Category: Hawaii Culture & Happenings

Kung Hei Fat Choy! This week many people around the world will be celebrating the Chinese New Year, and Hawaii is definitely included in the party. Our own Chinatown celebrates for almost the entire month with block parties, music, food, crafts, lion dances, parades and a Narcissus Queen Pageant. The entire community comes together for […]

Even before warming their toes in Hawaii’s sandy shores, visitors have most likely already warmed their hearts with the island’s beautiful voices that ring so brilliantly throughout the world. From our archipelago in the Pacific, singers like Don Ho and Braddah IZ are just a few of the performing gems that have made a global […]

The time in Hawaii is anywhere from three to six hours behind the mainland. But the time within Hawaii households? Well, that’s a whole different time zone, better known as Hawaiian Time. It’s the time of the islands that keeps everything at a mellower pace. It’s one of the funniest stereotypes people from Hawaii get […]

An actor, a comedian and a baseball player are slated to appear in Hawaii Five-0 soon. Guess which one viewers in Hawaii are most excited about? OK, maybe you need to know a little more about them. The actor is Ed Asner, a SEVEN-time Emmy winner. Asner played a TV newsroom boss in The Mary […]

The sweeping shots of Hawaii’s scenic beaches and mountains are a staple of the television programs filmed in HAwaii. But often it is a small detail that makes the setting seem authentic — like what to drink with a plate lunch.Bottom’s up! Coconut water’s popular all over Hawaii. Coconut water is not exclusive to Hawaii, […]

It doesn’t snow in Hawaii. It “snowbamas.” And with it being that time of year again, Christmas in the islands gets decorated with Secret Service agents, street barricades and the U.S. coast guard. It means the Obamas have started their Annual Hawaiian Christmas Getaway. Well, almost started, that is. Obama after some much needed time […]

When you arrive in Hawaii, one of the first things you’ll notice is that many people are barefoot. This is because it is a common custom to remove your shoes before entering homes and businesses in Hawaii. There are a few reasons for this custom. Cleanliness: Shoes can track dirt and debris into homes, so removing them […]

ko-KEE-ko-KEEEEEEE ko-KEEE-ko-KE…Coqui frogs are usually the size of a quarter, but females can get twice as big. Appropriately named after its high-pitched mating call, the coqui frogs have replaced crickets as Hawaii’s sunset serenaders. The little guys may be hard to find, some only the size of quarters, but they’re definitely not hard to hear. […]

“Lau means leaf in Hawaiian,” explains Cindy Whitehawk, a lauhala teacher from Kona. “The hala tree has a pineapple-like fruit, and it breaks into keys’. These keys, when dried, are like a brush, and were used to paint kapa cloth in ancient Hawaii.” Cindy Whitehawk will make anything into lauhala, including her shoes! I am […]

Aloha is packaged in all kinds of ways here in Hawaii. It’s a word used so often that it’s easy to forget the true aloha meaning. Let’s learn about this powerful word and the many ways it’s used throughout the islands.  Where You’ll Hear Aloha Today Aloha is often promised to tourists, but it’s also […]

Lilo put it well, “Ohana means family.” And I bet you can finish the rest…”Family means no one gets left behind or forgotten.” From there, the saying stuck like the orange li hing mui stains on your fingers – rapidly spreading across the globe as a little piece of the Hawaiian culture. Family in Hawaii […]

This house has to be the most festive residence in Manoa. Christmas, Thanksgiving and even Fourth of July – the old Victorian-style dwelling gets decked out from yard to rooftop. But Halloween in Manoa is an especially spooky affair – with its tricks and its treats and its…ghostly occupants? A Manoa home goes all out […]