As it turns out we ended up with 3 little celebrations - 2 planned and 1 a surprise.
1. The first one happened at the Polynesian Cultural Centre. This is a big "theme" park of Polynesian Cultures on Oahu - it highlights the various Island Cultures. We really enjoyed the tour of the Island we took to get there as well as the presentations at various "Islands". The Samoan presentation was hilarious and the whole place is very well run and entertaining.
It is run by the Seventh Day Adventist Church to provide employment to the hundreds of students at the adjacent Brigham Young University. While no fan of this "church" we were impressed with the level of service and friendliness of every staff member we encountered (it rivaled Disneyland). They call everyone "Cousins" while you are there which is funny and can get to be a bit much after a while.
At the evening Luau the MC asked if anyone had a December Birthday and they all stood and we sang Happy Birthday to them.
He then asked if anyone was celebrating "love" in December with an engagement, wedding or anniversary. We waved our hands - as did another couple at our table. The MC then invited us down to the stage for a gift......so we trooped down and stood with 5 other couples on the stage. He talked to each couple about what they were celebrating (the couple next to us from Boksburg South Africa on Honeymoon).
When he got to the last couple it was apparent we were the longest married couple on the stage so he returned to us and asked us to share the secret of our marriage. Allan said "Hang loose" (honestly....!!) and I said "Never give up". He thanked us and then the band struck up and he told us he would sing the Hawaiian Wedding Song as we danced on stage. OH MY...... we swayed gently together - chatting with the other couples (me secretly hoping the song was short but it went on and on). At the end Allan and I kissed and we got a round of applause as we went back to our seats....and many congrats for the rest of the evening.
I left Lindsay with my camera and apparently the utter mortification of having your parents dance and kiss in public interfered with her photographic skills but here is what we have.
It was a fun moment!
2. We wanted to take my parents and our children for a Catamaran ride or a sunset cruise to include them in our celebration as they are so much a part of our marriage. Alas the sunset cruises were booked out so we went for a Catamaran ride on the high seas. It was so much fun!
3. Date Night Hawaii - My parent graciously gave us a night out on the town as a gift. We went to a great spot called Rum Fire - the water was lapping just beyond our table and the Tiki torches were alight.....the Mai Tai's were cold and the food interesting. We had a quiet moment together to appreciate how far we have come, how much we have grown, how much we love one another....how blessed we are.
Stay tuned for our 30th Wedding Anniversary Celebrations!
Congratulations on all of your anniversary celebrations! It sounds like you had a great trip.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a wonderful time!
ReplyDeleteWe will be celebrating our 30th next August. Hoping we will not still be unemployed, and that we can actually go somewhere to celebrate.
Hope your party tonight is BLESSED! We are going to take the kids to the beach for a late night bonfire and s'mores.
Laurel :)