The Real Mai Tai of Honolulu, Hawaii

On this 2014 trip I travelled courtesy of Hawaii Tourism, the Oahu Visitors Bureau, and the Outrigger Waikiki.

The evening after I changed Honolulu hotels, moving into a room at the Outrigger Waikiki, I decided to go for a walk through the adjacent resorts.

As I was researching Honolulu bars for an article, I was aiming to enjoy an authentic Mai Tai at the aptly-named Mai Tai Bar at The Royal Hawaiian.

But by night it's easy to take a wrong turn and end up at somewhere quite different.

So when I finally found the bar I thought I was looking for, it turned out to be somewhere else altogether: the Rum Fire bar at the Sheraton Waikiki.

Oh well, that's a mistake anyone could make. And the Rum Fire was a fun place to hang out, with cool red and black decor and a lively crowd on that warm evening.

And though it was the wrong bar, I did get to enjoy an authentic Mai Tai; in fact, far more authentic than the sweet concoctions that usually go by that name.

Barman Joe, who was born in the Philippines and had lived in Hawaii from age 7, happily made up an off-menu version of the Mai Tai, which I jotted down thus in my notes:

1944 Mai Tai
Lime juice
Orgeat / Rock candy syrup
Triple sec
Meyers rum
Parrot Bay rum

Not sure about the amounts of each, but Joe said this was basically the original 1944 Trader Vic's Mai Tai. I liked it a lot - it seemed much less sweet than other versions I'd sampled, especially since the only juice in it was lime.

This Mai Tai tasted like a real cocktail, not sweet alcoholic fruit juice. What a revelation. I knew Trader Vic was tougher than that.

I had to ask for it - and it cost US$18 - but it was well worth it. Though it spoiled me permanently for any other Mai Tai. Thanks Joe.

Tiki in Honolulu

I recently rewrote an article about Tiki culture in Honolulu, but the extended version of the article ended up unused, in favour of the original shorter piece.

So I've adapted it into a blog post about the Tiki phenomenon and where to encounter it in the Hawaiian capital. Enjoy...

Grimacing masks! Flaming torches! Replica volcanoes!

If you saw these items around your restaurant table in the 1950s or 1960s, as a waiter arrived with a tray of Mai Tai cocktails, you were deeply immersed in the cultural craze known as Tiki.

When American soldiers returned from World War II, they brought with them an experience of Polynesian culture, encountered when they'd shipped through Hawaii and other islands on the way to the Pacific war.

Curiosity about the region had also been fuelled by San Francisco's World's Fair of 1939, which featured Pacific nations.

The time was ripe for Tiki, a style which took inspiration from Polynesian culture but turned it up to 11.

First Donn Beach opened his Don the Beachcomber restaurant in Hollywood in the mid-1930s, followed by Victor Bergeron's Trader Vic chain which spread throughout California and beyond.

Tiki's visual aspects were its most memorable, not least its leering statues and masks, including giant Easter Island heads. But there was always more to it than that.

Tiki culture also spawned a line of cocktails - the most famous of which being the Mai Tai.

Less well remembered is Exotica, a music genre which was part of the Tiki trend. It's a form kept alive by bands such as The Waitiki 7, based in Honolulu.

“Tiki is going through its third revival,” says Waitiki 7 bass player Randy Wong.

“Tiki was essential from 1954 to 1968, then got so big it became a cliché. There was a revival in the mid-90s, starting with the group Combustible Edison in Boston.

“It died down again, then around 2003 Tiki festivals started picking up steam.

“Now we have the Internet so everyone’s like ‘Oh my god, there are other people interested in this, not just me.’ It’s commercial, it’s tribalism.

“People take it different ways,” he adds. “Tiki can be playful, but there’s room for Tiki to be taken seriously.

“Personally, I’m more interested in the old-fashioned Exotica.

“You see the fellows who are more into the darker side, the voodoo side of Tiki. There’s a crowd who are into rockabilly, tattoos and biking. There’s the burlesque side. There’s room for all of those interests within Tiki.”

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Places to experience Tiki design and drinks in Honolulu:

• La Mariana Sailing Club (50 Sand Island Access Rd, lamarianasailingclub.com)
• Tiki’s Bar and Grill (2570 Kalakaua Ave, tikisgrill.com)
• Arnold’s Beach Bar (339 Saratoga Rd, arnoldswaikiki.com)

Disclosure: On this trip I travelled courtesy of Hawaii Tourism and the Oahu Visitors Bureau.

Street Art of Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

After a media tour in and around Honolulu in February 2014, I spent a few extra days doing my own research in the Hawaiian capital.

One of the places I wanted to see more of was Kaka'ako, an industrial suburb near Waikiki which is gradually being transformed into a residential district.

In the process it's gained a reputation for interesting bars and restaurants, and street art. Much of the latter is produced as part of the annual Pow Wow Hawaii festival, and stays on the walls of Kaka'ako for at least a year.

