- Alingano Maisu
"Alingano Maisu", also known simply as "Maisu", is a double-hulled voyaging
canoe built in Kawaihae by members of Na Kalai Wa'a Moku o Hawai'i and 'Ohana Wa'a members from all throughout the Pacific and abroad as a gift and tribute toSatawal ese navigatorMau Piailug , who navigated the voyaging canoe "Hōkūle‘a" on her maiden voyage toTahiti in1976 and has since trained numerous native Hawaiians in the ancient art ofwayfinding . The word "maisu" (pronounced /IPA|maɪʃu/) in the name of the canoe comes from the Satawalese word forbreadfruit . In particular, the word refers to breadfruit that has been knocked down by storm winds and is therefore available for anyone to take. The name is said to symbolize the knowledge of navigation that is made freely available. [Polynesian Voyaging Society, http://pvs.kcc.hawaii.edu/2007voyage/2007micronesiamaisu.html, quoting "Ka Wai Ola, the Living Waters of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs," March 13, 2006.]The concept for "Alingano Maisu" came about in
2001 when two Hawaiian voyaging groups, thePolynesian Voyaging Society and Na Kalai Wa'a Moku o Hawaii, met with Piailug. The two hulls of the 56-foot vessel were fabricated by the Friends of "Hōkūle‘a" and "Hawai‘iloa" onOahu and shipped to the Big Island of Hawaii where Na Kalai Wa'a completed construction of the canoe. The Polynesian Voyaging Society provided much of the funding for the voyaging aspect of the project as well as an escort boat to help sail the boat toSatawal . [Kathryn Wilder, "Mau's Canoe," in "Hana Hou" (Hawaiian Airlines), Vol. 9, No. 4, August/September 2006. [http://www.hanahou.com/pages/magazine.asp?Action=DrawArticle&ArticleID=488&Page=1] ]The canoe is home-ported on the island of
Yap under the command of Piailug's son,Sesario Sewralur . [Jan TenBruggencate, "Voyage of Friendship" in "The Honolulu Advertiser", Saturday, January 20, 2007. [http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Jan/20/ln/FP701200320.html] ]Maiden voyage
Accompanied by "Hōkūle‘a", the "Maisu" left
Kawaihae, Hawaii on January 18, 2007. After stops in theMarshall Islands ,Pohnpei , andChuuk , the Maisu reached Satawal on March 15, 2007. On March 18, while on Satawal, five native Hawaiian navigators on the voyage were inducted intopwo , a sacred Micronesian brotherhood of master navigators. [ [http://starbulletin.com/print/2005.php?fr=/2007/03/18/news/story04.html Honolulu Star-Bulletin ] ]"Hōkūle‘a" and "Maisu" both left Satawal on March 20 and made stops in
Woleai ,Ulithi andYap before reachingPalau . From there, the "Maisu" remained in Micronesia, returning to Yap state, while the "Hōkūle‘a" continued on toJapan . [ [http://pvs.kcc.hawaii.edu/2007voyage/2007sailplan.html 2007 Sail Plan ] ]Navigation Training Program with Palau Community College
In June 2008,
Palau Community College announced that there will be the one year program of traditional non-instrumental navigation on Alingano Maisu under Sesario Sewralur [ [http://www.palau.edu/mesekiu/jun27issue.htm MESEKIU'S NEWS] ] .ee also
* Hokuleokinaa
*Polynesian Voyaging Society References
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