HAWAIIAN OUTPOST BLOG

When people think of coffee they probably think of South America or Kona. But did you know that Hawaii is the only state in the US that grows coffee? The most well-known coffee from Hawaii is undoubtedly Kona coffee and there are several hundred coffee farms in Kona and surrounding regions alone. Kona coffee's name recognition and perceived value is so high that some producers began to mix real Kona coffee beans with cheaper imported beans and call it "Kona Coffee". However, now Hawaii state law requires that the percentage of Kona coffee be stated on the packaging.

While Kona might be the most famous source of coffee from Hawaii, the islands of Kauai, Maui, and Oahu also grow coffee. If you drive up to the North Shore of Oahu, you will pass pineapple fields and coffee plantations. Until recently, these fields were all used for sugar cane and pineapple. While sugar cane is no longer grown on Oahu, coffee now is.

Coffee plantation on Oahu

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The North Shore of Oahu is well known for its world-famous surf. But it is also home to the quiet town of Haleiwa. Years ago when I was just a child, Haleiwa was already one of the last places in Hawaii that looked like "Old Hawaii". To preserve some of the historic value of Haleiwa in the face of modernization, new developments must preserve the old look of the town. One example is the Haleiwa McDonald's. It was built with an old fashioned look rather than the contemporary design of all other McDonald's on Oahu.

If you are ever in Haleiwa and crave a breakfast other than McDonald's, there is a good hole in the wall called "Ted's Bakery" a few miles past Haleiwa (past Waimea Bay) near Sunset Beach. While mostly known for their pies, they also sell pastries, coffee, sandwiches, and other things for breakfast or lunch.

As more people visited the North Shore either to visit Haleiwa or on their way to the surf spots, traffic became an issue for the residents. To solve this, a highway bypass was built that went around the town so that all traffic did not have to channel through the old road that runs through Haleiwa. Still, if you want to get a glimpse of what old rural Hawaii must have been like, Haleiwa is one of the few places left on Oahu.

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Hawaii is sometimes called the "melting pot of the Pacific". There is no majority ethnicity in Hawaii and Hawaii's "culture" has evolved as a mix of cultures from around the world, including Hawaii's own indigenous culture. As a result, people of all races participate and celebrate different traditions from around the world. One such tradition is the blowing up of firecrackers on New Year's Eve. Hawaii people love fireworks! Actually, people bust firecrackers for New Year's Eve, Chinese New Years, and 4th of July, even if they don't have proper permits.

Anyways, my friend did have the proper permits and so he built a firecracker tower and tied it to his mailbox. Version 1 was too tall and unstable so we decided to shorten it by 3 feet. What you see here is the shorter version as the firecrackers begin blowing up.

As you can see, there is a lot of red firecracker paper all over the street. It took a team of 6 of us about 30 minutes to clean it up completely.

The best part of the firecracker chain is the end when a ball of densley packed firecrackers explode in such rapid succession that it sounds like one continuous tearing explosion.

I think the point of all of this is to scare away the bad demons and bring in good luck for the year. I am not exactly sure, but it sure was fun! Ahhh...culture!

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Golf. It's a hard job, but someone's gotta do it. The other day I went to the Pearl Country Club for a golf tournament for a local non-profit organization. Fortunately, the trade winds were back, blowing away all the volcanic vog. Unfortunately, the winds were gusting up to 35mph making it all but impossible for my already severly limited "golf skills" to be of any use. At least it was a nice day.

One of the hole-in-one prizes was a brand new car. On the par-3 16th hole, I got my chance. Not that the outcome would have been different, but the wind blew my ball off course and I didn't even come close.

But it didn't matter because it was all for a good cause and I got free food so I was happy.

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Today I decided to go hiking on the Aiea Loop Trail. The last time I went there was on a school field trip sometime in the mid-70s. The Aiea Loop Trail is probably most known for the WWII airplane wreckage visible from the trail. But decades in a rainforest have taken their toll on the plane and it is now little more than a piece of sheetmetal (unless I was looking at the wrong thing). That was a little disappointing. But it did not diminish the relaxing quality of a hike in the mountains on a crisp cool morning.

view of Pacific Ocean from Diamond Head side of trail

By the way, here's a piece of trivia to file away in your memory banks. Aiea, a suburb of Honolulu, is the only city in the United States that is spelled with only vowels. Hopefully this bit of information will come in handy to you someday.

Perhaps the biggest change since the last time I hiked here in the mid-70s is the view of the H3 Freeway. This freeway wasn't around back then as it opened in 1997. For a while, it was the most expensive interstate in America per mile at $1.3 billion until Boston's Big Dig took that honor. From the east facing slopes of the trail, the H3 Freeway can be seen winding up the valley connecting Aiea to Kaneohe on the windward side of Oahu. If you ever visit Hawaii, I recommend driving on the H3 from Aiea to Kaneohe in the morning while the sun is rising. The view is spectacular!

H3 Freeway visible from east side of Aiea Loop Trail

It took about 2 hrs to walk the 5 mile trail. We saw edible fruits along the way, but played it safe and didn't eat any of them. The Aiea Loop trail is a pretty easy trail but there are other more scenic trails around the island. Still, it was fun and I felt happy and accomplished when we were done. 