I loved the street art I'd glimpsed to that point, so I returned to Kaka'ako on Wednesday 19 February and spent half a day walking around the area centred on Auahi and Cooke Streets, taking in the works.

Here's a selection of what I saw that day - the good, the odd, and the downright weird:

 

Disclosure time... On this trip I travelled courtesy of Hawaii Tourism and the Oahu Visitors Bureau. I was also hosted by the Outrigger Waikiki and Outrigger Reef resorts.

Are Museums Boring?

We were talking dull museums on Twitter today.

It started when someone enthusiastically endorsed this article from the UK's Daily Telegraph, "21 Reasons Why I Hate Museums".

Aside from wondering what had happened to articles structured around a mere five or ten points, I found myself in two minds about this piece.

On one hand, I kind of agree with its main point.

Too many people trudge around museums while on vacation out of a sense of duty, regardless of whether the exhibits are engaging or they're interested in its subject matter.

To my mind, this approach is a hangover from the 19th century idea that travel should always be educational and instructive.

By contrast, I've been in cities where I've read a description of the major museums, and then decided I'd rather go on a walking tour or hang out in an interesting neighbourhood.

I can't speak highly enough of this latter strategy, if thought and research is applied to the selection of neighbourhood. I've had some great articles result from simply exploring in this manner (eg my day hanging out in St Roch, Quebec).

On the other hand, I feel the Telegraph article is unfair in dismissing museum visits altogether.

For my money, there are two key elements which must be in place for a museum visit to be a highlight of your holiday:

1. The museum has a creative and stimulating approach to addressing its subject;
2. The subject is something you're personally interested in.

The second point is really the most important, as a personal interest in the subject matter will excuse a fair bit of dodgy presentation.

As proof that interesting museums exist (at least for me), here are twelve accounts I've written of museums which were personal highlights because the above elements were in play:

• Schindler Factory Museum, Kraków, Poland.
• Pick Salami & Paprika Museum, Szeged, Hungary.
• Museum of Old & New Art (MONA), Hobart, Australia.
• Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka, Ballarat, Australia.
• Grammy Museum, Los Angeles, USA.
• La Chascona, Santiago, Chile.
• Spirit Museum, Stockholm, Sweden.
• Neon Museum, Las Vegas, USA.
• Shangri La, Honolulu, USA.
• Million Toy Museum, Ayutthaya, Thailand.
• Sandringham Museum, UK.
• Discovery Pavilion, Quebec City, Canada.

What about you? Which museums moved you, and why? Leave a comment below.

Walking Honolulu

I arrived in Hawaii on Wednesday, a day or so ahead of a media tour of the island of Oahu. With time to kill the next day, and with the weather not too humid, I decided to walk from my hotel in the Waikiki area to the 'Iolani Palace in downtown Honolulu.

According to Google Maps the route was only four kilometres (about 2.5 miles), though everyone I mentioned my walk to later sound amazed at the concept - Honolulu is one of those cities where everyone drives everywhere.

It was an interesting route, a cross-section of different ages and uses of the Hawaiian capital.

Starting from the clustered hotel area and marina you can see in the photo below, I crossed the Ala Wai Canal and walked the length of Ala Moana Park, a long stretch of green between the water and a busy road:

Google Maps then dog-legged me through twists and turns, until I saw this impressive building and realised I was on the edge of Kaka'ako, the industrial area which is gradually being transformed to residential:

And yes, that wall really is flat. It features the last Hawaiian monarch, Queen Lili'uokalani, and the legendary surfer Duke Kahanamoku.

Kaka'ako is peppered with street art of this kind, most as commissions for the annual Pow Wow Hawaii Festival which was on while I was visiting.

Walking along a stretch of Queen Street lacking sidewalks and lined with single-story automotive workshops, I dodged cars while seeking out murals. I even caught a few in the process of being painted:

Finally, crossing Cooke Street, I was propelled abruptly into another aspect of the city: Historic Honolulu.

I passed an early 19th century church, with fascinating graveyard attached; a Hawaiian king's tomb; and the very attractive Honolulu City Hall in the Spanish Colonial Revival style I'd previously associated with California:

Then I reached my goal: the 'Iolani Palace, built for King Kalakaua between 1879 and 1882 in a style uniquely known as American Florentine:

Only two monarchs ruled here. Just over a decade later, in 1893, Queen Lili'uokalani was overthrown in a coup; and Hawaii was annexed by the USA in 1898.

Nowadays it's a museum which can be visited on tours. Despite its demoted status, however, it remains the only former royal palace on US soil.

I liked this part of Honolulu, with its grand architecture and sense of "What if" history. It was an interesting contrast with the high-rise pleasure zone of Waikiki, and the grit of Kaka'ako.

Then I caught a bus back to my hotel, and had a Mai Tai.

Disclosure time... On this trip I travelled courtesy of Hawaii Tourism and the Oahu Visitors Bureau.