Lei - 3

HAWAI‘I FOR THE LGBT TRAVELER

HONOLULU’S SHOWSTOPPING DRAG CULTURE

TAKING REFUGE AT HAWAI‘I RETREATS

BLAZING TRAILS ON O‘AHU HIKES

Lei are the traditional Hawaiian symbol of love, friendship, appreciation, and aloha.

For generations, the people of Hawai‘i have used lei to express these emotions, strengthen relationships, and give thanks. Lei is an annual LGBT travel publication that welcomes, entertains, and gives thanks to Hawai‘i travelers before, during, and after their journeys.

PUBLISHER

Joe V. Bock

JOE@NELLAMEDIAGROUP.COM

EDITOR

Lisa Yamada

LISA@NELLAMEDIAGROUP.COM

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Ara Feducia

DESIGNER

Michelle Ganeku

MANAGING EDITOR

Anna Harmon

PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR

John Hook

PHOTO EDITOR

Samantha Hook

EDITOR-AT-LARGE

Sonny Ganaden

COPY EDITOR

Andy Beth Miller

MASTHEAD

CONTRIBUTORS

Andy Beth Miller

Martha Cheng

Le‘a Gleason

Kelli Gratz

Travis Hancock

Harrison Patino

Coco Zingaro

IMAGES

Bryce Johnson

Jonas Maon

Ryan Moss

IJfke Ridgley

Megan Spelman

SPECIAL THANKS TO:

Debbie Anderson

Daniel Chun

Scott Dodd

Page Gaylord

Jack Law

Daniel Nahoopii

Thomas E. Roth

Kelly Sanders

Eric Von Platen Luder

PRESIDENT & CEO

Jason Cutinella

GROUP PUBLISHER

Mike Wiley

MIKE@NELLAMEDIAGROUP.COM

MARKETING & ADVERTISING DIRECTOR

Keely Bruns

MARKETING & ADVERTISING EXECUTIVE

Chelsea Tsuchida

OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

Jill Miyashiro

JILL@NELLAMEDIAGROUP.COM

VP BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Gary Payne

JUNIOR DESIGNER

Mitchell Fong

CREATIVE & MARKETING COORDINATOR

Carrie Shuler

DESTINATION

MARKETING HAWAII

Debbie Anderson

PUBLISHED BY

NELLA MEDIA GROUP

36 N. HOTEL ST., SUITE A HONOLULU, HI 96817

NELLAMEDIAGROUP.COM

© 2016–2017 by Nella Media Group, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted without the written consent of the publisher. Opinions are solely those of the contributors and are not necessarily endorsed by Nella Media Group.

ONLINE

PUBLIC PET

Jordan Lee and Matthew Guevara have debuted a new shop, The Public Pet, and it is perfect, whether or not you have furry four-legged friends. Read more about the couple’s urban pet boutique in the Honolulu neighborhood of Kaimuki.

DONOR

Nearly three years ago, Noah Ha‘a Solomon was confronted with a life-changing decision when his good friend Blaine Tolentino asked if he would consider being a sperm donor for her and her partner, Leah Caldeira. Read about the decision the Hawaiian language educator and hula dancer made to become a father.

EXPERIENCE

While you are in Hawai‘i, do you want to party? Stay fit, yoga-style? Eat out? Experience the culture? Any of the above? Then check out our monthly event guide on leiculture.com.

KEEP UP WITH US ONLINE:

WEBSITE: LEICULTURE.COM

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TWITTER: @LEICULTURE

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ON THE COVER:

COVER IMAGE SHOT BY JOHN HOOK AT THE HONOLULU MUSEUM OF ART.

Welcome to Lei,

and

mahalo for reading. It’s hard to believe this is our third annual issue. Time flies, and so do our lives: It’s only too easy to get caught up in the daily routine of eat, sleep, work, repeat.

In this issue, we explore the many ways that Hawai‘i calls us to leave the mad rush of life, if only for a few days of reprieve. We hope to entice you to visit our island home so you can do just that. If you’ve already been here, you understand how Hawai‘i inspires healthy living and hearty enjoyment.

The following pages include events and activities for the frequent flyer or the firsttime visitor. Our writers will take you both on and off the beaten path for the best the islands have to offer. Journey with us as we explore hikes that traverse breathtaking vistas and retreats that offer a serene escape to the countryside. Discover stories that define Hawai‘i’s culture, from its unique cocktail history to its showstopping drag culture, and celebrate chronicles of inspiration from those who have found a way to live what they love. For these entrepreneurs, who are surrounded by the deep blue Pacific Ocean, yearround balmy weather, and an abundance of aloha, success couldn’t be any sweeter.

