and if the storm keeps coming you gotta stand up, it's just what you gotta do. and it's this zone where you learn to make fear your best friend. you hold it really close to you, and you open up that door to believing that you can make it. ♪ i took a walk through this beautiful world ♪ ♪ felt the cool rain on my shoulder ♪ ♪ found something good in this beautiful world ♪ ♪ i felt the rain getting colder ♪ ♪ sha, la, la, la, la ♪ ♪ sha, la, la, la, la, la, ♪ ♪ sha, la, la, la, la ♪ ♪ sha, la, la, la, la, la, la ♪ ♪ ♪ >> anthony: hawaii is america, as american as anything could possibly be. yet it also never shed what was there before and the layers and layers that have come since. it's a wonderful, tricky, conflicted, mutant hell broth. in what, for lack of a better word, you'd have to call paradise. >> paul: nowhere's paradise. paradises don't exist. paradise is, kind of, in your head. >> anthony: wait, wait a minute. you look out your window here and you look at those hills, those mountains, all that green, that blue sky, and gin clear sea. it, it sure looks like paradise to me. this guy knows, he's been everywhere. he's paul theroux. novelist, essayist, and legendary traveler and travel writer. of all the places he's been, all the places he's seen, he chose hawaii to live. and he's lived here for twenty-five years. does it matter that it's america? >> paul: no, that's a big thing, that it is america. it has elements of the third world. the nicest elements of the third world. >> anthony: right. >> paul: which is funky. there's this self-respect, this pride. there's things that don't work at all. and then it's main street, usa where we are now. i mean, there's pta meetings here. they get together and watch the super bowl. and it's the most main street, usa. or as much as you will find. >> anthony: town is a neighborhood spot in honolulu's kaimuki district and, as hawaii is the only state the union that allows day boat fisherman to sell directly to restaurants, the pan-roasted mahi-mahi is pretty damn good. >> anthony: it's not a particularly welcoming or friendly part of the world. contrary to the, sort of, the "aloha myth." >> paul: no, that's right. that's right, but no island is. nantucket isn't, the isle of wight isn't. name an island. they want foreigners in corsica? sicily, they want foreigners there? no way, no way. >> anthony: right. >> paul: did anyone ever come to an island, uh, with a good intention? people, people -- >> anthony: no, never in the history of the world. >> paul: no, no. >> anthony: best case scenario bring syphilis. >> paul: yeah. >> anthony: pretty much. >> paul: yeah, yeah. >> anthony: i mean, at the very least. >> paul: and it happened, it happened here. captain cook put his sailors ashore in ni'ihau, which is just a little northwest of here. he was the first haole. like magellan. hawaii killed its first tourist and -- >> anthony: right. >> paul: philippines killed their first tourist. but people who live on islands, who were born on islands, view anyone who comes to shore with suspicion. >> nainoa: well, to go back to what defines a hawaiian. maybe we should go back in our imaginations to -- it could have been two thousand years ago. the tahitians have this voyaging canoe. way before any other culture on the planet is exploring the deep seas. somehow gets here someplace in the south pacific, single most isolated archipelago on the planet. fast forward to captain cook and his identification of native hawaiians. you get a glimpse that these are a very productive people. they're industrious. they were healthy, strong. and they had time for the arts. that was a large population, more than half of what we have in hawaii today. fully sustainable because there was no other choice. so over time, the native hawaiian population goes to 22,000. it's the same story. introduced to disease, inability to deal with it, people die. 1926, the public school system would outlaw language and the practice of culture in public schools. so the road to extinction is being well paved. >> anthony: between captain cook's arrival in 1778 and today, disease wiped out most of the population. missionaries came. a booming sugar and pineapple plantation industry. an influx of immigrants from japan, okinawa, china, and the philippines. there was the overthrow of queen liliuokalani. and the u.s. takeover of the hawaiian government. world war ii, and finally, statehood. the geographical realities of being thousands of miles from, well, anywhere else has given hawaii, to some degree, protection from the forces that eradicated so many other south pacific cultures entirely. in fact, they've arguably been holding back the inevitable creep better than just about anyone. what hawaii looks like today depends on which island you're standing on. and, to some extent, the reputation of the locals. the hawaiian islands are not a monolith. islands, that's plural, and we are talking eight