Ohana Means Community

Last weekend, I ran into an old friend at a concert. I know George Mowrer from the church we used to attend together and from some men’s retreats we enjoyed. Lately I’ve lost my desire for organized religion, so I hadn’t seen George for a while. He asked me if I had found another church, and I told him no, that I was giving that a break for now.

George and I are Facebook friends, so he knows of my Tiki obsession. When George asked me what I was doing to be in community, I told him my Tiki ohana was my community. He asked me to explain that to him, and I tried the best I could before the concert started and we shifted our focus to the music. I’m afraid my explanation must have been pretty disjointed. I will try to explain it better now, so if you’re reading this, George, this is for you.

My Tiki ohana is both real and virtual. I’ve written at length about the many aspects of it (Who’s Who In The Tiki Ohana): artists, builders, chroniclers, musicians, mixologists. I’ll now talk about some of the specific people I’ve gotten to know well, some in person, some virtually. I feel blessed to know these folks, as they truly make up a wonderful community for me.

Beth Lennon. A/K/A Mod Betty, Beth is the creator of Retro Roadmap, a really cool website devoted to spotlighting vintage and retro places across the country with the hope of preserving them. Years ago, Beth came across my A. Panda’s Tiki Lounge page and reached out to me to talk about Tiki. She noticed that there was an interconnect between my world of Tiki and her world of Mid-Century Modern, one that we’ve explored ever since. I invited Beth to come up to Bethlehem so I could show her Steel Stacks; she and her husband Cliff Hillis both came up and we immediately hit it off! Cliff is a musician, a singer-songwriter who is very busy in the Philly music scene. He brought me a copy of one of his CDs as a gift, and I gave Beth a SHAG art postcard that reminded me of her.

Over the years, we’ve crossed paths on many occasions. Beth came back to Bethlehem for a Mr. Ho’s Orchestrotica concert I helped organize at Steel Stacks; I spent time with Beth and Cliff at The Hukilau in Fort Lauderdale; and I helped Beth organize a Tiki weekender in Wildwood NJ, the MCM/Doo-Wop capital of the East Coast. It was at this Wildwood event that I met many people I’ve gotten to know in the local Tiki ohana, folks like Robin Cammarota-Nicholson and Michael Hirsch.

Michael Hirsch. Michael lives in New York City, but his parents live in Allentown, so he comes to my neck of the woods often. Michael has been to my Tiki Lounge a few times. He is an architect by trade, and he is passionate about historical preservation, having written a book on Doo-Wop architecture. Michael organized a tour of historically significant landmarks in Wildwood during Mod Betty’s Tiki Weekend. He also is involved with the Society for Commercial Archeology and brought a few of his SCA friends to the Tiki Lounge the last time he visited.

I’ve seen Michael in other places besides Wildwood and Bethlehem. He and I broke bread together at another Retro Roadmap event at the Village Diner in upstate New York, where I also met his parents, Anita and Syman. It turns out the synagogue they attend is literally across the street from my house! Michael also met my friend Bruce and me at The Polynesian, an upscale new Tiki bar in Manhattan.

Robin Cammarota-Nicholson. Robin is another New York City resident I first met at the Wildwood Tiki Weekend. She and her husband Ken live in Yonkers, but Robin travels the world in her job with the American Council on Germany. Everywhere she goes, Robin searchesm out Tiki hotspots to try out. Although I haven’t seen her as often as I’ve seen Michael, I did run into Robin at a Surf Music weekend in Asbury Park NJ and at a pop-up Tiki bar at Boilermaker NYC, where the bar was taken over by Tiki mixologist extraordinaire and historian, Jeff “Beachbum” Berry.

Jeffrey Berry. Jeff “Beachbum” Berry is one of the most influential people in the Tiki revival movement which began in the 1990s. He has published multiple books on Tiki cocktail recipes and history, travels the world as a Tiki drink ambassador, and opened his own restaurant and Tiki bar, Latitude 29, in New Orleans. I first met Jeff at The Hukilau in Fort Lauderdale, where I attended his symposium on the dark days of Tiki drinks in the 1970s. I found him to be personable and kind, with no ego, as he spent time talking with me as if I was the only person there.