I’d also like to take this opportunity to invite you to join us for Honolulu Pride. After the hugely successful 2015 Honolulu Pride, newly managed by the Hawai‘i LGBT Legacy Foundation, the storied festival is well on its way to becoming a leading international Pride event. Its 2016 date, on October 22, allows visitors more time to plan for the trip, fewer conflicts with other Pride destination events, and greater off-season travel opportunities than the previous summer dates.

For more information about any of the above, or to stay in touch, visit us online at leiculture.com and sign up for our monthly newsletter. And if you happen to make the trip to Hawai‘i, please share your experiences with us! We hope to see you soon.

Aloha, Joe Bock Publisher @joebock @leiculture leiculture.com

LETTERS OF ALOHA

Message from Governor David Ige

On behalf of the people of Hawai‘i, aloha and welcome to the readers of Lei magazine.

Throughout the state, there are many experiences that await your exploration. From sandy beaches and lush rainforests to fiery lava flows, visitors have a variety of options to choose from as they set out to discover our islands’ unsurpassed natural beauty. This variety comes alive in our charming small towns and exciting resort areas offering visitors an array of experiences, from cultural activities to shopping and sightseeing, as well as world-class dining.

What truly makes our islands special is the “aloha spirit,” embodied in our people. It is a philosophy of sharing and taking care of one another and the environment. Aloha in its purest form means kindness, unity, patience, and respect.

In Hawai‘i, we believe in fairness, justice, and human equality. We value every member of our ‘ohana (family), and it is in the spirit of aloha that we welcome you to join us in paradise.

With warm regards, David Y. Ige

Governor, State of Hawai‘i

Message from the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority

Aloha readers of Lei magazine! The Hawaiian Islands await you with open arms.

Hawai‘i takes great pride in its longstanding history of diversity and openness, and the goodwill we offer to all guests who visit and stay with us.

Being in Hawai‘i is an amazing, revitalizing experience physically, spiritually, and emotionally. Our six travelable islands—O‘ahu, Kaua‘i, Maui, Moloka‘i, Lana‘i, and Hawai‘i Island—share remarkable attributes appealing to everyone, but the uniqueness of each can only be appreciated through exploration.

We encourage you to come and embrace the beauty, wonder, and magnificence of a destination forever linked to a legacy of Hawaiian culture, harmony, and hospitality—a place renowned by people everywhere for an expression no other destination can call its own: aloha spirit.

Enjoy the magazine, its stories and photos. Then, come visit and let us welcome you to our island home.

With warmest aloha, George D. Szigeti

President and CEO, Hawai‘i Tourism Authority

BLAZING TRAILS

TEXT BY Travis Hancock IMAGES BY Ryan Moss

A brief guide to O‘ahu hikes

For me, it’s the first deep breath when the ironwood trees start. Freshly filtered through pine needles, the air restores me as it fills my lungs. In that moment, I forget my bills, my bad ankle, the coffee I burned that morning, and instead find myself forgiving the invasive ironwoods’ tendency to snuff out biodiversity on island ridges. I’m alright; the world’s alright.

Every hiker seeks something like this, a high that goes beyond the altitude gained through climbing. For many, it’s an itch to escape the city; for others, it’s a summit’s commanding vantage; and for some, it’s purging toxins through sweat.

Most of Hawai‘i’s trails were first trod by Native Hawaiians seeking things, too. When kanaka maoli hunted deep into valleys for pigs and rare birds, collected water from mountain springs, warred along cliffs, and ascended to sacred peaks, they wove through nature on well-worn paths. In 1866, a reporter named Samuel Clemens found such a trail when he visited Kona on Hawai‘i Island—a trip that inspired the works that would cement his literary identity as Mark Twain.

Traversing the lower flanks of Mauna Loa on horseback, the author penned a description befitting many a Hawai‘i hike: “The trail passes along on high ground ... and usually about a mile distant from the ocean, which is always in sight, save that occasionally you find yourself buried in the forest in the midst of a rank tropical vegetation and a dense growth of trees, whose great bows overarch the road and shut out sun and sea and everything, and leave you in a dim, shady tunnel, haunted with invisible singing birds and fragrant with the odor of flowers.”