very different islands with very different identities. it's been over a century since the waves of immigrants began and things got all mixed up in the best possible way. there's layers and a simple question like, "who is hawaiian?" gets you all kinds of answers. the neighborhood of kalihi is a far cry from the hawaii that most people know. and ethel's has been a go-to of a very specific kind for the last forty years. >> andrew: it's a blue-collar town, you know? they all come here. breakfast, lunch. yeah, every day. >> anthony: i'm joined by two local chefs. mark noguchi, of mission, known by some as the gooch. he's second-generation japanese. and andrew le, of the pig and the lady. he's first generation vietnamese-american. or would that be vietnamese-hawaiian? as you'll see, it gets complicated. >> mark: i actually cooked on the east coast for three years and people would always be like, "oh, you're from hawaii, you're hawaiian!" and i was like, "no, no, no, no. i'm second-generation japanese." "no, no but you're from hawaii that makes you hawaiian." and it was like, "no." and then what i realize is like here in hawaii we identify ourselves ethnically versus geographically. like, there's no way that he and i would call ourselves hawaiian. we'd get our ass kicked. by a hawaiian. >> anthony: how many generations does it take? i mean, who qualifies as hawaiian in your view? >> mark: to me a hawaiian is a kanaka maoli, is a native of the land. it's in your blood, your koko. you come from a lineage of native hawaiian people. >> anthony: what's your feeling here? >> andrew: i do feel like i'm hawaiian in a sense. you know, because it's, like, my place. but culturally, it's a different story. >> anthony: well, let me ask you this, you're saying you're not hawaiian? >> mark: no. >> anthony: what's your feeling about spam? >> mark: i love, i love spam. >> anthony: so you're hawaiian. >> mark: i'm from hawaii. i'm born and raised, gonna die 808. >> anthony: the owners of ethel's are a sort of typical hawaiian mix. okinawan ryoko ishii, aka mom. mainland japanese husband yoichii. daughter minaka, who i guess would be japanese-okinawan-american slash hawaiian. and son-in-law robert who is, of course, mexican. >> mark: it's the pig feet. >> anthony: oh, nice, that's pretty. oh, wow look at that! that's the tripe. >> mark: that's the tripe, that's the tripe. >> anthony: that looks good. >> mark: spam and bitter melon! >> anthony: now we are talking. oh, that's awesome. >> andrew: i just call it local food. >> anthony: right. >> andrew: but local food just, like, covers, like, a wide net. when i look at this table, again, i just get hawaii. it's got portuguese, japanese. you got okinawan. world war ii, i don't know, some type of -- >> anthony: korean. >> andrew: korean, japanese, hawaiian. love child plate of awesomeness. >> anthony: right. the food is some bone-deep hawaiian stuff, my friends, which is to say a delicious mashup of, well, look -- take taco rice, it's a dish created in okinawa to approximate tex-mex for homesick american gis that was then appropriated in a post-ironic way by younger generations of okinawans and japanese, and has now found its way back to hawaii, got that? >> andrew: goin' right in there. >> anthony: wow. >> mark: identifying and seeing my best friends who are native hawaiian helped me to realize the pride of being from hawaii. understanding the hawaiian culture, living it. but also being very proud of being japanese. >> anthony: there's still a movement to a sovereign, uh, a sovereignty movement. so if fighting broke out in the streets, which side are you on? >> mark: i'm getting tear-gassed. >> anthony: you're getting tear-gassed. you don't even have to think about that. >> mark: well, you know what's funny. i always joke about it. it's like, if, like, the nation of hawaii took it back, right, and ousted uncle sam. my whole thing, and they would say, "no, no, no hawaii is for native hawaiians only now." i'm like, "hey everybody needs a cook!" like, "i'm a cook, i have worth." insuring your jet skis... and boat...rv...life... ...home and more. you could save up to forty-five percent. 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[first responder] it's okay. you're safe now. ♪ >> anthony: this is nainoa thompson. and in 1976, along with a number of similarly heroic hawaiians. he did a very difficult, very important thing. before 1972, it was generally assumed, even insisted upon, that hawaii had been settled originally by some random savages who'd maybe drifted over accidently from south america. it certainly couldn't have been ancient polynesians. they couldn't possibly have been the kind of sophisticated navigators who could guide a sailboat willfully across the pacific. across thousands of miles of open water. >> nainoa: nobody could see the canoe here. too beaten, knocked out of you, no dreams, no hope, can't see. >> anthony: the polynesian