The next time I met The Bum, he took his generosity of spirit a step further. My sister Anita and I visited Latitude 29 while in New Orleans on some family business. Jeff agreed to do an interview with me for my podcast before we sat down for dinner. He was articulate, genuine, and a wonderful historian during our talk (you can check out this interview in my podcast episode here: Panda’s Tasty Jambalaya). During dinner, Beachbum Berry came to our table and shared a new drink he was working on with us, asking our opinion on it. What a nice gesture from a great guy! I consider it an honor to know Jeff Berry personally, as he is the most accessible and humble of the Tiki titans. Mahalo, Bum.

Steve Seifert. My wife Jess first introduced me to “Tikiman” Steve Seifert, who created a wonderful website dedicated to WDW’s Polynesian Village Resort: Tikiman Pages. Our family are Disney junkies, and The Polynesian is my happy place. Jess began following Tikiman’s website and Facebook page to keep up to date on all things Poly, which helped us better plan our vacations there.

Over the years, Tikiman has asked his followers to contribute to his website, whenever he knew somebody was at The Polynesian and he was looking for on-the-ground reporting. I helped Steve out when our family was on vacation there in 2014. In return, he helped publicize my blog posts through his audience, as I was blogging daily durning our stay (WDW Polynesian Day 1) and Tikiman’s followers took my readership into 5 digits!

A few years later, Tikiman decided to host a get-together for Tiki friends at the Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto in The Polynesian Village. It was really cool to meet him in person, along with seeing other members of the Tiki ohana like Jim Hayward, Scott Deeter, George Borcherding, and Kevin-John Jobczynski.

Kevin-john Jobczynski. I’ve gotten to know and appreciate a lot of Tiki artists over the years (Tiki Ohana: Artists, Tiki Ohana: Artists, Part Deux), but I’ve only actually met a very few of them. Josh Agle was the first, and I’ve documented my interactions with him before (Stalking SHAG). One of my current favorite artists is Kevin-john Jobczynski, who has become somewhat famous as a Disney Master Artist.

I was fortunate to meet KJ at Tikiman’s gathering at Trader Sam’s, where he debuted a new art print created especially for the event. I had previously purchased a piece from him entitled Mai-Tai Sunset, which was one of KJ’s earliest Tiki-specific pieces of art. How cool that he printed it on a piece of driftwood with a bamboo frame and rattan matting! This print, along with several other Kevin-john works, hangs proudly in the Tiki Lounge.

George Borcherding. Like me, George Borcherding is a huge fan of Tiki. I first got to know him via our online interactions, but I have now spent enough time with George in-person to consider him a true friend. All of our meetings have taken place at The Polynesian, which certainly isn’t a bad place to meet. A Dole Whip and a Captain’s Mai-Tai are great reasons to get together!

 

 

 

 

 

 

George, like me, has his own home Tiki bar, which he puts a lot of work into making special. I’ve never been to Nui Keoki’s Enchanted Grotto, but I enjoy following along on his Facebook page to see the latest and the greatest in Tiki decor. I believe he feels the same way about A. Panda’s Tiki Lounge.

One of these days, I will visit George in Jacksonville FL, and I’m sure he will come to Bethlehem PA too. For now, we have many memories we’ve made together at The Polynesian, from the time we met with many of our Tiki ohana at Tikiman Steve’s event, and the time we were a couple of non-Polynesian gringos crashing Auntie Kaui’s birthday celebration in Luau Cove, to just chilling out at the Tambu Lounge sipping on Mai-Tais made by Walter. And we’ll never forget being served by Skipper Natalie at Trader Sam’s, which was sadly the last time we saw her before she tragically passed away at too young an age. Okole mauna, Natalie, and mahalo, Bruddah George, for being a good friend and a big part of my Tiki community.

Pins in The Tiki Lounge

There are many facets to the story of my Tiki journey. One angle I haven’t explored yet is my collection of Tiki pins. As I look back on the many pins I’ve gotten, and continue to get new ones, it suddenly occurs to me: these pins tell a story. With pretty pictures. Let’s start at the beginning.

2008-13, Walt Disney World

Our first family vacation to WDW in Orlando FL was in December of 2008. We were on the every 18 month plan, which saw us journeying to the Polynesian Village Resort four times between 2008-13. These were the days before Disney Magic Bands, so you carried your ID cards in a plastic pouch on the end of a lanyard. The lanyard was a perfect place to hold pins, and we were quickly introduced to the art of pin trading at Disney.