OPENING IMAGE BY John Hook

It’s not often that Twain’s biting humor goes slack-jawed, but maybe this was his sought-after thing, his itch: a space that could blunt his cutting wit. Although exoticist passages like these inspired waves of visitors to head for Hawai‘i’s hills, too, the mountains have remained relatively preserved.

What follows is a brief introduction to a range of state-sanctioned hikes on the island of O‘ahu. While finding your maximum elevation, malama ka ‘aina—“care for the land”—to help keep it intact for the next generation.

KA‘ENA TRAIL

Farrington Highway leads to O‘ahu’s westernmost tip from both the west and north, terminating on either side of Ka‘ena Point State Park just a few miles from the furthest point. Where they end, flat trails pick up the route. These hikes are long (six or seven miles round-trip) and sometimes muddy walks that parallel the ocean, with plenty to see along the way. The area is known for its protected albatross nesting areas, and the endangered monk seals and green sea turtles that often come ashore. Look back from the tip to see the island’s north and west sides at the same time. Hawaiians believed the place was a jumping-off point where souls left one world for the next, following the setting sun. If you plan to stay for the spectacular sunset, be sure to pack a flashlight.

KEALIA TRAIL

On the northern drive to Ka‘ena Point, behind Dillingham Airfield, lies the switchback-heavy Kealia Trail. A true bun-burner, Kealia is less about the destination than the journey (just under three miles round-trip). As you zigzag up the hillside, you’ll see the North Shore unfold and the ocean stretch out before you. Keep a lookout for splashing humpback whales in winter months. There’s a covered picnic table at the top where you can snack and rest your glutes.

KULI‘OU‘OU RIDGE TRAIL IN HONOLULU

KULI‘OU‘OU RIDGE TRAIL

If you’re closer to Honolulu and want a hike with a bit of fight in it, Kuli‘ou‘ou Ridge Trail is for you. Though it’s somewhat steep at times, and, of course, muddy (embrace it already!), this 4.5-mile round-trip trek is one of the shortest of any routes to reach a Ko‘olau mountain range summit. Due to its proximity to the city, the trail can get busy—but it’s always been: Hawaiian bones found in area caves date back about a thousand years.

NAKOA TRAIL

Don’t be surprised if the lyrics of “Welcome to the Jungle” start playing in your head as you wind along this loop trail that takes you deep into Kahana Valley on the island’s east side. Lined with ferns, pandanus, ti, guava, bamboo, ‘ohi‘a, and, of course, the trail’s namesake koa trees, this 2.5-mile, mostly flat trek is easily one of the lushest you’ll find on island. There are even swimming holes tucked in the back of the valley—the perfect way to cool down and wash off the mud.

HIKING TO WAIMANO FALLS, LOCATED IN CENTRAL

O‘AHU IN AN AREA KNOWN AS PACIFIC PALISADES

MOUNT KA‘ALA TRAIL

For some, hiking is about conquering, and nothing short of the highest peak will do. These types will relish the trail to O‘ahu’s 4,025-foot-high roof, Mount Ka‘ala. Starting deep in the remote Wai‘anae Valley, the seven-mile round-trip hike covers terrain as physically arduous as it is biologically diverse. Among its fauna are several rare native species, including tree snails found only on O‘ahu, and happy-face spiders that few ever glimpse. Those who reach the large, spherical radar building at the trail’s summit will certainly feel a sense of accomplishment, but may find that feeling tempered by the dense clouds that can shut out the views. Take your time to savor the final stretch, which follows a creaky wooden catwalk through one of O‘ahu’s last endemic shrub forests.

Starting from a residential area in central O‘ahu known as Pacific Palisades, this mixed-terrain, moderate hike, shown above (three miles round-trip), is one of the quicker ways to see waterfalls and enjoy freshwater swimming holes. Getting it on a day with optimal conditions requires a compromise: Waimano Falls needs a lot of rain to really gush, and that means mud. For advanced hikers, there’s a marked offshoot path onto Manana Ridge Trail that takes a seven-mile (each way) ridgeline all the way to the summit of the Ko‘olau Range, from which you can see unparalleled views of Kaneohe Bay.

MANANA TRAIL TO WAIMANO FALLS

TAKING REFUGE

TEXT BY Andy Beth Miller & Kelli Gratz

While inner accord can seem unattainable when glimpsed from the daily milieu of modern life, these three retreats on the Big Island, Maui, and O‘ahu let you check out of reality and check into peaceful surrounds to rediscover the bliss of balance.