voyaging society, with the help of crewmembers like nainoa thompson set out to prove that that was exactly what did happen. >> nainoa: there were those in the community that, that loved this canoe, prayed for it. and also those who feared this canoe because they sensed change. you have a sixty-two foot, twelve-ton voyaging canoe. i mean, it was powerful, it changed everything. >> anthony: the hokulea. a double-hulled sailing canoe. a replica of the kind of craft believed to have been used in those times. and using only primitive, contemporaneous navigational tools sailed 5,500 miles to tahiti and back. a trip that helped spark a hawaiian renaissance. a rebirth of pride and interest in traditional hawaiian culture and identity. >> nainoa: the success was monumental. it changed worldview. that our ancestors were powerful, they were extraordinarily intelligent. they were courageous, and they were skilled. and so we come from them. >> anthony: thompson is a legendary water man. he's continued to sail on hokulea's missions. native hawaiian, his roots in this valley go back 200 years. >> nainoa: my grandfather was born here. so i grew up milking cows here with my grandfather. >> anthony: he spent many years learning traditional polynesian navigation techniques from a master. mau piailug, of the small micronesian island of satawan. >> nainoa: this is a man that was chosen by his grandfather. at one year old he was put into tide pools to be trained, and learning the wind and the water. and, at five years old, he was sailing with his grandfather. and, then, he would never say that as some sense of abuse but only love. he says, "yeah, when the wave make the canoe move the canoe make me sick, my grandfather threw me in the ocean so i can go inside the wave. and when i go inside the wave i become the wave. and when i become the wave now i'm navigating." at five. so, when i approached him, he just said to me, "you're too old. you want someone to know everything, send your son to my island." but he said, "i'll teach you enough to find the island you seek. but i can't teach you the magic." >> anthony: why do you think it was important to do such a difficult thing? >> nainoa: i mean, it's the same story that you're going to see in -- >> anthony: well, everywhere. >> nainoa: everywhere, in terms of indigenous people. my father's mother nearly pure hawaiian. chooses not to teach her children language or culture or genealogy. where do you come from? who is your family? what is your link? and that could have been a hundred generations. what the voyage did was a reconnection back to feeling wholesome about who you are. knowing where you come from, and who are your ancestors. so the hokulea, when it got to tahiti, it was their canoe. it wasn't our canoe, it was theirs. and, so, then it started to ignite this flame. again, symbolic, a bumper sticker, a t-shirt, start to emerge. "i'm proud to be hawaiian." 1987 it becomes the first language. it's mandatory in the schools. hawaiian culture has to be taught in public schools. private schools will not have attendance if you don't teach hawaiian. >> anthony: right. >> nainoa: now it's, hawaiian identity is into everything. it has to be recognized in everything. you're going to go to molokai. >> anthony: yep. >> nainoa: that community is powerful. >> anthony: when i mention to people, locals in oahu and maui, other hawaiian residents, that i was going to molokai, the response was almost always surprise. molokai did not have a reputation for being welcoming. that it was dangerous to go over there. that those molokai dudes were mean, inward looking, unfriendly, tough as iron, and quick to get pissed off. as it turned out, that was not my experience. >> walter: so we like to brag about what we don't have. we don't have traffic lights. we don't have a building over three stories. we don't have traffic. >> anthony: nice. walter naki is a skilled fisherman, and today we're headed out for some octopus. >> walter: you know molokai's nickname, right? it's called the friendly isle. >> anthony: yeah, but it's famously not the friendly island. it's supposed to be the most unfriendly island. i mean, that's what everybody says, right? >> walter: depends on which way you look at it. traditionally we're very, very friendly. now, unfriendly is when you go try and come and fix it. >> anthony: right. >> walter: make it better. >> anthony: right. >> walter: or try to take something. >> anthony: right. >> walter: that's when we become unfriendly. the molokai people have been protective of their resources. so we have a lot of our natural resources still intact. >> anthony: still? >> walter: yes, but then there's always other people that want to come. >> anthony: unsurprisingly fishing rights is an issue around here. don't come over here sport fishing the wrong place if you know what's good for you. >> walter: so tony, this is basically where we go diving, this area. a