Pin trading was a family affair, as my wife and kids were really into it. I also enjoyed it, and was fortunate enough to score my first Tiki pin (the one with the black Mickey ears hat) via trade. I loved that pin, and through a little research, I discovered there were two more Tiki pins in the set. I managed to find the second one in due time, again by trade (because they no longer sold these), but the third one eluded me. Then, one day, by dumb luck, the third pin (the blue one) found me. Seriously! We were walking through Animal Kingdom, on our way to the Safari ride, when a Disney cast member came running up to me and offered me a trade. He had noticed (from afar) the two Tiki pins on my lanyard and told me he had the third one if I was interested in it. I sure was! It was karma that this missing pin found me, early on in my Tiki journey.

Besides trading for pins, we also bought our fair share of them. At first I was drawn to the pins from some of our favorite WDW rides, like The Haunted Mansion and Tower of Terror. Then I discovered pins specific to the Polynesian Village, available in their main gift shop, Bou-Tiki. They had some fairly generic (but still cool) pins, and they incorporated Lilo and Stitch into some of them, an added bonus. During our first visit, which was during the Christmas season, I also found a special Holiday 2008 Polynesian Village pin. What a great find! It turns out they put out a new holiday pin every year. I have made it my goal to get one of these special pins every year that we visit WDW. So far, so good.

2013, Disneyland

For my 48th birthday, Jess and I decided to take a trip to Los Angeles CA. My main motivation for the trip was to attend the 50th anniversary celebration of Disneyland’s Enchanted Tiki Room, the original. We also snuck in a trip to Whittier to visit Oceanic Arts, on our way to Anaheim. Jess wanted to try Disneyland, to see how it compared to Walt Disney World, which we had been to four times already. She also had never been to California and wanted to see Hollywood and Santa Monica. We ended up staying at the Disneyland Hotel, which is where the ETR celebration was being held, and put us close to Disneyland before we toured LA.

Magic bands were just becoming a thing at Disneyland in 2013, but we still had cards to navigate our hotel, which meant another pouch/lanyard and more space for new pins! Here I focused on the pins specific to Disneyland, including the hotel were we stayed, the iconic park sign, and the rides we really enjoyed. Some rides were unique to Disneyland (The Matterhorn), some were better here than at WDW (Space Mountain, It’s A Small World), and some not as good (Splash Mountain). It was fun to try them all, and I got as many pins as I could to remember our one trip to Disneyland.

But let’s move on to the main reason for our visit: the 50th anniversary of The Enchanted Tiki Room!

I was very excited for this event, mostly because it would be another opportunity to see one of my Tiki art heroes, SHAG. Disney had commissioned him to do some special paintings for this event, and I was lucky enough to get him to personalize a print for me. I had also pre-ordered a bunch of ETR swag that I picked up at the event, including some pins marking the 50th anniversary (displayed on yet another lanyard, this one for the event!). While we were at Disneyland, we of course did the Enchanted Tiki Room, which was another attraction much better there than at WDW. The main difference is the outdoor courtyard area, which features 8 animated Tiki god statues and a stand selling Dole Whip (as captured in SHAG’s art). I hadn’t planned on getting the special pins dedicated to each Tiki god, but after seeing them in person, I had to have those pins too. All are now displayed proudly in the ETR corner of the Tiki Lounge.

2014-18, Walt Disney World Part Deux

Back to Walt Disney World we go. A lot had changed when we returned for a family vacation in 2014. Magic bands had now replaced the old card system, so there was no need to wear lanyards anymore. They were building a new Tiki bar at The Polynesian Village called Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto, modeled after the Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar at the Disneyland Hotel which had opened the year before (and we got to visit a mere weeks after it opened!). They also opened a new stand at the Great Ceremonial House, the Pineapple Lanai, where you could get Dole Whips and floats. And yes, they were building new over-water bungalows out back, and for a mere $2500 a night, you too could stay there. Too rich for our blood.

Anyway, though WDW and The Polynesian were changing, as were our family vacation plans (now on a 36-month schedule), my hunger for pins has not changed. I still seek out the special holiday pin every year we visit. Although we’ve only been back twice for full family vacations, we have been back for special trips at least once a year over the past 5 years. Even though we might not be there over the holiday season, I have friends in Florida who visit Orlando regularly and can pick stuff up for me. So, for example, we took a road trip in June that had us at The Polynesian for 4 days; the 2018 holiday pins weren’t available then, but you can bet I will have one of those pins hanging in the Tiki Lounge before the end of the year!

