As soon as we arrived in Papeʻete and made it to where Hōkūleʻa and Hikianalia were docked, we were greeted by Faʻafaite crew members with, “Welcome home.”

I didn’t think much of it at the time, I just knew that this was a very special time to be in Tahiti – the time of the Heiva, the celebration of ʻori Tahiti and Tūʻaro Māʻohi.

The first time that I came to Tahiti was 4 years ago, where I got to watch my first Heiva i Tahiti and my purpose, at the time, was to compete in the Tūʻaro Māʻohi in the tīmau rāʻau (fruit bearing race) on behalf of Team Vaihi. The tīmau rāʻau took place where we are docked for the week – Pāʻōfaʻi, or others may call it “Hōkūleʻa Beach”. The race and this place is where I first built the bridge to following the footsteps of my kūpuna. Just as they carried their fruit, barefoot on our ʻāina, I did so for the Tūʻaro Māʻohi… and I won. I was the first Hawaiian to have ever won the tīmau rāʻau.
Now, I am with Māmā Hōkūleʻa and am grateful to not only continue the footsteps of my kūpuna through hoʻokele waʻa but continuing to immerse myself in this celebratory time and getting to know this community even more.
I am reminded of how amazing, hospitable, and thoughtful they are. And their love for music is undeniable.

Our captains/leadership were given tickets to the first night from Hei Tahiti because their Hura Tau theme was “E fenua, e moana, e raʻi, e vaʻa… hōʻē ā nūnaʻa māʻohi”. Such a fitting theme being that Hōkūleʻa is present. But as soon as they found out that other crew members wanted to see the Heiva, family members of the dancers gave away their tickets in hopes that they would win the Heiva so that they could see the performance the following week. This was a risk that they were willing to take. These tickets also sell out very quickly and can be difficult to come by, further showing how thoughtful these taʻata are and we were blessed with such a beautiful ʻori Tahiti performance. Happy to learn that the group won 3rd place, and therefore were able to perform for their family members

As a new crew member, I am so lucky to have been asked to join on this leg because I get to relive the memories that I’ve already created here and make unforgettable new ones… like dancing under the stars to “Pahoho” whenever we kanikapila, or brrranng, with other ʻohana waʻa, or just learning and bonding with the Leg 13 crew. I got to celebrate my hobbies/passions all in one place, and a place where I not only connected with my kūpuna and followed in their footsteps, but where they come from. I really am home.