August 2002
Hawai'i sits in the middle of the pacific, between Japan and the United States. Running deep under these islands are the trade and culture currents of each of those countries.Florida Vegas Yokohama.
Honolulu boasts about 80% of the population of Hawai'i, and Honolulu has Waikiki, which boasts most of the tourist visitors. Here are high-rise hotels, fashion boutiques, gun clubs. Planet Hollywood, Gucci, Prada and Baskin-Robbins. Mingling of people from all around the world in leisure wear, strolling by the beach and indulging, as men painted silver vie for novelty photographs with men carrying loads of parrots, and native craftspeople whittle away rough wooden reproductions of the island's old gods.
Dan and Adrienne (of the Bay Area band Secadora) had their second wedding in Hawai'i since Adrienne is originally from these islands. She was raised on the East side of Oahu, nearly an hour from Honolulu. A group of their friends from the Bay Area met in Waikiki for a few days of family and fun. (Jane invited me to accompany her).
 Waikiki beach at 6.50am |
 Waikiki beach at noon |
 Jane eats Korean food on Waikiki beach |
 Several gun clubs in small Waikiki, catering primarily to visiting Japanese folks who might want to try their hand at some good ol' U.S. style shooting. For example, at the Waikiki Gun Club, $90 gets you 70 shots with an Uzi 9mm. |
 Ever-warm savory treats in an Oscar Mayer-labelled food heater at the ABC Store - they're everywhere! 37 ABC stores in Waikiki alone - it's not unusual to stand in one place and see three ABC stores within two blocks. All owned by the same company. Each boasting a slightly different selection of sunglasses! On the top shelf here, find spam over rice wrapped in seaweed - spam musubi. |
 Jane assumes a pained expression whilst holing the sniper rifle from "Silent Scope" - Konami's excellent arcade shooting game. This was taken in the Fun Factory video game parlour in Waikiki, which we only visited three times during our five days there. Jane, as it turns out, is a particularly skilled sniper - it's her favourite weapon in most first-person shooters. |
I had accidentally packed only one shirt, that on my back. It was appropriately colorful, but beginning to accumulate sweat and the smell of coconut scented suntan lotion. | ||
 Jane and Adam show off their Salvation Army shirts. It was 2 for 1 clothes, which only sweetened the incredible prospect of finding a cool cheap Hawaiian-style shirt here in Kailua after searching in Waikiki, where shops catering largely to Japanese fashion-hunters had beautiful vintage Hawaiian shirts for over $800. Do you wear that or frame it? |
 Jason strums a ukulele in the "boutique" section of the Kailua Salvation Army. It had a hole in the wooden body, and a tiki-style God carved in the head - $250. |
 Jane and I standing on a point overlooking the other side of the island from Waikiki. I was naked but for swimtrunks most of the time, and she always had that pink knit purse. On the way up here, a large rounded man making hats from plants called out to ask me where I was frum. "Northern California," I replied. "Ahh, that Humbolt county weed!" he replied with a wide grin. Hmmm. |
I hadn't been scuba diving since I went in Honduras in 1997. Through some wonderfully generous folks I met at the wedding I was able to accompany a young man diving deep between some rocks on the North Shore. | ||
 Nebraska born Hawaiian Keith stands in front of a few cabinets he cut and carved and sealed and placed himself, fashioned from Hawaiian kona wood. He was full of information about the islands, about scuba-diving. All delivered with a straightforward sensibility and unflinching competence. Generous with his hobbies, oriented towards craft - I guess I wasn't surprised to hear he was from the deep midwest. |
 Adam, our photogenic guide to the North Shore, was born on Oahu to parents from Nebraska (Dad Keith). He's studying ecology and evolution with a human-community focus at Santa Cruz. He likes punk music, amongst other things - most of the music on the islands here is Hawaiian music and Reggae. Guess the Jamaican vibe makes sense in this climate. He says punk is hard to find though - guess everyone is too mellow. |
 Jane and Jason prepare to hit the snorkeling. |
 Aside from being overpoweringly hot, this wetsuit seemed impossible to get in and out of unless I had help. Jane helped me get into the suit and then giggled near uncontrollably. She took this photo. My scuba partner/guide Adam explained I'd put the suit on backwards. It was far easier to don this layer of rubber the right way. |
 Justin and Adam, fresh after a scuba dive, 30 feet deep along a coral ridge. Photo by Jane. |
 Here Jane is helping me pull off my suit while host Adam looks on in slight dismay. Photo by Jason. |
 After kayaking to the Mokuluas, Jane cut her toe open quick and ugly stepping on some coral. I was paddling out in the water at the time and didn't see her sitting bleeding until after she had already received the first round of help and sympathy from other friends and even strangers. She didn't hold that against me for more than a few days. |
 They call it "shave ice" - dense thin bits of nearly snow shoved into a paper cone over a single scoop of ice cream, finally covered with syrups of your choice. Lime was powerful radioactive - too much. Coconut and mango were delicious, Jane discovered. Here the bottles of juice were lit up by flourescent lights from beneath the sales counter. "Is there sugar in that?" I asked. One gentleman in line behind me, said, "There's probably corn syrup." |
 Lisa takes a picture of herself upside down, drinking a root-beer and strawberry (?) shave ice. |
 Jason, Maria, Jane and Justin on the beach of Waikiki. Maria we met through the web; she helped shape our trip and showed us a transplanted Mainland-Hawai'i perspective on the islands. |
 Maria took us to her favourite tea shop in Honolulu China Town - Jade Spring Tea & Art Gifts Wholesale and Retail. Here the proprietor Gabrial stands in front of his collection of tea lover faces. Jane was taken by the tea demonstration, as it rekindled some knowledge she had of this accelerating beverage; she bought one of his fine pots as a present. |
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