Hakuoh Students from Japan

This year we will be having a lot of short-term program students joining us from all over the world. Our short-term programs are perfect for visiting student groups that would like to improve their English skills as well as to experience the culture of Hawaii firsthand. The ESL classes and excursions are custom-designed for each group to maximize their learning experience.

One of our first groups for the new year comes to us from Hakuoh University in Japan. They have been going all around the island and breathing in the culture and beauty of Maui. Not only did they get to explore all around the island, but they also went to the beach to feel the smooth Maui sand between their toes. And of course, you can't come to Hawaii without trying some of the delicious food here. They got to try traditional Hawaiian cuisine as well as some local delicacies. If you want to see a sample of the delicious Hawaiian food that they ate here, check out our blog about food. Trust me, you can’t read any of those blog without getting hungry!

I mentioned in previous blog that Hawaii Pidgin English was influenced from the many different cultures that live together here. Today's Pidgin word is a perfect example of how certain words from different cultures were taken and incorporated into Hawaii Pidgin English. The word is "bachi" and it comes from the Japanese language. Bachi carries a meaning of divine punishment, kind of like karma. So if you see someone doing something bad, you can tell them that they will get bachi. Let's take a look at an example conversation to see how this word is used.

Michael: Eh, we go play inside dat graveyard!
John: What? What you like do dat fo? That place is sacred lolo! No do dat bumbai you going get bachi!

Translation:
Michael: Hey, let's go play in that graveyard!
John: What? Why in the world would you want to do that? That place is sacred dummy! If you do that you'll get bad luck.

Wow! That conversation was chocked full of Pidgin English words! We already learned all of these words from past blogs except for the word "lolo." Lolo refers to someone who is not smart, or in more colloquial terms, an idiot or a dummy. Although this word has a negative meaning, it is usually not used to viciously insult someone. It is usually used between friends to lightheartedly say how crazy or idiotic a person or situation is. So if you hear someone say "ai, dat guy is so lolo," it means something like "wow that guy is so crazy!"
It's time for me to say goodbye but another blog update is already on it's way. Until then, aloha!