Category Archives: Life on the Island

Daily life on Oahu.

`Iolani Palace

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Today I put on my tourist hat and went to visit `Iolani Palace. Our apartment building is surrounded by all of these historical buildings/landmarks/churches/etc…`Iolani palace is one of them. It sits about two blocks from where we live and is the only royal palace in the United States.

A little history: The palace was completed in December of 1882 and King Kalakaua and Queen Kapi`olani officially moved in. The palace became the center of social and political life for the Kingdom of Hawaii. After the king’s death in 1891, he was succeeded by his sister Queen Lili`uokalani. A few years later, a provisional government was formed and the monarchy was overthrown — organized and carried out by the American Minister to Hawaii and a group of Hawai`i born citizens of American parents, naturalized citizens and foreign nationals. In 1895 Queen Lili`uokalani was arrested, forced to sign a document relinquishing her claim to the throne and suffered through a trial resulting in a $5,000 fine and imprisonment in an upstairs bedroom of `Iolani Palace. In 1993, President Clinton signed a Congressional resolution formally apologizing to the Native Hawaiian people. In the 1960s, after years of abuse and neglect as a government headquarters, restoration began on the palace. In 1978, `Iolani Palace opened to the public.

`Iolani Palace from the corner of King and Richards Streets.
`Iolani Barracks
They made you wear booties inside to protect the floors.
The main staircase constructed of koa wood with kamani and walnut trim.
Blue Room
Blue Room Chandelier
State Dining Room
Dining Table
Butler Area/Pantry
Throne Room
Thrones
Crowns
Throne Room Chandelier
Upper Hall
King Kalakaua’s Bedroom
Library
The king was very interested in technology and had a phone in his library to call various places on the grounds.
Library Table
Music Room
View from the Upper Parlor to King’s Street
The room where Queen Lili`uokalani was imprisoned. She was allowed interaction with one lady in waiting.
The windows in the imprisonment room were frosted on the bottom.
Queen Lili`uokalani made this quilt while imprisoned.
Middle Bedroom
All of the ceilings were beautiful.
Queen Kapi`olani’s Dressing Room
I think this was a bathroom area in the basement.
Kitchen Dishes
More Kitchen Dishes
Different Badges
I don’t remember what this was…something royal :).
Mom this is for you!
More Pretty Dishes
Front of `Iolani Palace
On the walk home as I was getting poured on, I looked up and there was a rainbow so low to the ground. I have never seen anything like it!

Recycled Glass Necklace

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When we went to Haleiwa on Saturday, we roamed around the charming boutiques and art galleries the town had to offer. My favorite was Kai Ku Hale. The store has tons of one-of-a-kind home decor, jewelry, art and a million other random gifts. Their focus is on environmental friendly products…which I find really unique. The necklace below (compliments of Josh) is made out of recycled glass and it’s making it’s big debut tonight at dinner!

Recycled Glass Necklace

Honolulu Harbor

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Today I took a quick walk to Honolulu Harbor, Pier 8. It was sunny (but still incredibly windy), so I wanted to get outside at least for a bit. Its about a half mile from where I live and an easy walk through downtown. I sat and watched these beautiful tropical fish swim around the harbor and also saw an eel!

Star of Honolulu pulling into the Pier.
Somewhere in there is the eel.
The fish all vying for a piece of bread someone threw in the water.

Shrimp, Açaí & Rainbows

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Today Josh and I headed to the North Shore to have some shrimp and an açaí bowl. The first stop was Giovanni’s for some shrimp scampi with a side of hot sauce. It’s so incredibly good…I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get there since I’ve moved. Giovanni’s is a shrimp truck parked on the side of the Kamehameha Highway on the north shore of Oahu. There is a pavilion where you can sit, eat and enjoy the day (or get rained on on days like today). There are also a few other stands and stores around the area with BBQ corn, smoothies, shave ice, frozen yogurt, clothes, jewelry…the list goes on. Today we stuck to the famous shrimp only.

Waiting in line…apparently everyone else wanted some Giovanni’s today too.
Amazing shrimp scampi..thank you Josh for my two hot sauces!

 

After we stuffed ourselves with shrimp, we continued north to Haleiwa to wander around and eat an açaí bowl. I like to think of it as a slightly healthier version of ice cream. The bowl consists of a frozen blend of açaí berries, strawberries, blueberries, bananas and rice milk topped with granola, apple bananas, coconut flakes and drizzled with honey. SO GOOD! You order at a cute little stand/hut and then enjoy your treat on the small patio in the back. We also wandered around the different shops and boutiques and then headed home.

You order at this stand.

 

Towards the end of our time in Haleiwa, and on our drive home, we saw either three different rainbows or a few different versions of the same rainbow. I have never seen an entire rainbow end to end until today. It. Was. INCREDIBLE. I was completely in awe at how brilliant the colors were. One of them (the last picture below) I could literally see where both ends hit the ground. If you look closely at the last picture, you can see the beginnings of a double rainbow on each end. I will say, this state continues to amaze me and am incredibly thankful to be continually experiencing amazing things such as this!

First rainbow we saw as we were leaving the açaí bowl hut.
The second rainbow (or a different version of the original) as we were leaving a few of the shops.
You can see the double rainbow here pretty well. This was driving down the road on the way home.
A full rainbow end to end. You can see the double rainbow on both ends. The picture does not do the beauty of this rainbow justice.