Lei (garland) dancer who dared to give a lei to a US soldier along with a kiss, leading it to become a tradition of lei distribution in modern times. To this day, leis remain a notable aspect of Hawaiian culture. Traditionalists give a lei by bowing slightly and raising it above the heart, allowing the recipient to take it, as raising the hands above another's head, or touching the face or head, is considered disrespectful. By tradition, only open lei are given to a pregnant or nursing woman. If due to allergies or other reasons a person cannot wear a lei which
Cuscuta sandwichiana a twining vine with thin, leafless yellow to yellow-orange stems and very small yellowish flowers which grow in small clusters along the stems. Lei (garland): "Kaunaʻoa kahakai" was used for both "lei o ka poʻo" (head lei) and l"ei āʻī" (neck lei) Medicinal: Plants of both "kaunaʻoa kahakai" and "kaunaʻoa pehu" were pounded until soft, strained, and juice drunk to thin blood for women who had given birth or who had thick blood. Cuscuta sandwichiana Cuscuta sandwichiana ("Kauna'oa kahakai") is a parasitic vine and the only member of the genus Cuscuta that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. It parasitizes