nice, sandy spot. okay ready, go ahead, let it go. okay, we are here, man. ♪ when we get here to the octopus. we're gonna coax him out of his hole. so, we stick the spear in there. you're gonna make him feel he's not safe no more. when he comes running out there, you want to stick him with a spear. >> anthony: final step, stun the struggling creature with a sharp blow from a mallet. or, if you want to go old-school, bite him right in the brain. in my case it took repeated crunching to locate the apparently chiclet-sized organ. >> walter: it's going to come to you, take your time. >> anthony: this one died, eventually, as likely by exhaustion as anything else, i suspect. ♪ starts with a healthy immune system. with vitamins c and d, and zinc. getting out there has never tasted so good. try centrum multigummies. ♪ ♪ hey tristan! ♪ ♪ hey lexus... play holiday music! ♪ ♪ we've been waiting all year to come together... have a happy and safe holiday season from lexus. music ♪ come together. ralphs club. the new fragrance. ralph lauren. ♪ i see trees of green ♪ ♪ red roses too ♪ ♪ i see them bloom ♪ ♪ for me and you ♪ ♪ and i think to myself ♪ ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ a rich life is about more than just money. that's why at vanguard, you're more than just an investor, you're an owner so you can build a future for those you love. vanguard. become an owner. xfinity rewards are our way of thanking you just for being with us. enjoy rewards like sing family fun nights! rent sing for $1 then belt out all your favorite tunes from the movie with sing karaoke. plus, see sing 2 in theaters with buy-one-get-one free fandango tickets. join over a million members by signing up for free on the xfinity app. our thanks. your rewards. ♪ ♪ >> anthony: while the sailing canoe the hokuela was a powerful spark for the hawaiian renaissance, this was what really set things off. beginning in 1941, and continuing into the '70s and beyond. the u.s. navy had been using the beautiful neighboring island of kahoolawe as a bombing range. you could feel the shockwaves as far away as maui and molokai. >> ritte: i'm proud of my hawaiian blood and nobody can tell me any different. >> anthony: people had never been happy about it, but emboldened by the times, and by recent events, a group of young activists decided to take a stand. in 1976 there were a number of attempted occupations of the island, in protest of the bombing. none more successful than walter ritte's. he and a fellow activist named richard sawyer set up on the island and refused to leave. >> ritte: one day i will put my dream back over there. >> anthony: managing to evade pursuers for just over a month, before finally being and arrested and jailed. >> ritte: and the first order is burn down this building and put up -- >> anthony: they emerged, of course, heroes. and these protests went on to inspire many others to join the movement. >> ritte: i hope i'm still alive when that day happens. because i want to see our queen back in office. >> anthony: and embodied the independent spirit, the desire for hawaiian empowerment and sovereignty that today resonates across generations. ♪ welcome to what is supposedly the most unwelcoming place in hawaii. ♪ >> hano-hano: komo mai, anthony, come in brother. come into keawanui. my name is hano-hano. >> anthony: thank you so much. >> hano-hano: nice to meet you. >> anthony: thank you. >> hano-hano: please come inside. >> anthony: hello, hi, aloha. this is keawanui fishpond. a shared community space with a sacred history. hano-hano is the caretaker of the fishpond. he's a local community leader here in molokai. also here is the famous walter ritte. >> ritte: everybody knows how valuable all of this stuff is because we can see what happened to the rest of the islands. >> anthony: so essentially an old-school fish farm. >> hano-hano: eight-hundred years old. >> anthony: eight-hundred years old. >> hano-hano: modernizing one old idea. and an ancient idea is as simple as feeding your community. and this, the island you're on, this place could feed over a million people back in the day. >> anthony: you hear the word again and again on molokai. ina, which means land, and translates to "that which feeds you." springs, mountains, rivers. these lands, these fish ponds, were managed by their ancestors as a sacred trust. here, where fresh water from the mountains and fast moving ocean waters met. early, sustainable, clean fish farms. something in modern times we are still struggling to figure out. >> ritte: because you heard about what people think about us. but the true story is that we have a place of abundance and we try to protect it. try to protect all of these things that we've been able to protect for the last thirty years and it's getting harder and harder. >> hano-hano: every single one of these hawaiians over here get enough evidence that the state of hawaii, the department of land and