IMAGES BY Megan Spelman & John Hook

KALANI HONUA OCEANSIDE RETREAT IN PAHOA ON HAWAI‘I ISLAND

KALANI HONUA OCEANSIDE RETREAT

Pahoa, Hawai‘i Island

With the ocean mere steps away, there’s a natural ebb and flow to life at Kalani Honua Oceanside Retreat. Translated as “harmony between heaven and earth,” Kalani’s moniker is reflective of the positive energy that radiates from the Puna district oasis.

Here, there is a strong sense of community. This can be experienced every day at the open-air cafeteria, where retreat guests are invited to enjoy wholesome meals sourced on the grounds and served by volunteers alongside one another, or via an empowering group yoga workshop open to all. Kalani’s no-frills guest accommodations, which range from simple lodges to private cottages, emphasize the outdoors, with bright windows and billowing sea breezes (no air conditioning is found—or needed—here), encouraging guests to get out and mingle.

Richard Koob opened the retreat in 1975 with Earnest Morgan, his partner who passed away in 1992 during the couple’s 22nd year together. “Morgan and I envisioned

Kalani Honua as being … a balance of physical and spiritual, manifesting through immersion in nature, culture, wellness, and sustainable living practices,” Koob says. Today, the Big Island educational retreat continues to fulfill that legacy, empowering guests to achieve their inner bliss through group workshops, sabbaticals, and bodywork.

A big part of the experience is the community. Long before Koob moved to Big Island with Morgan, he had learned the value of “the village” in Minnesota, where he was raised by a large, loving family. “Our family of eight, plus grandparents and several aunts and uncles a block away, was like a mini village within the Iona village of 365 people that I grew up with,” Koob recalls. “I remember all the families and organizations as essentially collaborating for the betterment of all. Kalani is quite similar, immersed in nature, cooperative, although much more cosmopolitan, with visiting students, faculty, and volunteers from around the world.”

Kalani is located at 12-6860 Kalapana-Kapoho Rd. For more information, visit kalani.com.

LUMERIA MAUI RETREAT

Makawao, Maui

In 2009, Xorin Balbes, a legendary interior designer based in Los Angeles, set to work renovating a dilapidated building and reimagining the six acres of land it rested on in Upcountry Maui. He named the estate Lumeria. A dream of seclusion, this property is now one of east Maui’s top getaways, where guests stay in one of the garden- or ocean-view rooms or suites that are hidden away on historic preservation lands.

At this retreat, Balbes made a point of not providing televisions. Instead, guests are encouraged to take advantage of the lush grounds that he enhanced with an outdoor yoga platform, outdoor fire pits with seating areas, a saline swimming pool, and a sunken garden area that is used for martial arts, tai chi, stargazing, and gatherings. One can literally get lost wandering the property, and can easily escape for a couple of hours in a hammock or one of the property’s numerous meditation nooks. A self-proclaimed educational retreat, Lumeria offers multiple classes daily, including hula, meditation, and the Chinese healing practice of wild goose qigong,

which incorporates physical postures, breathing techniques, and mental focus to maintain health and increase vitality.

Walking through the retreat’s lobby, with its artfully restored framework and enchanting décor, it’s hard to imagine the space in its previous state. The building was designed in 1910 by Honolulu architect H.R. Kerr to house aging plantation laborers, and is the oldest wooden structure still standing on Maui today. Paintings, furnishings, and four-foot-tall amethysts, sourced from Tibet, China, Japan, and Indonesia, catch your eye in every direction.

While the retreat is now managed by Filament Hospitality Group, Balbes’ vision for it hasn’t changed. However, some new faces can now be seen on its mystical grounds. Among them are Evan Schauss, a renowned glass blower from Washington who creates beautiful glass sculptures on-site, and New Zealander Douglas Drummond, the new general manager.

Today, Lumeria serves the purpose Balbes always imagined for it, helping guests unplug, rest, and

rejuvenate their minds, bodies, and spirits. He explains it perfectly: “[It is] a place to inspire people to live their true life, and connect to their souls and to something authentic.”

Lumeria is located at 1813 Baldwin Ave. For more information, visit lumeriamaui.com.

KAHUMANA FARM RETREAT

Wai‘anae, O‘ahu

Amidst birdsong and rustling breezes, the lush grounds of Kahumana Organic Farm on O‘ahu’s west side hum with activity. Farmers working against the backdrop of the Wai‘anae mountain range tend to crops and provide vocational learning for volunteers and program participants contributing to the harvest.