2018, Non-Disney Tiki

So, why did it take me 10 years to realize that other folks make Tiki pins besides Disney? I don’t know. Maybe I was distracted by other art forms, like paintings, Tiki mugs, and books. Or Tiki playing cards, like the cool Tikilandia deck designed by Robert Jimenez from LA. It was when I ordered two sets of these beautiful cards that I received one of Robert’s pins as a thank you gift. Well, that pin was so cool that I had to order another right away! I decided to display these pins on a new canvas, literally – the back of my Tiki bar director-chair stool, which is made of canvas.

Not long after I got the Tikilandia pins, I next discovered the Salty Dame and PinChe Loca pins made by Megan Besmirched from Chicago. Megan is part of the great Tiki scene in the Windy City that includes Kymm Bang’s gravel art and amazing Tiki bars Three Dots And A Dash, Lost Lake, and the Witco shrine of Hala Kaliki.

Finally, my newest pins come from Gil Taimana from San Diego. He is the owner of Tahiti Gil’s South Seas Trading Co. and Tahiti Felix’s Master Tattoo & Museum. I met Gil through the Disneyland Addiction group, and his artistic homage to Disney and the Enchanted Tiki Room is quite strong. Just look at these amazing pins! They really tell a story, and if you’ve been to the ETR at Disneyland, you appreciate the story even more. Pretty powerful that a tiny work of art can do that.

Tiki Ohana – Artists, Part Deux

About a year-and-a-half ago, I kicked off a series of posts on the Tiki ohana, kind of a who’s who in the Tiki world. My first post was Tiki Ohana – Artists, featuring the artists I had come to admire by that time. Well, I’ve grown in my Tiki knowledge over the past 18 months, and “discovered” and met some more pretty cool artists along the way. Here they are, the second wave of artists to grace the Tiki Lounge.

Kevin-john Jobczynski. I got to know this wonderful artist the way I meet a lot of Tiki people: on the Internet. KJ checked out my page, I checked out his, and the rest is history. He was kind enough to appear on my podcast, where we talked about his beginnings as a sports artist, doing commission work for famous athletes and celebrities, before finally becoming a Disney master artist. Kevin-john has branched out into purely Tiki art as well. I got to meet him in-person at Tikiman Steve’s TikiFest 2016, which was held at Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto at WDW’s Polynesian Village Resort. Please check out KJ’s amazing art for yourself: http://kevinjohnstudio.com/

Dawn Frasier. Sophista-tiki is the name of this talented artist’s studio in Seattle WA. Dawn Frasier is a multi-faceted Tiki artist, creating everything from water color paintings, rugs, handmade clothing from exclusively designed fabrics, and Tiki decor in many shapes and sizes. One of her watercolors was featured on Page 6 of Smuggler’s Cove, the wonderful new book from Martin and Rebecca Cate. I’m proud to have a print of that amazing watercolor hanging on the wall in the Tiki Lounge. Please check out Dawn Frasier’s wide variety of work here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/sophistatiki

Chaunine Joy Landeau. This talented lady’s art isn’t exactly Tiki (yet), but Chaunine Joy’s work puts her squarely on the periphery. She’s a big fan of Disney and Tiki, and it’s just a matter of time until we get her to drink the Mai-Tai and start painting something Polynesian. Chaunine specializes in whimsical watercolors painted on a page from an actual book, which is pretty cool. She and I are working on a piece of art for the Tiki Lounge, and I already have the wall space ready for it. Stay tuned! In the meantime, please check out Chaunine Joy’s studio here: http://chauninejoy.tictail.com/

Tiki tOny Murphy. Tiki tOny is an artist I’ve just begun to follow. I saw some of his artwork at the aforementioned TikiFest 2016, both on the walls of Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto and on t-shirts worn by a few of my fellow revelers. I also covet some of the custom-painted Vans I saw on his website – they will be mine, oh yes, they will be mine! Tiki tOny was just named the official artist for The Hukilau 2017, and some of the initial sketches he’s shared on his Facebook page look amazing. Please check out his website for those Vans and other cool Tiki stuff here: http://www.tikitony.com/

What’s New at The Polynesian

Walt Disney World’s Polynesian Village Resort is my happy place. When we take family vacations to WDW, that’s where we stay. It’s non-negotiable. The last time we were there, back in November 2014 (see WDW Polynesian Village Day 1), The Poly was under construction, and a lot of the resort was unrecognizable. Last week I was in Orlando for a sales conference at the Marriott World Center, and we brought the family in a few days early for a mini vacation. We didn’t stay overnight at The Polynesian, but we did spend a few precious hours there last Saturday afternoon.