natural resources, have done a terrible job. we're not even looking for blame. we're actually looking for an agreement that from today -- >> anthony: right. >> hano-hano: we all gonna be pono, we all gon' be righteous, we all gon' be good. our planet is in such, um, bad shape. that being environmental, being green, is trending. that's where the hawaiians have always been. >> anthony: so, who gets to be hawaiian? this is the question, who is hawaiian? >> hano-hano: hawaiian is a nationality, brah, you can be hawaiian. >> anthony: really, come on, don't shit me now. >> hano-hano: they made us, they made us state, they made us. hawaiian is our blood. >> anthony: i have to be born here. this isn't, come on, this is a different story. >> hano-hano: wait a minute. i can give you the best explanation. because you cannot be our blood, our blood is kanaka, you cannot be kanaka. hawaiian is our nationality and you can pledge to be that. you see this, what we're standing on. our ina, it matters so much that if you love this place and you don't wanna develop it, destroy it, abuse it. we're on the same team. >> eddie: that's hawaiian, yep. >> hano-hano: if you eyeing this place and its resources as a money-making vehicle for yourself. we enemies, right? and it doesn't matter race, religion, what sex you. if you love this place and you can malama our ina the way we love it and our ancestors loved it? well, we can be more than friends, we can be family. i'm gonna aloha you. >> anthony: beautifully played, man. wow. >> hano-hano: that's it. >> man: right on. >> ritte: right on, bro. >> anthony: it's a pretty impressive spread of food for such a supposedly surly group. slow roasted pig. grilled kala fish. mullet, cooked lavalu style. and, of course, octopus, known as squid luau. fresh poi, you've got to have it fresh, believe me, it makes all the difference in the world. freshwater snails called, i believe, hihiwai. harvested from streams from way up in the mountains. >> walter: it's a bounty. the bounty of our ocean and our mountain. that's squid, octopus, the one you caught. >> anthony: oh that's octopus! oh! hey! oh! >> eddie: was this the one, this is the one you bit it's eye. >> walter: right there, right there. >> anthony: i recognize you. ♪ ♪ >> hano-hano: anthony, when somebody steals this it's easy for us to say, "you're stealing our stuff." right? but all of this stuff is dependent on a healthy environment and ecosystem. >> anthony: all right, but, then let me ask you, just because i'm a bit of a dick. i have to ask this question. i have to ask! >> hano-hano: no, i, go for it. >> eddie: bring it on, bring it on. >> anthony: i have to ask, all right. so, we have, like, twelve more beers and i pull out some nice spam musubi. >> hano-hano: i would eat them, right? look at me, i would eat them. but that doesn't mean it's right, and that doesn't mean that's what i'm gonna feed my children. our culture made everything we did the best of the best. hawaiians are the only ones that turned taro into poi. you know what i mean? we did everything to the best of the best. so if you're going to introduce spam to us, we'll do it the best. you introduce christianity to us, we gonna do 'em the best. whatever you're gonna introduce to us, we're gonna do it the best! >> anthony: our christianity's better than yours, i love it. so, you've really disappointed me you have in no way lived up to your reputation as mean, unwelcoming, inward looking, hostile. admit it, it's a calculated strategy. >> hano-hano: yes. >> anthony: and i'll leave with a message. if you're watching this show, i hope your heart is swelling with admiration. but bottom line, don't come here. >> group: yeah! ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ there's a different way to treat hiv. it's once-monthly injectable cabenuva. cabenuva is the only once-a-month, complete hiv treatment for adults who are undetectable. cabenuva helps keep me undetectable. it's two injections, given by a healthcare provider once a month. hiv pills aren't on my mind. i love being able to pick up and go. don't receive cabenuva if you're allergic to its ingredients or taking certain medicines, which may interact with cabenuva. serious side effects include allergic reactions post-injection reactions, liver problems,...and depression. if you have a rash and other allergic reaction symptoms, stop cabenuva and get medical help right away. tell your doctor if you have liver problems or mental health concerns, and if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or considering pregnancy. some of the most common side effects include injection site reactions, fever, and tiredness. if you switch to cabenuva, attend all treatment appointments. with once-a-month cabenuva, i'm good to go. ask your doctor about once-monthly cabenuva. emergency planning for kids. we can't predict when an emergency will happen. so that's why it's important to make a plan