LIHU‘E — The Garden Island capitalized on a three-day holiday weekend to catch up on Lunar New Year celebrations from the West Shore through North Shore.
Seven Chinese lions combined — four from the Kaua‘i-based Tsunami Taiko group and three from the O‘ahu-based Saam Fu Cultural Center — at The Shops at Kuku‘iula on Friday afternoon to welcome the Year of the Dragon before a large audience that collected at the Palm Court area.
“This is one of our biggest events of the year at The Shops,” said Stacie Chiba-Miquel, an Alexander and Baldwin regional manager. “People, both visitors and residents alike, come from all over to feed the lions li see and enjoy the specials from the shopping center’s tenants for the Flavors of Kuku‘iula.”
Eight strings of permitted firecrackers signalled the start of the Chinese lions’ journey throughout the island that started when the lions poked through the clouds of smoke generated by the firecrackers. The Shops at Kukui‘ula was the only site that featured firecrackers that came with lots of advisements of the noisemakers and its exploding characteristics.
“Mark Jeffers of The Storybook Theatre did not know we had Kaua‘i Chinese Lions,” said Joanne Parongao of Tsunami Taiko. “He brought in the Saam Fu lions from O‘ahu.”
A performer with Saam Fu said the group was heading to the Friday Art Night for a performance in Hanapepe immediately following the appearance at The Shops where the group’s martial arts demonstration was replaced by a performance by the youthful Tsunami Taiko.
Saturday morning, the Saam Fu group visited the Hokulei Shopping Village to celebrate the Lunar New Year with a martial arts demonstration in kung fu before making the trek throughout the shopping center located next to the emerging dust screens from the construction of the latest First Hawaiian Bank branch.
The Hokulei Village stop was the first of three scheduled stops before the group returned back to O‘ahu.
Following Hokulei Village, the Saam Fu group moved to the Kukui Grove Center for an encore Lunar New Year celebration that followed the ‘Olelo Hawai‘i event.
The final stop on Saturday was at the Koloa Village shopping center where Break + Feast, the newest hotspot for brunch, celebrated its grand opening on Feb. 13 — just in time to kick off Valentine’s Day celebrations and ring in the Lunar New Year.
The owners of Kiawe Roots, located in Lawai adjacent to 7-11 — Tricia and Mark Ruiz, and their cousin, Kaulana Baptiste, welcomed guests to the 68-seat eatery that’s open daily, except Monday, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