So what was the reason for a quick trip to my happy place? Like I need a reason?!? Actually, there were 4 good reasons:

1. To see how the renovations turned out;
2. To get some Dole Whip;
3. To have dinner at the Kona Café;
4. To meet my Tiki buddy from Jacksonville, George Borcherding.

Let’s start with George. He and I have become Facebook friends because we share a love of Tiki and WDW. George and I had never actually met, but when I told him I had a sales conference in Orlando in February and planned to stop by The Poly, George marked the date on his calendar and said he would meet me there. True Tiki friendship knows no bounds!

After a quick introduction in the Tambu Lounge, we headed down to the Pineapple Lanai for our first Dole Whip. It’s not a stretch to say George is addicted to Dole Whip. He obsesses over it on Facebook, and his travels in search of Dole Whip are epic. Once we scored our Dole Whip, we sat on the outdoor patio around the corner to be first in line for our next destination: Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto.

Here was the thing I was most excited to see on this trip: Trader Sam’s. My wife Jessica and I have been to the one at Disneyland, when we were there in 2013 for the 50th anniversary of the Enchanted Tiki Room (see Aloha Spirit: Los Angeles). When we found out they were opening one at The Polynesian, we were looking forward to checking it out. Unfortunately, it was just being built when we were last here. So this was our next chance, and we took it!

The thing that was most distinctive about the East Coast Trader Sam’s was Uh-Oa, a crazy, Voodoo like goddess who is a focal point of the corner of the bar where we sat. Uh-Oa is also one of the signature drinks that generates an elaborate light and sound show when you order it, and comes in a cool Tiki mug. Of course, we ordered it first, and I brought that mug home to pair with my Krakatoa mug from the West Coast Trader Sam’s.

After a couple of drinks at Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto, George and I went back into the Great Ceremonial House to pay tribute to Maui, the Polynesian Village Resort logo who has come to life as a large statue at the center of the first floor. I was sad when they decided to remove the iconic waterfall that rose 2 stories above the lobby, but I must admit Maui is a nice replacement. The ground floor is much brighter now, with plenty of seating and wonderful nautical decor hanging from the now-visible glass ceiling. Well done, Disney!

Mahalo, George, for making the trip to hang out with me at my happy place! After this photo, we said aloha to George and went upstairs to have dinner at the Kona Café. My family had never eaten dinner there before, as we’re partial to the feast at Ohana, but this was the trip for new things, so we gave it a shot. It was very nice! They have a new menu at Kona Café, and many of the appetizers are familiar from Ohana, but the entrees were different and quite good. I had the tuna, and it was one of the best pieces of tuna I’ve ever had! After dinner, my son Ryan and I had one more Dole Whip for the road, and we were on our way to our next destination.

All in all, our visit to the Polynesian Village Resort was short but sweet. The changes they’ve made were all for the better, in my opinion. We stayed in 3 different hotels in Orlando for the 4 nights of this trip, and my family agrees: when we come back to WDW for a full vacation, we will come back to The Polynesian. Like I said before: it’s non-negotiable.

Tiki Ohana – Performers

All the world’s a stage, and Tiki is no exception. To wrap up this series on the Tiki ohana, I’m going off script a bit to highlight both groups and individuals who entertain us. Hell, one of the groups isn’t even human! No matter. All of these folks have created a legacy of keeping the Tiki torch alive through song, dance, fire, water, food, drink, and great service. Mahalo to you all!

 

 

MeduSirena Marina. Mermaids are real. This one not only beguiles the Tiki ohana with her underwater maneuvers; she also eats fire, dances as a space-alien slave girl, and is a budding photographer. Marina Anderson, a/k/a MeduSirena Marina, has been holding court at the Wreck Bar in Fort Lauderdale’s Yankee Clipper hotel since 1989. She and her pod of aquaticats have also taken their show on the road, performing internationally wherever a pool with a porthole view has called them. Marina has single-handedly revived this art form from the Mid-Century, and pays tribute to the mermaids who came before her with an amazing show. I was fortunate enough to catch her act last year during The Hukilau, and observed all the behind-the-scenes work that goes into her show. Okole maluna, Marina!

