Sunset from Ala Moana Beach
It is sometimes hard to capture a good sunset picture.
This was taken one evening from Ala Moana Beach, and was taken at the right moment.
Hawaii Five-0 – “HQ”
February 6, 2011 By 1 Comment
So much to learn about this CBS number one series filmed in Hawaii. The Star Advertiser did a feature on a look inside the headquarters (which they refer to HQ on the show) that you see on television. Read about the set of the show: House of ‘FIVE-O’ from the Star Advertiser, Sunday, February 6, 2011, Today Section.
Hawaii 5-0 Film Crew T-shirt (back view)
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Ukulele Lesson: Picking & Strumming (video)
March 26, 2010 By 2 Comments
Besides Hawaiian clothing, few other things are associated with Hawaii as much as the ukulele. By the way, the Hawaiian ukulele is actually based on a small guitar-like instrument that was brought to Hawaii by immigrants from Portugal. But that’s another story. The ukulele has always been a popular instrument because it’s small and relatively simple to play…although I can’t play it because I am what you would call “untalented”. Interest in the instrument has also risen in recent years because of the music of the late artist Israel Kamakawio’ole, especially his renditions of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and other songs.
Bruce Shimabukuro, a Hawaii ukulele musician and instructor, was kind enough to give us a free lesson on picking and strumming at Ukulele Pua Pua, and ukulele shop at the Sheraton Waikiki. His picking and strumming lesson is not meant to teach you how to play but rather simply to give you a starting point before you dive in and sign up for lessons and buy your own ukulele. I actually saw him perform live a couple times before and can tell you that he is both talented and quite the entertainer. And he also explains things very clearly. In fact if you ever visit Hawaii, I suggest you to Ukulele Pua Pua at the Sheraton Waikiki and see if you can get one of his free lessons just to see if the ukulele is something you’re interested in.
We hope you enjoy watching and listening to this video. Please give us your feedback as we hope this is just the first in a series of ukulele video lessons we will produce over the next few months.
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AlohaFunWear.com Goes to Japan
March 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment
In February 2010 we visited Japan and checked out Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto. The main goal (aside from some business stuff) was to enjoy the food and drink and try some new stuff. The highlights of the trip were the feeding of deer in Nara and monkeys at the Arashiyama Monkey Park.
The night before we went to the monkey park, there was a news story on TV that showed monkeys-gone-wild in another monkey park in Japan as they brazenly attacked and stole food from kids and vendors. Pretty scary stuff. So as we hiked up to the monkey area in Arashiyama, I was in Maximus mode, ready to unleash hell on any aggressors if necessary. Luckily (for me) the monkeys were very tame. Besides, there were so many of them that they could have easily overwhelmed us. As long as you don’t look them in the eye (yes, they actually warn you about this in writing), you should be okay. The monkeys seemed happy playing with rocks, dirt, and each other (in ways we can’t show you in the video).
But I guess the funnest part of the trip was going to all the different bars and restaurants. If you love sake, nihonshu in particular (my favorite beverage), you owe it to yourself to find some of the many sake bars. Even the sake that is available in Hawaii (and the US) seemed better in Japan, possibly because of the freshness. Even the cheap sake (1000 yen per bottle retail) was really good. You can’t find sake that good at anywhere near that price in the US. At least, I haven’t.
The other thing I observed was the popularity of Hawaii products in Japan. This is no surprise, of course, but it was interesting to see vendors selling apparel and hula skirts in the middle of winter. Hula is actually huge in Japan with far more people practicing the art than in Hawaii.
Anyways, the trip was a success. It was fun and productive. This was my 5th trip there since 2003 and I never get tired of it. Hopefully we’ll get to go there again sooner rather than later.
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Nice Sunset! What a Way to End the Day
February 2, 2010 By Leave a Comment
It’s probably pretty apparent by now that I like sunsets. I also like sunrises, btw. While filming this sunset, I noticed that most of the beach-goers pretty much stopped talking and just stared out over the waves at the setting sun. It was almost like they were in a trance. A group of Japanese tourists sat together and ate musubis (rice balls) very slowly, almost as if they were tasting the sunset with each and every bite. It’s hard to explain but I could see it in their eyes that they had some sort of spiritual connection to what they were witnessing. Either that or they were just tired. Or stoned. There was also a guy who stood and never flinched even when a woman in an aggressive bikini walked right in front of him. That was impressive. She probably felt rejected. Anyways, none of that is shown in this video. The video is simply meant to make you feel like you are sitting at the beach on a warm tropical evening taking in the sights and sounds of a perfect ending to a typical day in paradise.
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“From Here to Eternity” Beach
December 1, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Halona Cove Beach on the Makapuu coast is also known as “Eternity Beach” because it was the beach in that famous scene in “From Here to Eternity”. It is actually nestled under a lookout point overlooking that beach, Blowhole, and Sandy Beach.
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Big Wave Surfing at Waimea Bay
November 26, 2009 By Leave a Comment
Waimea Bay is home to the famous Eddie Aikau Big Wave Surf event. Although they try to have the event every year in December, they can only do it if the waves are big enough and the conditions are rideable. The last time it was held was back in 2004. Here are a few clips we took from the street along Waimea Bay. The beach and roads were jam packed with spectators and tourists but it was well worth it.
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Morning at Sunset Beach
November 26, 2009 By Leave a Comment
One of our favorite early morning hangouts is Sunset Beach on the famous North Shore of Oahu. It’s a far drive (by Hawaii standards, anyway) of about 40 miles from Honolulu but the reward is having the beach mostly to oneself. It’s hard to beat sipping good coffee on a beautiful morning on the beach. Even better (or worse, depending on how you look at it), I still get 3 bars on my mobile phone so I don’t miss any important emails from the office.
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Sunrise at Sandy Beach Park
August 31, 2009 By Leave a Comment
In all of my years in living in Hawaii, I have never once set foot on Sandy Beach. As a kid, I did all my body boarding at other places like Bellows, Sand Island, Waikiki, Waimanalo, etc. Sandy’s is famous for its powerful and dangerous shore break and is not someplace that the inexperienced should mess around with. That didn’t stop then candidate Barack Obama from squeezing in a body surfing session during his vacation in Hawaii during the 2008 presidential campaign.
So last Friday I decided to finally go to Sandy’s. But rather than risk injury by body surfing, I played it safe and just filmed the sunrise. It’s not as exciting as conquering the shore break, but it is certainly better for my health. Actually, Sandy’s is not dangerous all the time, but like all beaches, it pays to be respectful of the power of the ocean.
This video was shot at about 6:15 am and as you can see, there were already a few people playing in the water and just walking around and enjoying the morning sunrise.