with your parents. here are a few tips to stay safe. know how to get in touch with your family. write down phone numbers for your parents, siblings and neighbors. pick a place to meet your family if you are not together and can't go home. remind your parents to pack an emergency supply kit. making a plan might feel like homework, but it will help you and your family stay safe during an emergency. >> anthony: the ocean is all around for thousands of miles. a humbling feeling knowing at all times the ground upon which you live and walk and breathe is but a tiny speck in the middle of all this. so in hawaii, the waterman is an important distinction. it expresses the shared consensus that you are able to handle yourself in the ocean no matter what it throws at you. it implies that you are capable of almost mythical things. the ability to live in the water, handle its many moods above or below the surface. meet uncle ross, waterman. a canoe surfing legend and generally accepted ambassador of the aloha spirit. he's offered to share with me a truly ancient hawaiian space found only on the face of a crashing wave. ♪ ♪ surfing, a life connected to the ocean, and spending time with family and friends on the beach are some of the cornerstones of hawaiian life. >> archie: and this is our chef. this is jason. >> anthony: how are you, man? >> archie: and, tony, that's keola. >> anthony: hey, how are ya? >> keola: all right. >> anthony: you good? >> keola: yes sir. >> archie: hilani. >> anthony: how do you do? how are you? >> archie: keawe. >> anthony: what's going on? hi. >> archie: meghan. >> anthony: hello. >> archie: those are my two daughters, this is my wife alicia. >> anthony: why hello, hi. >> archie: brennan, come say hi. >> anthony: hey, brennan, how are ya? >> archie: and, uh, milton. this is milton. >> anthony: milton, good to meet you. so how, uh, how does everybody know each other here? >> archie: we live on an island, everybody knows everybody here. >> anthony: okay, that's true. why did i even ask? >> archie: it's just the way you roll. >> woman: i think i met uncle ross through the water. just surfing and then we became, like, family. >> ross: daughter. >> tiare: yeah, and he's like my -- and he's like my dad. my ohana. >> anthony: each and every weekend uncle ross can be found here with his ohana. a hawaiian word that describes an extended circle of family and close friends. >> anthony: man, nice. they got lucky today. it's a beautiful day. >> archie: beautiful day, yep. >> ross: even when it's storming, it's nice on the beach. >> anthony: yeah. >> ross: yeah. and we'll stay here until that thing goes down. hits the horizon. when that sun hits the horizon it's, that's time to go home. >> anthony: maui is an island as beautiful as it gets. and, sure it's got its share of portion-controled cruise line entertainments doled out in digestible bites and complimentary mai-tais. but, you'll also find the sort-of beloved, indigenous institution like tasty crust. as local a place as you're likely to find. >> anthony: daniel ikaika ito will explain. >> daniel: this is a menu situation, or i can order for you if you trust me. i think we're gonna hook you up with, uh, the local flavor, so -- >> anthony: okay, i trust you. raised on the big island, he's a journalist. the first native hawaiian editor of a major surf publication, and founder of the local contrast magazine. >> daniel: local culture is, very much so, trying to point a finger at anybody coming in going, "hey you're a haole, you don't belong." and therein kinda lies a little conflict you have being a modern-day hawaiian. and i still think that's something that we forget about these days is how educated and how accepting our kupuna, our ancesters, were. it was always built on inclusivity, aloha. >> anthony: mhmm. >> daniel: aloha is giving without expecting anything in return. you got this hawaiian culture that was a product of the polynesians that populated the islands. then you got this local culture that's a product of the plantation lifestyle. so the japanese, the chinese, the koreans, the filipinos, the portuguese. >> anthony: if indeed all history can be explained by what's on your plate, this is a prime example. behold the plate lunch. the most identifiable, and essential, feature of the plate lunch is this. a big scoop, or two, of white rice and potato mac salad. there is nothing more hawaiian. served alongside a protein like chicken katsu. or this hamburger steak, burger-like patty drowned in dark, sinister, sticky, shiny gravy. or furikake ahi, seared ahi with nori and sesame seed. >> daniel: oh my gosh, that looks beautiful. >> anthony: oh yeah, that's gonna work. oh. all right. i sit this right on top of the rice? >> daniel: yeah, yep. you want to get some mac salad too on there too. >> anthony: gonna get that sinister gravy on. oh, dude. look what we're eating. >> daniel: right, yeah. >> anthony: okay, they