The buzz on kava

The kava experience

Cristina Geisse, originally from Chile, first tried kava when she started working at Diamond Head Cove a little over a year ago. She said she had two cups and got really sleepy. "It's not about the taste... you feel really mellow and relaxed," she said.

She said the store gets a lot of people who don't know what kava is. How does she describe it to the uninitiated? "Sometimes I'm just like, 'oh, it's muddy water,'" she said with a laugh.

She thinks the attraction for tourists and the curious is that they've read about it and are looking for a traditional Hawaiian experience.