May 1 is Lei Day in Hawaiʻi, a merry day celebrating the beautiful symbol of aloha. Throughout the Islands, festivals are held to commemorate the history and significance of lei. One of the most exciting lei festivals is the annual Lei Day Celebration on Oʻahu, hosted by the City and County of Honolulu Department
This story originally appeared in our sister publication, HONOLULU Magazine. The mai tai. Some say: Why? Others say: Why not? At my wedding, I was one of the latter. Little did we know, my brand-new bride and I, that the bartender at The Willows in Honolulu was intent on sending us off on our
Since the beginning of the pandemic, over two years ago, the Royal Hawaiian Band has not been able to perform for the public due to the size of the band and COVID-19 regulations. However, on March 4—that’s today!—the band will make its grand reappearance at ʻIolani Palace for its popular lunchtime concert series starting at
Oʻahu is home to many things—wonderful beaches, exhilarating hikes, mouthwatering eateries—and it has always been the epicenter of Hawaiʻi’s festivals and events. Earning its nickname as the Gathering Isle, Oʻahu is known for hosting some of the grandest gatherings in the state. But that all changed with COVID-19. Numerous festivals had to cancel their annual
Driving down South King Street, on the island of Oʻahu, is a daily commute for many residents. Shops, restaurants and bars of every kind call this strip of road home, and now, so do two of Hawaiʻi’s Olympians. Standing ten stories tall, Carissa Moore—who recently was the first-ever surfer from Hawaiʻi to win a gold
“The sound of the taiko drum, it almost goes beyond your ears and into your bones,” says Kenny Endo, who was recently named a 2022 United States Artists Fellow. “You can feel it in your gut.” United States Artists Fellowships are given out for the following disciplines: architecture and design, craft, dance, film, media, music,
First thing’s first, no, “Instagrammable” is not a real word. Putting that aside, Oʻahu was recently announced to be the third most Instagrammable place in the world on a list of 50 vacation locales, according to the international travel brand Big 7 Travel. And that comes as no surprise to those who have been living
It’s 1977. Jimmy Carter is sworn in as the 39th U.S. President. “Star Wars” opens in theaters. Elvis Presley dies. The H-2 Freeway and reef airport runway open. And for the first time, Kanoelehua “Kanoe” Miller steps onto the oceanfront stage at the Halekūlani in Waikīkī to dance hula. And except for the hotel’s yearlong
“An architect has to be a bit of a sociologist, lawyer and psychologist. He has to know human nature.” That’s what architect Vladimir Ossipoff once said in regard to his profession. And he would know better than most: Born in Russia and raised in Japan, Ossipoff rose to architecture’s upper echelons during a lifetime spent
The plan was to move from San Diego to Oʻahu for a couple of years to surf before starting medical school. But like so many others with similar ill-fated plans, Tony Nelson wound up never leaving. He got a job at Duke’s Waikīkī in 1997 as a bar host, then quickly worked his way to bartender. Nelson, now 50 and
There’s nothing quite like driving from Honolulu to the east side of Oʻahu—especially if you’re using the Interstate H-3. Literally cutting through the Koʻolau Range using a series of tunnels and positioning drivers high above the treeline of Haʻikū Valley, the route reaches its crescendo as commuters come out of the tunnel’s eastern exit and
