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.All Trips / Hawaii / North America
Royal Hawaiian Hotel, Oahu
The Royal Hawaiian Hotel was one of the first hotels located on Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, on the island of Oahu. The hotel’s beach offers wonderful views of Waikiki and Diamond Head, the island’s extinct, iconic volcanic crater. It is one of the few ‘older’ places in a city that has exploded with new devlopment in the past half century.
The Royal Hawaiian is known for its bright pink color, hence the nickname, “The Pink Palace of the Pacific”. Its design has a Moorish influence and the complex sits on 15 acres of land, most of which is a beautiful tropical garden. The hotel has 400 rooms, each with a balcony, and was built to accommodate the growing number of wealthy American …
Tagged Honolulu, hotel, Oahu, Royal Hawaiian, Waikiki
.All Trips / Hawaii / North America
The Dole Plantation, Oahu, Hawaii
You’ll find the Dole Plantation on the drive from Honolulu to Hawaii’s North Shore, about 40 minutes north of Waikiki on the Kamehameha Highway. If you’re staying in Honolulu and want to get “out of the city” for awhile, especially with children, a fun day trip would be to the Dole Plantation, one of the island’s most popular tourist destinations with more than a million visitors a year.
A Brief History of the Pineapple in Hawaii
The pineapple was given its English name because of its resemblance to a pine cone. Christopher Columbus was the first who brought this plant, native of South America, to Europe. For centuries pineapple imported to America’s seaside towns was a treat; a fresh pineapple displayed on …
Tagged Dole Plantation, Hawaii, Oahu, pineapple
“Pic of the Week”, July 17, 2015: International Market Place, Honolulu
I’m saddened to share with you photos of a place that isn’t anymore. The International Market Place in Honolulu has been torn down to make way for an upscale mega-mall.
Oahu is not my favorite Hawaiian island mostly because it’s dominated by Honolulu, a large busy tropical city similar to many others around the world. But within this city there was a nice place, a island of shady banyan trees. Here you could talk to pleasant people running small cart-shops, you could buy inexpensive gifts, or patronize hole-in-the-wall restaurants where you could have a nice meal, or a place to sit, rest, and cool down.
When we visited Honolulu last fall we found the site of the International Market Place boarded up, …
Jul 16, 2015
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.All Trips / Hawaii / North America
Pu`uhonua O Hōnaunau National Historical Park (The Place of Refuge), Big Island of Hawaii
Perhaps the best place on the Big Island to enjoy a sunset (from many great possibilities), Pu’uhonua o Honaunau (the Place of Refuge) is a remarkable destination. This is a National Historic site which should be near the top of things NOT to be missed by anyone visiting the Big Island.
The Pu’uhonua o Honaunau was built by the Hawaiian people as a sanctuary and place of safety. Any commoner one who had broken one of the many laws (known as kapu) of their society could try to go here to be safe (although people would be trying to stop them as they tried to get to the place of refuge). No blood could be shed or people arrested …
Tagged Big Island, Place of Refuge, Sunset
.All Trips / Hawaii / North America
A visit to the Greenwell Coffee Farm, Kona
Kona coffee is world famous for its full-bodied, non-bitter, bold flavor. Hard to put the taste into words, but it’s good coffee! The micro-climate just south of Kona, around 1000 – 2000 ft above sea level, is perfect for growing coffee beans. The volcanic soil is fertile, the days sunny and warm, the nights cooler, and with frequent light afternoon showers — exactly what coffee thrives on!
Coffee grows on small trees, generally trimmed to bush size. It’s a fruit known as a cherry which is red when ripe. Much smaller than the bing cherries you buy in the store, the pulp of the coffee cherry is scanty but sweet — quite tasty and rich in antioxidants. Most of the …
Tagged coffee, farm, Greenwell Coffee Farm, Kona, plantation
“Pic of the Week”, May 8, 2015. Nene on Kauai
I’ve previously described an encounter with two rare Hawaiian geese on Maui a few years ago at this link. This past fall when I visited Kauai with my brother and father, we found at least two dozen nene — most on the rocky and wet north shore of the island, but a number of free-loaders hanging out at the koi pond of the Marriott resort hotel (lots of fresh water, shelter, and free food).
While they remind me of Canada geese, they’re much smaller and the webbing between their feet is incomplete. And they are fearless — they’ll walk in front of you whether you’re walking or driving, not sensing any danger. It’s this complete fearlessness that nearly killed them …
May 7, 2015
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“Pic of the Week”, February 27, 2015: Silversword, Hawaii
Among the pleasures of being atop Hawaii’s giant volcanoes — Haleakala on Maui, and Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island — are the unusual things you see. Standing on an otherworldly landscape of reddish-brown or gray-black lava rock, the views over the clouds are often breath-taking. You can often see the Big Island from the top of Haleakala, and Maui from Mauna Kea.
If you divert your eyes from the magnificent views to the ground, you’re likely to see this rare gray-silver spikey plant known as “Hawaiian Silversword”. It only grows in Hawaii and then only a mile or more above sea level. Your best chances of seeing it are on the giant volcanoes. The climate up here is harsh — …
Feb 26, 2015
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.All Trips / Hawaii / North America
“Pic of the Week”, January 30, 2015: Saddle Road, Hawaii
I love a scenic road-trip! One of the greatest short drives in America is Saddle Road, which crosses between the dry and wet sides of the Big Island of Hawaii, across broad lava flows and the saddle between Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea, the world’s largest and tallest mountains respectively (base of Mauna Kea is 19000′ below sea level; the part above ocean is 13796′ high). The drive is best done on a clear day, especially in the morning as it often clouds over in the afternoon. It’s a windy road but of good quality. It used to be that not all car rental companies allowed you to take your car rental across it, but the road is so good …
Tagged Big Island, Hawaii, lava, Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa, Saddle Road, volcano
