This years Kava Festival, also known as ‘Awa Festival, was held on October 3rd. There were several kava-tasting booths around McCarthy Mall that came from many different places. Some of the various places in which kava was produced came from Solomon Islands, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, Hawai`i, Vanuatu, etc. It was explained that kava is still used today during ceremonies for such things as weddings and deaths. I tried several kinds of kava that tasted bitterer to ones that had a thicker texture. It was interesting to learn more about kava and be able to taste the various kava from distinct regions. I actually liked the taste of some of them and I had more than a few cups. After drinking about three cups, my tongue and lips felt numb and I felt more relaxed, which is typical when drinking kava.
Kava is used for such things as anxiety, stress relievers, and relaxation. Some kava roots were shown to be growing longer than others, over several years. This was the kind of kava that I enjoyed the most. I found booths that contained different variations of kava. There was a table that had turned kava into a sort of energy drink, or in this case a relaxation drink. Other table’s mixed kava with certain products. Some other tables held jewelry and let people pound poi as well.
I thought it was awesome how they had live music throughout the day. I didn’t hear many different cultural languages being spoken, mostly English. I heard some Hawaiian and Samoan language from the workers serving Kava, but that was only to each other. The other Hawaiian language came from that of the live music that was being performed. I couldn’t make out much of the other languages that were being spoken because they weren’t used too much.
I would recommend the kava festival to anyone who wants to learn more about the history and culture of kava from several different places. This festival was very informative and it was fun to taste all the various kinds of kava that was being produced.
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