may not be hawaiian, but they are now. they are fundamentally local. i mean, this food, this most delicious, let's be honest, delicious. this is not healthy eating. >> daniel: yeah, and we're kind of paying the price for it right now in the health of the state, which is terrible. as i take a bite of hamburger and brown gravy. >> anthony: yeah but it's, like i said, it's so good. >> daniel: if you really want to do hawaii right, you gotta give back. and that's a power that hawaii and the ina still has is, if you show aloha and you give without asking, the ina is going to recognize it and it's gonna shower its blessings upon you. >> anthony: so you think traditional hawaiian culture and lifestyle has a chance against the modern world? >> daniel: i think so. the beautiful part about my ancestors is they realized there is a limited number of resources where they lived, so they observed nature to the best possible they could to figure out what were the cycles and how do we preserve this resource? hawaiian culture can teach the whole world something that it needs to know is, we all live on an island. and we are all part of the same community. let's all show aloha to the ina, and let's show aloha to everybody else as well. ♪3, 4♪ ♪ ♪hey♪ ♪ ♪are you ready for me♪ ♪are you ready♪ ♪are you ready♪ new vicks vapostick. strong soothing vapors... help comfort your loved ones. for chest, neck, and back. it goes on clear. no mess just soothing comfort. try new vicks vapostick. 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[snowball splat and windshield wiper] the #1 longest-lasting aa battery. introducing the biggest advancement in the history of small business bookkeeping. having someone else do your books for you. i'm linda, your quickbooks live bookkeeper. let's do this linda! sounds good! a live expert bookkeeper who understands your business. felipe, i've categorized last month's hair gel expenses. steve, i just closed your books. great, how are we looking? profits are up! on to next month. on to next month, linda! get your books done for you by trusted experts. intuit quickbooks live bookkeeping. ♪ >> anthony: an extraordinary man lives in this house. shep gordon. longtime resident on maui. legendary talent manager, maybe you know some of the people whose careers he's looked after. alice cooper, teddy pendergrass, luther vandross, blondie, pink floyd. he was years, years, ahead of the chef explosion. shepherding emeril through his early career. he's produced films, worked alongside great french chefs like roger verge. become close to his holiness the dalai lama. basically done everything with everybody in every place. >> shep: i first got here forty years ago. i put one foot on the island and knew i was living here the rest of my life. >> anthony: do you ever look out there and it's just, it's wallpaper? >> shep: never, ever. i say it out loud every day. yeah, my first words in the morning are, "thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you." every day. >> anthony: shep is famously one of the most generous and enthusiastic of hosts. a more stand-up, loyal guy you could barely imagine. and it's no wonder they call the documentary based on his life "supermensch." that's how he's known around the world. here here's known as "that guy who throws great parties." prep starts early. with shep's friend julio, a maui born and bred rancher. with help from local chef sheldon simeon. middle of the night and a traditional imu is dug. filled with lava rocks, the fire allowed to burn down to coals before the pig, wrapped in a combination of banana leaves and tea leaves, is dropped in. >> julio: okay, you guys ready for the unveiling? here we go. all right. >> anthony: twelve hours later you dig 'em up and, well, it's party time. >> anthony: so what you've been saying is you've been drinking steadily since five o'clock this morning. >> sheldon: i didn't say. it didn't come out of my mouth. it just -- >> anthony: behold the magnificence. it's a very important part of your childhood. dun-dun-dun-dun-dun. wow, look at that. you could just lift those bones out by hand. >> julio: yep. shep, ready? >> anthony: whoa, you just dump them into a bucket. awesome. wow. wow, that's pretty much the way i want to end up. just be able to pour me right into a pot. there's lots to do, and everyone pitches in to help. it's an extended all-day affair of prepping, chopping, dicing, slicing, mixing. and of course, there's some sampling along the way. like this wild pig sausage that someone was nice enough to stop by with. sheldon works up a potato-mac salad. >> shep: that gonna do it? >> sheldon: one more time! >> shep: okay, hittin' ya one more time. >> sheldon: one more time! >> shep: okay, hittin' ya one more time. >> anthony: julio carves up some unicorn fish which he caught himself earlier in the day. chef mark tarbell stuffs a couple of fresh red snappers before throwing them in the