Talk:Kava culture

Kava vs. Kawa Kawa
I would challenge the section on New Zealand Kava culture. I am not an expert but much of it seems to have be assumed rather than fact. From the tone of the paragraph, it appears to be talking about traditional usage. Kawa Kawa, is a similar plant but not the same. Its leaves are used as teas and the berries are like little yellow bananas, they have a similar taste to very strong kava root and are related I believe, but not the same. As far as I am aware, there are no coconut palms in New Zealand at all. The use of the term Palagi refers to Samoan for a person of European decent. It has little relevance to New Zealand at all. Kava is in common use in New Zealand, but mostly by immigrant populations of Pacific Islanders and Fijian Indians. I have never heard of traditional Maori usage of Kava. The Kawa Kawa plant was used as pain relief however. With out a source, I would challenge the credibility of that paragraph. Frup (talk) 06:13, 15 March 2011 (UTC)