May Day is Lei Day (and eat at Lani’s)
by Carolyn Classen on May. 01, 2010, under Arts, Health, LifeGrowing up in Hawaii, I still hear the lyrics (in my head) of the song “May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii” written by Leonard Hawk, wherever I happen to be on May 1st…even here in the dry SW desert. So I’m homesick today.
lots of lei
“May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii
Garlands of flowers everywhere”…
For those of you who have never lived in the 50th State of Hawaii, May 1st–May Day is like a holiday, with Hawaiian pageantry, music, hula dancing, people wearing lots of lei, contests over the best types or most creative lei, etc.
As a kid, we even danced around the May pole. We made lei mostly out of flowers (which we hand picked), but you can use different types of leaves such as ti or maile, or a mixed haku lei of native plants. Actually nowadays lei are made out of all kinds of stuff (yarn, plastic, ribbons, beads, seeds, aluminum can pull up tabs, etc. etc.)
Lei (na lei) is a plural word in Hawaiian, so please don’t think I don’t know how to spell “leis”. We just don’t use it often in that plural English form.
So, feeling homesick, a good place to feel at home in the Islands (even while in the desert), is to head out east to Lani’s Luau restaurant, at the NW corner of Harrison Rd. and Golf Links. I wrote about them in my very first blog for this new online Tucsoncitizen.com entity — “Is Lani’s Luau International Cuisine?” (click here).
Lani’s Luau is at 2532 S. Harrison Road, 520-886-LUAU (5828), and has been there for almost three and a half years, because the Hawaiian food is “some ono” (delicious). Co-owners Zane and Leilani (Lani) Dowling speak “aloha” there too. And check out all the Hawaiian paraphernalia on the walls & shelves. They’re open from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. today.
Lani’s Luau no ka oe (Lani’s Luau is the best)!
Happy May Day!
