Niihau lei makers enhance visitor experience for Princess passengers

**Ally** · 07-11-2007, 01:02 PM

Hawaii cruise visitors have always been able to buy Niihau shells. But now they will be educated about the shell decorating tradition.

"Each lei maker has her own special style, like a signature, representing her passion and personality," said Ilei Beniamina, a Niihau lei maker. "We teach our opio, even as early as age five."

Lei makers from the island of Niihau demonstrated their skills Tuesday to cruise ship passengers stopping at Kauai's Nawiliwili Harbor, in a pilot program to educate visitors aboard Princess Cruises.

"We want to connect Hawaiian artisans with the market out there, and we want them to be very much in charge of how the craft and lei are presented," said president of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement.

Danner noted that the process also means a more authentic visitor experience, as passengers buying shell lei get to meet the artisan who created it.

Captain Larry · 07-11-2007, 04:09 PM

Sounds like the beginning (or continuation) of the end of isolation for Niihau. And the end of isolation means the end of the "grand experiment" of preserving the ancient Hawaiian culture by limiting the contact with the modern world. I'm not sure how long it could have lasted, but it was a great idea. I guess the question is, "How many generations would it take to 'forget' modern conveniences and the modern way of life?" On the other hand, cultural memory does not necessarily need to be based upon a "living model".