oven. there's poi pounded fresh out back. and somewhere, somewhere pig's foot soup is happily bubbling away. >> man: here try this chili pepper water. >> julio: chili pepper water. >> anthony: wait a minute, why do i want to do this? there's chili pepper water, used for dipping or taken as an auxiliary shot for regularity or boner medicine or whatever. oh yeah, there's also spam noodles. there is no party without spam. by dinnertime the beer, wine, and festive beverages have been flowing for hours. also, moods have been properly adjusted in a completely natural way indigenous to the islands, of course. >> shep: how about julio and the pigs? >> anthony: i cooked a lot of pigs. i've never seen one poured into a pot neatly. >> julio: that's what i love. this is what we do in the islands. that's what it's all about. >> shep: and always bring the ohana. bring the family, bring the kids, you know? you rarely ever see a party where there aren't kids. >> anthony: ohana means -- >> willie: family. >> anthony: how -- >> shep: extended family. >> anthony: extended family. >> shep: yeah, like you're now ohana to everybody here. >> willie: ohana means if you won't be offended if we came to borrow money from you. [ laughter ] >> anthony: and, as happens, i've come to find out, things end up in the most natural just kind of happens way. song and some dancing. ♪ ♪ >> anthony: this is willie k. and that's his daughter lisette. and it's pretty damn captivating. ♪ ♪ >> anthony: it's getting near the end for me. i look over at shep and i see a happy man surrounded by friends, by family, really. his ohana. ♪ ♪ the new fragrance. ralph lauren. ♪ ♪ grandma, how wide are two reindeer? twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine... ♪ ♪ we've been waiting all year to come together... it worked! have a happy and safe holiday season from lexus. ♪ i see trees of green ♪ ♪ red roses too ♪ ♪ i see them bloom ♪ ♪ for me and you ♪ ♪ and i think to myself ♪ ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ a rich life is about more than just money. that's why at vanguard, you're more than just an investor, you're an owner so you can build a future for those you love. vanguard. become an owner. such tree-mendous views. i'm at a moss for words. when a cough tries to steal dad's punchlines, he takes robitussin naturals powered by 100% drug-free ingredients. are you gonna leaf me hanging? soothe your cough naturally. where's mom? she said she would be home in time for the show. don't worry, sweetie. she promised she'd be here for it. ooh! nice shot! thanks! glad we have xfinity, with wifi speed faster than a gig! me too! woah, look! mom is on tv! she's amazing! (cheers) xfinity brought us together, after all! power your whole home this holiday with wifi speeds faster than a gig. click, call, or visit a store today. sing 2 how not to be a hero: because that's the last thing they need you to be. you don't have to save the day. you just have to navigate the world so that a foster child isn't doing it solo. you just have to stand up for a kid who isn't fluent in bureaucracy, or maybe not in their own emotions. so show up, however you can, for the foster kids who need it most— at helpfosterchildren.com >> nainoa: to be hawaiian, to me, means to be some kind of sense of connection to place. and some sense of responsibility for it. it should be about being honest to a place and being honest to what you love and be honest to what you value. it's a road that's constantly trying to be more and more informed. i don't even know, sometimes, how to be fully honest. because i don't know enough. what i love about the ocean is that's my pathway. that i go on the oceans to seek that sense of truth. >> anthony: they said i could see whales, like, close up. and i had reasons for optimism. all week i've been staring out to sea watching humpback whales leaping out of the ocean. spouting and frolicking. so, are things, compared to other parts of the world, are conservations efforts as far as, uh, marine mammals in general, but whales in particular, going well? is this a -- >> joe: that's the one thing on the planet that is. they're talking about taking humpbacks off the endangered species list. but it's good to hear that they recovered, but then it may make it easy to add to the whaling list again. >> anthony: it's mating season in hawaii for the nearly ten thousand humpback whales that migrate down from southeast alaska each year. doctor joe mobley of the university of hawaii has dedicated his career to studying these whales. >> joe: yeah, i guess the song is supposed to be, like, the most complex display in the animal kingdom. when you're close to a singer you can actually feel it through your whole body. it's like a hundred and eighty-five db, really loud. wow. >> anthony: they don't mind us at all, do they? ♪ ♪ >> swimmer: oh, we got it. that was amazing. that was incredible. >> anthony: that was unbelievable. ♪