The Punahou Carnival

If it is February, then it is time for The Punahou Carnival. Much more than a school fair, this carnival has been a vital element in the lives of Hawai’i residents since the mid nineteen-thirties, a shared memory among every generation.  Honolulu residents sniff the air in anticipation of the smell of hot malasadas, Portuguese bean soup, teri burgers sizzling on an open grill, the tang of freshly spun cotton candy, the simple joy of melted butter about to be splashed on fresh corn on the cob or over a tub of newly popped popcorn.

Every year Punahou’s Junior class organize this multi-million dollar fundraising event.  Each year has a theme and this year’s is “That 70′s Carnival: We’ve Got the Funk.”  Kids who were born in the 90′s, they’re paying homage to a decade they know nothing about, but what the heck!  It’s the Punahou School — Barack Obama’s alma mater, so anything goes, and this year the island will flock to the Punahou grounds for entertainment and fun.

The fun kicks off at 11 AM on Friday, February 5  and continues on Saturday, February 6, until 11 PM.  The Carnival is all about fun, family, friends, and tradition.  Among those traditions are grinding on malasadas, purchasing mango chutney from the “Jams and Jellies” booth (the one I was in charge of over a decade ago when I was a wee Junior at Punahou) and digging for treasures in the White Elephant tent.  While no one claims they have seen an actual White Elephant, people purr with delight when they find one-of-kind treasures or complete a collection of this or that.  The tent is host to an incredible array of stuff: books, clothing, utensils, bric-a-brac, musical items, this-n-that (dis-n’dat), all sorts of items testifying to adage that someone’s ‘junk’ is someone’s treasure.  Dedicated staff of volunteers take pleasure in sorting through these items readying them throughout the year for the upcoming carnival.

When folks find they need to get away from the main carnival action, they set out for Dole Hall, mauka of the main carnival grounds, where the Hawaiian plate provides a perfect place for ono (delicious) local food and fantastic local music.

2010’s musical line-up is as follows:

Friday, February 5, 2010
Noon Punahou Jazz Band
1:00 Royal Hawaiian Band
2:00 Papakolea
3:00 TBD
4:00 Gail Mack/Gordon Kim of George Street
5:00 Puna Rock
6:00 TBD
7:00 Manoa DNA
8:00 PPRB 9:00 Mark Goto

Saturday, February 6, 2010
Noon Punahou Jazz Band
1:00 Punahou Alumni Glee Club
2:00 Hapa Folk
3:00 Lyle Hosoda & Friends
4:00 Royal Hawaiian Band Chorus
5:00 TBD
6:00 TBD
7:00 Afatia Thompson
8:00 Footnotes
9:00 TBD

Area churches and schools offer parking for a variety of rates.  Throughout each day there will be all sorts of unexpected fun, silent auctions, celebrity sightings, reunions of every imaginable type, an opportunity to be truly connected to Honolulu yesterday, today and forever.

Photo courtesy of JPhilipson (Flickr)