Schools, stores and trips abound as Japan's passion for hula grows

Dance students and isle enthusiasts alike are eager to visit Hawaii and to buy all types of accessories

By Allison Schaefers

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Sep 03, 2012

~~<p>TOKYO » Mitsuko Arase spent years earning the certification required to instruct young Japanese women how to perform the country's famous tea ceremonies.</p>
<p>It's a sign of the times that Arase now prefers to wear flowers in her hair and instruct young Japanese women in another spiritual practice, the ancient art of Hawaiian hula. Arase is so crazy about the dance form, which she has studied under kumu hula Charlene Campbell of Ewa Beach, that she has adopted a Hawaiian name, Awapuhi Ke‘o Ke‘o. She and her husband even purchased cemetery plots in Hawaii so they can spend eternity in paradise.</p>
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TOKYO » Mitsuko Arase spent years earning the certification required to instruct young Japanese women how to perform the country's famous tea ceremonies.

It's a sign of the times that Arase now prefers to wear flowers in her hair and instruct young Japanese women in another spiritual practice, the ancient art of Hawaiian hula. Arase is so crazy about the dance form, which she has studied under kumu hula Charlene Campbell of Ewa Beach, that she has adopted a Hawaiian name, Awapuhi Ke‘o Ke‘o. She and her husband even purchased cemetery plots in Hawaii so they can spend eternity in paradise. Login for more...