It's that time of year again- the students of MLI's Summer session gather together to mourn (and maybe celebrate a little) the end of their session at Maui Language Institute. The Potluck was held on Thursday July 1st At Kamaole Beach Park III in South Kihei. The students enjoyed beautiful 80-degree weather and took turns swimming in the crisp ocean water, playing games, and eating great food.Everyone participated in bringing traditional Potluck food- including chips and salsa, rice, and fried chicken. Oliver brought delicious Spanish omelets, made with potatoes and eggs. Kumi brought "takoyaki," or octopus dumplings, with her that everyone seemed to enjoy as well!

After enjoying a great lunch in the sun, the students all played traditional Hawaiian games. The first game, called 'Ulu Maika, or breadfruit stone, is a game played outside on a lawn or flat area of ground. In ancient Hawaii, only men were allowed to play this game and they used a shaped lava rock as their rolling stone. To play, put two large stakes 6 inches apart from one another and then have everyone take turns rolling their stone in between the two stakes. The second game called ihe paha'e, or spear throwing, was played, however instead of using a spear the students used a cue stick (close enough :)) The winners of these games were each given a 5 dollar gift card to Yogurtland! Everybody also enjoyed kicking the soccer ball around together, playing volleyball, swimming, and just having a great time!
While everybody was enjoying their time in the water, the civil alarm suddenly went off. Panic struck in the water as everyone scrambled for their lives, fearing the worst- SHARK! But the laid-back lifeguards, safe in their beach-hut reassured all that nothing too serious was going on. It was simply the first of the month test of the alarm!
As much fun as everybody was having, it wasn't all fun and games for everybody... After a long week and wanting nothing more than to enjoy the sun, Steve decided to lay out and work on his tan. Just when life couldn't get any better for him (face down, defenseless and eyes closed), he felt an ice cold splash all the way down his neck and back! Thus began the great MLI Potluck Ice War of 2010. Alas, no one was victorious as all participants ended up wet and cold, but the smiles on their faces showed how much fun the whole day was.