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After a hard week of work, many Hawaii workers enjoy the tradition of Pau Hana. Pau Hana literally translates to "done with work". Most people celebrate pau hana on Friday to kick off the weekend. But you can do it whenever you want. One popular pau hana locacation is the Mai Tai Bar at Ala Moana Shopping Center. There's usually a live Hawaiian music band and pitchers of beer for just $6. Now that I think of it, I never saw anyone actually drink a mat tai there. For those who want to do the tourist thing and order a mai tai, I am sure they can make one for you. Most of the people in early evenings are tourists or family people. Later in the evening more singles show up and it can get a little crowded. Some people go for the cheap beer. Others go for the live music. And some go to people watch. But most people go there to celebrate the end of the work week and the start of the weekend.

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Hawaii's mild year-round weather make it an ideal place for golf. I am not really a hardcore golfer. In fact, I am so junk that I don't even consider myself a real golfer. But it's fun and relaxing so I jumped at the chance to go with some friends to the Clipper Course at the Kaneoha Marine Corp Air Base. They told me that it is a very windy but scenic course so I should bring a camera (and a lot of balls). Just as promised, I was treated to a beautiful and intimidating tee shot midway through the course.

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The famous Kilauea Volcano has been errupting since 1983. From time to time, lava from Kilauea reaches the ocean giving you a glimpse of nature at work. Recently, the fumes were so bad that local officials considered evacuating areas close to the volcano.

http://starbulletin.com/2008/04/09/news/story02.html#full

Under the right conditions, the volcanic haze (aka "vog") can reach Oahu. You can actually follow this trail if you fly from Kona to Honoulu. Because the air is usually so clean in Hawaii, the sunsets are usually just a beautiful gradient of orange and yellow. But the vog in the air scatters more light showing off more colors resulting in purplish sunsets. Here's the view from a building near Pearl Harbor.

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One of the fun things about a garage or white elephant sale is that you are sure to be taken back to years and maybe even decades past. So as I headed to a senior bazaar white elephant sale, I was excited to see what kind of aloha shirts I'd find.

The first shirt that caught my eye was a "reverse print" shirt that is still quite popular in Hawaii today. A reverse print shirt is one where the shirt is manufactured with the "inside out" side of the fabric on the outside giving it a faded look. I grew up in Hawaii in the 80s and for as long as I can remember, the reverse print shirts have been a part of Hawaii's fashion. Though perhaps not quite as popular today as it was back in the 80s and 90s, many men still go to work in reverse print shirts today. I think the shirt below is from the 80s.  

faded reverse print Hawaiian shirt

As I dug deeper into the pile of Hawaiian shirts, braving the dust and old-clothes smell, I found many shirts that look like they're from the 70s when polyester was king. Another thing that struck me is that many of these Hawaiian shirts contained Asian-inspired designs. Interesting. Maybe one reason is that the 1970s were a boom-time for Japanese tourists in Hawaii. As a kid in Hawaii, our stereotypical image of a tourist was a Japanese male wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt with a giant camera.

I am not sure if these shirts are from the 70s because I was too young to really get out and about during those years and don't remember what people wore. But they look like 70s to me.

Smooth, shiny, polyester 1970s Hawaiian shirts

The best thing about these shirts is that I got them for $1 each. That's right! A buck apiece! Many people I showed these shirts to say they like the shiny brown one on the right. Anyways, I look forward to finding more shirts and adding them to my collection.

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Entertaining friends at a house party can be fun, especially if you have a theme. One theme that's sure to have a bit of an exotic feel is a Hawaiian luau. In the coming weeks, I will show you how easy it is to make key dishes for your very own luau. If I am ambitious enough, I might just host my own luau party, complete with Hawaiian food, music, and decorations.

If you want to impress your guests with your culinary prowess, kalua pig is the way to go. Not only is it very easy to make, it's also got a high yum factor. Unlike poi, lomi salmon, and other dishes that people either love or hate, almost everyone likes kalua pig. For those of you who have health concerns about eating kalua pig, this recipe contains cabbage. So you're actually eating a salad AND pork together in the same dish.

KALUA PIG (serves 6-8 people)
Ingredients:
Pork butt chunk - 4 to 6 lbs
Head cabbage - 1/4 head or to taste
Hawaiian salt - 2 to 3 tablespoons
Liquid smoke - 2 tablespoons
Aluminum Foil
Roasting Pan

The traditional way of cooking kalua pig is an underground oven full of hot rocks. For those of you who don't have a large underground rock oven in your back yard, here's how you can make it in the comforts of your own kitchen.

First, take the pork butt and score it all over. Rub Hawaiian salt and liquid smoke on all sides. Place the seasoned butt onto a piece of aluminum foil and put the chopped cabbage on top and around the pork. If you are a hardcore carnivore, you can skip the cabbage. Wrap it so that no steam can escape. Place it in a roasting pan and roast in an over preheated to 450 degrees F. Cook at this temperature for 1 hour, then reduce the heat to 400 degrees F and cook for another 3-4 hours or until done. Shred the butt and add more Hawaiian salt if necessary.

That's it! Easy, huh?

 

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