When priest Phil Harmon and sociologist Frances Sydow founded Kahumana Community in 1974 under the name Alternative Structures International, they aspired to create such an intentional, collaborative community. Originally a group home in Makiki serving

adults with special needs, Kahumana Community has grown into an expansive, farm-based nonprofit. Today, it is located on four distinct campuses spread over 50 acres in Lualualei Valley, each serving a purpose such as offering transitional housing for the homeless, day programs for adults with developmental disabilities, a farm-to-school youth program, or a retreat center to aid guests in self-improvement and to provide an idyllic escape from the hectic everyday.

At this retreat and learning center, guests enjoy wholesome offerings from Kahumana Café (which is staffed by volunteer workers, and supplied with produce grown on-site), learn about organic farming, and attend customized yoga sessions during the day. When nightfall arrives, they head home to one of the farm’s two retreat structures, which—with their hexagonal shapes, natural wood compositions, and open, airy layouts complete with stained glass windows—are charmingly reminiscent of the treehouse design depicted in the Disney epic Swiss Family Robinson

Such whimsical aesthetics serve a deliberate purpose, Kahumana’s executive director Tom McDonald

KAHUMANA FARM RETREAT ON O‘AHU’S WEST SIDE

explains. “The architect and carpenter came from a Waldorf School mentality, which believes spaces and materials can be enlivened through design and aesthetics,” he says. “In order to heal or lead a holistically healthy life, the space you live in influences that, so the goal is to create a place of healing.”

So who may partake of these healing surroundings? All are welcome at Kahumana, says McDonald. “We are a place that celebrates diversity of all faiths, races, genders and orientations. Not only do we uphold diversity, we seek it out.” As guests nourish their souls with yoga classes offered several times weekly, feed their bodies with fresh farm-to-table food at on-site Kahumana Café, and wake up each morning satisfied by a restful night’s sleep, they are surrounded by a richly diverse community greeting each day together.

Kahumana Organic Farm is located at 86-660 Lualualei Homestead Rd. For more information, visit kahumana.org.

OVEREXPOSURE

TEXT BY Kelli Gratz

PORTRAIT IMAGE BY John Hook & IMAGES COURTESY OF Brandon Smith

Photographer Brandon Smith finds inspiration, and new life, in yoga.

At first glance, Brandon Smith is an all-American golden boy, a young, good-looking gay man with a successful career in photography and an incredible eye for capturing yoga poses. He has everything together, living the dream of owning his own business in Hawai‘i, while still having the time to enjoy the simple things in life like surfing and picnicking at the beach. But all of this is what he calls “a different life,” his ideal one. His existence hasn’t always been so picture perfect.

Smith had a difficult childhood. When he was 3 years old, his parents divorced. From an early age, he struggled with body image issues and understanding his sexual identity. Born and raised on O‘ahu, he graduated from Mililani High School, which “for a white, nerdy kid, wasn’t the best of environments,” according to Smith. “I couldn’t process being picked on and feeling weird at that age. I remember looking in the mirror and feeling really unhappy about how I looked.” He dabbled with marijuana and alcohol, and at age 21, he dropped out of Virginia Commonwealth University. He returned home to Hawai‘i, where for the next nine years, he became lost in a world of drugs, including methamphetamine. “I started having schizophrenic-type hallucinations,” he recalls. “First it was hearing my name, quietly in the distance. Then it started to evolve into voices that I knew … I lost the ability to trust everybody in my life.”

At his lowest point, Smith had lost his friends, his job, his apartment, and he weighed 40 pounds less than the healthy 175 he is now. It took one round of rehab, a relapse, and the betrayal of a friend he was in love with for Smith to realize that he needed to regain control of his life. The months of withdrawal and recovery that followed were some of the hardest times he has ever experienced. It was yoga—along with a few inspirational friends who introduced him to photography—that Smith says saved him. “Every time I had a moment of clarity, I would do yoga,” he says. “I eventually was able to hold onto it, and haven’t looked back ever since.”

Today, at 33 years old, Smith has been sober for three years and continues to fuse his passion for photography with his 16-year love of yoga, shooting images of brawny yogis amidst Hawai‘i’s dramatic landscape. “Right now, everything is just so fun for me,” says Smith, whose skin is warm and tan, having just had a beach shoot in Waikiki. “Photography is the first thing in my life that’s given me back everything I put into it.”

ADVENTURES OF TRASH MAN

TEXT BY Lisa Yamada IMAGES BY John Hook

The organically inspired installations of artist Maika‘i Tubbs invite viewers to take a second look at garbage.

