Thousands of people lined Kaläkaua Avenue in Waikiki today for the 63rd Aloha Festivals Floral Parade.
Many set up beach chairs and coolers long before the 9 a.m. start at Aloha Tower.

This year’s parade honored the Hawaiian practice of hula, but there was no ignoring a strong Catholic undertone as the Sacred Hearts contingent celebrated a pair of significant anniversaries and hundreds of other marchers representing the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu bore images of soon-to-be-canonized Father Damien on T-shirts, floats and signs.
The Sisters of Sacred Hearts is celebrating its 150th year in Hawaiçi. Sacred Hearts Academy turns 100 this year.
With more than 100 organizations participating, the massive parade offered the assembled crowd an impressive display of the civic, cultural, political, business and social life of the islands. Among those marching were Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, the Honolulu Elks Lodge 616, the Lions Club, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, the Honolulu Boy Choir, the U.S. Marine Corps Marching Band, Hawaiian Airlines, çAha Pünana Leo, various pageant queens, and marching bands from Waiçanae High School, Kamehameha Schools, Holy Family Catholic Academy, Waipahu High School and others.
Becky Hall flew in from Costa Mesa, Calif., just to take in the event. She first learned of it during a visit here in May.
“It couldn’t be any better,” said Hall, who found a cozy spot for her beach chair just before the intersection with Kapahulu.
“The live music on the floats was special,” she said. “It’s all beautiful — the flowers, the music, the dancing, all of it.”
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