a Hawaiian Electronic Library, which can be found at: http://wehewehe.olelo.hawaii.edu/cgi-bin/hdict?!=e.

OGG = my island, my maui
Through hula, I have been blessed with many opportunities to travel to exotic places like Samoa, Tahiti, Europe + Japan, as well as throughout Hawaiʻi + the continental US. I love experiencing other cultures and languages, but there is nothing like looking out that homebound plane's window and seeing the cerulean skies, azure ocean, green mountains + lush valleys of Maui, truly nō ka oi! If you don't believe me, check out the maui visitors bureau website at http://www.visitmaui.com/, order your free vacation planner + see for yourself.

Ke Akua pū.