 

 

King Kukulele. Denny Moynahan plays the ukelele. But he does so much more! Under his stage name, King Kukelele, he has performed all over the world, entertaining audiences with his mix of music, comedy, and storytelling, all while wearing his Hawaiian straw hat and grass skirt. King Kukelele is a staple at Tiki events like Tiki Oasis and The Hukilau, where I caught his show in-person for the first time last year. I also enjoy his music on CD, which you can check out here: King Kukelele and the Friki Tikis. Mahalo, King Kukelele!

 

Mai-Kai Restaurant and Polynesian Show. There is no greater example of Polynesian culture, outside of the Pacific Ocean, than The Mai-Kai. Opened in Fort Lauderdale FL in 1956, The Mai-Kai is still going strong with their combination of tasty food, authentic Tiki drinks in their Molokai Lounge, ubiquitous Tiki decor (both inside and in their lush outdoor gardens), and the best Polynesian song and dance review I’ve ever seen. I first visited this Tiki Mecca 3 years ago, then returned last year during The Hukilau, which was quite the eventful trip for me! I would highly recommend a visit to The Mai-Kai for anybody who wants to learn what Tiki is all about. Aloha!

 

Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room. This amazing attraction has been entertaining visitors to Disneyland in Anaheim CA since 1963. I first enjoyed this show at Walt Disney World in Orlando FL in 2008, but I was fortunate to see the original during its 50th anniversary celebration 2 years ago. The amazing animatronic display must have been a revelation to visitors fifty years ago! It still enchants the Tiki ohana to this day. I particularly like the courtyard area at the Disneyland Enchanted Tiki Room, where seven Tiki gods tell their stories and Dole Whips are available for purchase. Yum, Dole Whip 🙂 Mahalo, Walt Disney and your wonderful Imagineers!

 

Walt Disney World’s Polynesian Village Resort. No place offers a more complete immersion into Tiki paradise than this, my happy place. The Polynesian Village Resort opened with the rest of the original Walt Disney World in Orlando FL in 1971. Disney calls their employees “Cast Memebers,” and at The Polynesian, that’s really appropriate! From the minute you pass the sign at the entrance, every person greets you with a warm “aloha” and smile. The buildings are all authentically Polynesian, the amenities are cozy, the food is fantastic, and the Tiki drinks are fist-rate. We’ve been to Walt Disney World for five family vacations (so far), and I would never dream of staying anywhere else. Until we meet again, Auntie Kaui and the rest of the cast members, aloha!

 

For more detailed reporting on these performers, please check out my previous blog posts:

Disney – Keeping The Tiki Torch Lit

The Hukilau – The Hukilau: Day1

The Polynesian – WDW Polynesian Village Day1

Tiki Ohana – Chroniclers

The Tiki resurrection that began in the 1990s was effected by people getting together to share their love of Polynesian pop. It was a rediscovery of Mid-Century Modern American culture that was all but forgotten by the 1970s and 1980s. Thanks to Otto Von Stroheim’s Tiki News (1995) and Sven Kirsten’s The Book of Tiki (2000), this lost era was now back in print for the Tiki tribe to enjoy. These chroniclers of the movement took Tiki to the next level.

 

Hanford Lemoore (Tiki Central). Tiki Central is the internet’s first and biggest bulletin board for Tiki enthusiasts. Since 2000, Hanford Lemoore has presided over a virtual universe of like-minded people sharing their love of Mid-Century Modern, Polynesian-inspired things. News, events, art, food and drink, music, collectibles, Tiki bars, and much more. If you need to find anything in the world of Tiki, you can find it here: www.tikiroom.com.

 

Nick Camara (Tiki Magazine). It wasn’t the first printed magazine devoted to Tiki, but Tiki Magazine debuted in 2005 and has been going strong ever since. Nick Camara’s labor of love has always featured full-color spreads on topics of interest to the Tiki ohana, and covers by artists like Derek Yaniger and SHAG. Tiki Magazine has just been revitalized to now include a broader range of topics from the Mid-Century Modern era. You can subscribe here: www.tikimagazine.com.

 

Koop Kooper (Cocktail Nation). For the best in retro and modern lounge and exotica music, you must check out Koop Kooper’s syndicated radio show and podcast, Cocktail Nation. The lounge lothario and high priest of all things hep, swinging and swank, Koop Kooper has been collecting and playing lounge music from his penthouse in Sydney, Australia since 2007. His show also includes interviews with some of the biggest movers and shakers in the Lounge, Exotica and Tiki scenes, and he’s published two books of those interviews. You can listen to the man from Down Under here: www.cocktailnation.net.

 

Jim Hayward (The Atomic Grog). There are many blogs dedicated to the Tiki scene, but The Atomic Grog is my favorite. Jim Hayward has been publishing this blog from his South Florida home since 2011, and he often is the first to scoop everybody with new happenings in the world of Tiki art, music, and cocktails. He has also hosted many in-depth interviews with the titans of the Tiki ohana. Don’t just take it from me; check it out for yourself: www.slammie.com/atomic grog/blog.

 

Steve Seifert (Tikiman Pages). For a very specific slice of Tiki culture, try a taste of Steve Seifert’s Tikiman Pages, an unofficial website devoted to Walt Disney World’s Polynesian Village Resort. The Polynesian is my happy place and one of the Tiki temples I’ve previously written about (Tiki Temples, Oct 2014). For this reason, Tikiman Steve’s website and Facebook page hold a place close to my heart. He really has a comprehensive pulse on the past, present and future of this wonderful place, and has been sharing his knowledge with the world since 1999. You can see what Steve has to say here: www.tikimanpages.com.

WDW Polynesian Village Day 8

Saturday is our last full day at WDW. We’ve done everything we wanted to do on this vacation, so now we go back and revisit some of our favorite spots and catch up on some shopping. We spent the morning at Hollywood Studios and the afternoon at Animal Kingdom with dinner at the Yak & Yeti. In between, we came back to the Polynesian for lunch at Captain Cook’s and a dip in the East Pool. Or, as most people refer to it: the Quiet Pool.

I’m sure some people have avoided staying at the Polynesian because their main pool, the Volcano Pool, is closed for renovation. I don’t know what the finished product will look like, but it sure is torn up right now. No matter to me and my family, because we have always preferred the Quiet Pool.

We’ve been to the Quiet Pool 3 times during this vacation. The first time was Monday night around 7:30pm, the first day it was warm enough to swim. There was 1 other person in the pool. The second time was on Wednesday at around 2pm, and there were maybe 6 people in the pool with us. The third time was today at 1pm, and we had the pool to ourselves until 5 minutes before we left, when 1 kid slowly dipped in.

Talk about a great time to be at the Polynesian if you like the pool! With the Volcano Pool closed, Disney is doing their best to make the Quiet Pool more enjoyable. There are 2 lifeguards there at all times, where before it was swim at your own risk. They also placed 3 cast members in brightly-colored outfits poolside with loud music and games, trying to have a pool party during the daytime. They didn’t have many takers. The attempted pool party was the only thing keeping our pool from being “quiet.” Frankly, I liked the way it was before, but, if anything, it’s even less crowded now. Unless you really liked spending time playing in the Volcano Pool, the fact that it’s closed is no reason to avoid the Polynesian Village Resort. Quite the contrary!

Well, tomorrow is our getaway day, so this will be my final report for this trip. I want to thank all of my new readers for checking out my blog, and a big mahalo to everybody who has supported me since day 1, about 1 year ago. I hope you’ll all keep reading my posts, as I typically write something every two weeks on the world of Tiki. Until then, aloha!

WDW Polynesian Village Day 5

Tonight I’m blogging live from the Tambu Lounge, sucking down my first Mai-Tai of the trip. I opted for the traditional Mai-Tai rather than the Captain’s, and sadly, my young bartender wasn’t familiar with Auntie’s Mai-Tai. Oh well. I’ll have to try again later this week when Walter’s behind the bar.

This day is ending right next to where it started, at Ohana for Breakfast with Stitch. This is a regular event for us, along with dinner at Ohana, which we did on Monday. It’s great to stick with the traditions we’ve embraced from previous trips to the Polynesian, especially in light of all of the changes going on around us. My kids adore our breakfast at Ohana, because they get to meet and greet their favorite character, Stitch, along with Lilo, Aloha Mickey, and Pluto (my son’s 2nd favorite). We also all love the passion fruit/guava juice they serve with breakfast; they need to bottle and sell that stuff, we miss it so much after we leave!

We did get one new wrinkle at breakfast this morning: the introduction of the Stitch waffle. As if this great breakfast couldn’t get any better! My kids will be talking about this for months. Our server told us this new taste treat would be replacing the ubiquitous Mickey waffle, but I don’t believe it. Maybe just at the Ohana breakfast? Stay tuned.

For something new this trip, we decided to try Blizzard Beach. Since the Volcano Pool is closed for renovation, the good folks at Disney offered free passage to Blizzard Beach for all Polynesian Village Resort guests. The process went very smoothly. We boarded a bus from the Polynesian directly to Blizzard Beach, and when we arrived, there was a small kiosk set up especially for us. They gave us passes to the water park, towels, and free sunscreen. Nicely done.

As for Blizzard Beach itself, we really enjoyed it there! From the lazy river to the family tube ride, our kids had a blast. So did we adults. The weather broke perfectly for us, giving us the mid-80s on the day we planned to try a water park. Yet again, we tried something new this trip and were rewarded with another must-do for our next trip. I recommend Blizzard Beach for any Polynesian guests missing the Volcano Pool.

So now I’m finishing my 2nd Mai-Tai (Captain’s this time), so I need to wrap it up for tonight. We have an early day at the Magic Kingdom tomorrow, so until then, aloha!

WDW Polynesian Village Day 3

This morning I got up early, grabbed some coffee in my refillable mug at Captain Cook’s, and decided to take a walk around the East side of the resort. As I was filling up my coffee, I noticed the cool new art hanging in the dining area, representing each of the Polynesian countries that have longhouses named after them. The prints were so colorful, I was inspired to take a picture of each one. Here’s my favorite, Fiji:

My first destination was Tangaroa Terrace, where my buddy Tikiman Steve asked me to snap some pictures of the Tiki masks on the outside walls. The only change to the place was the children’s play area, which they’ve renamed Club Disney. Next I walked over to the Quiet Pool, which was as quiet as ever, especially since it was 7:30am and still closed:

My final destination was the beach, where I wanted to get a good look at the new bungalows they’re building over the water. In the past, we would walk from Rapa Nui, past Tahiti, along the east side of the Quiet Pool to get to the beach. Unfortunately, since Rapa Nui, Tahiti and Tokelau are all closed and behind construction fencing, the only access to the beach is now by walking around Hawaii to the west end of that longhouse and turning north, where the fenced-off Volcano Pool sits. It felt like walking through a tunnel to get there, but it was quite a sight when I finally reached the beach.

The now quite narrow beach area still has sand and beach chairs to hang out in, and a spiffy new fire pit which I bet is pretty cool at night. The biggest new construction visible at the Polynesian are the DVC bungalows rising over the water just out from the beach. They look stunning! It reminds me of pictures I’ve seen of houses on stilts in Tahiti or Bora Bora. Sadly, these bungalows will be for DVC members only and cost an arm and a leg to rent ($2,000 per night?),  but they will be a wonderful new addition to the Polynesian Village Resort experience. The first of many, I trust. Tomorrow I’ll explore some of the other enhancements coming to our beloved Polynesian. Until then, aloha!

WDW Polynesian Village Day 2

Today we planned to spend the day at EPCOT. We woke up to a beautiful view from our balcony, of the sun coming up over the GCH and the new bungalows being built out back on the water. Unfortunately, it’s been cold here our first 2 days. Not Florida cold, but PA cold: 40s at night, low 60s during the day. We’ll never make it to the quiet pool at this rate! Fortunately, we’re supposed to get back into the 80s by Wednesday. Let’s hope.

Since we were headed to EPCOT, that meant a trip to the TTC to catch the monorail there. Normally, we would take a short walk from Rapa Nui, across the special path where the tiny lizards darted between the log fences. Not today. That path is closed, as is Rapa Nui for that matter, so we headed out front from the GCH to the temporary path by the bus stop and the parking lot.

The one nice thing about walking this way was getting to walk by the new Polynesian Village Resort sign at the street entrance to the resort. What an awesome sign! I rarely noticed the old sign in the past as our Magical Express bus pulled into the Polynesian, but this sign is something else completely. Cascading water, burning Tiki torches, and the retro style of the typeface make this new element a winner. It looks even more impressive at night. So much so, I actually stopped to take a video of it!

Do I still miss the old path? Absolutely. I hope they reopen it once they finish the renovations. The walk took twice as long, but we’re talking 10 minutes instead of 5, so not much to bitch about there. As Jess mentioned today, our new digs are lacking in the foliage we used to enjoy on the East side of the  resort, and the old path to the TTC took us right through the heart of it. So yes, we do miss walking on the old path. Tomorrow I will go exploring over to the other side to check out the construction. Hopefully I’ll get to enjoy the lush vegetation once again. Until then, aloha!