In the alternate universe of Maika‘i Tubbs, nothing is quite as it seems. A diamond ring is, in reality, packing tape, intricate towers are Styrofoam containers, and willowy, woven clouds turn out to be plastic bags. The Honolulu-born artist has built a reputation for himself as being a bit of a “garbage guy,” as he is called by the docents at New York’s Museum of Art and Design, known for transforming ordinary, discarded objects into playful organic forms that mimic the natural world.

Tubbs dreamt up a world in which everyday objects can wield extraordinary potential when he was a child in the neighborhoods of Kailua and Kapahulu on O‘ahu. Here, the rambunctious youngster could often be found sitting in his driveway, staring at the sun for hours on end. “I always thought I had mutant abilities,” says Tubbs, who believed that the longer he sat, the greater the chance of unleashing his latent mutant power, like the kind he saw in his favorite Saturday morning cartoon, X-Men. “Don’t come any closer!” he would scream at his dad. “I might blow you up!”

Cartoons and comic books helped unleash Tubbs’ creative side when he began drawing the superheroes he had come to admire. While attending the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa for a BFA in painting, and later, Parsons The New School for Design in New York for his MFA, Tubbs daydreamed during lectures about using his mutant powers to vanquish a villain hell-bent on destroying his classmates. “If I could have any power, it would be invisibility,” Tubbs says.

Today, the 37-year-old artist resembles the animated Tasmanian Devil in both figure and form, with broad shoulders and strapping biceps, and a frenetic energy while creating artwork. It’s easy to imagine him as a sort of cartoon hero, saving the world from the evils of accumulation and overconsumption, two concepts he became familiar with at his grandmothers’ houses. “They were the first installation artists I ever knew,” says Tubbs of the family matriarchs, recalling their stacks of newspapers piled on the ground, or the plastic food containers collected neatly beneath the sink. “They were actually both really

organized with what most people would call clutter, or hoarding, and I do that sometimes.” Tubbs inherited this “clutter gene,” and the family encouraged his creativity. When he told his dad, a hulking football coach, that he was gay, his father’s reply was, “Well of course you are. You’re an artist.” Says Tubbs, “I couldn’t have asked for a better response.”

Now living in New York City, where mountains of trash pile upon curbs daily, Tubbs continues to address society’s obsession with accumulation, and its byproduct, waste—doing so as inconspicuously as possible, as any masked crusader would. During his residency at the city’s Museum of Arts and Design, Tubbs paired geodes made of trash collected from the museum with gelatinbased “sea foam” for Stepping Stones, his installation that addressed how pollution affects coastlines, which was displayed on the museum floor. “I love doing stuff on the ground because people are pretty unaware,” he explains. “I had a lot of lectures about elevating my work as an art thing and putting it on a pedestal, but I just kind of want it to exist like it would.”

The inspiration for the rocks, which he also showed at the Honolulu Museum of Art Spalding House’s Plastic Fantastic? exhibition, was spawned from Tubbs’ 2014

discovery of what ecologists named “plastiglomerate,” a geological term that refers to masses of wood, coral, sand, seashells, and other organic matter bound together with melted plastic, which were first found off the coast of Hawai‘i Island.

For his part, Tubbs aims to keep the trash that he can out of landfills, and to use materials that easily break down within his work. “I’ve always been fascinated by how Native Hawaiians can make stuff with everything, and how they didn’t have a real word for trash before colonization,” he says. “Everything had a purpose and you could use it in so many different ways.” Reflecting on his own repurposing of materials, Tubbs says, “With art, people want to buy things that will last longer than them and appreciate in value, but even when [something] degrades, that’s kind of the beauty in it.”

Tubbs’ work is on display through October 3, 2016 at Honolulu Museum of Art Spalding House’s Plastic Fantastic?. His upcoming exhibitions include an installation at the IUCN World Conservation Conference at the Honolulu Convention Center from September 1–10, 2016, and at the Landesmuseum Hannover in Germany from September 29, 2016–February 26, 2017. For more information, visit maikaitubbs.com.

HONOLULU IS BURNING

A half-dozen clubs host drag queen shows throughout Honolulu on any given weekend. Here, a look into the showstopping culture.

TEXT BY Sonny Ganaden IMAGES BY Jonas Maon

Fusion Waikiki, or “Fusions,” as most locals call it, is a mainstay of the drag queen scene in Honolulu, serving liquor and hosting patrons until 4 a.m. since they opened in 1990. On Friday nights, starting at 10 p.m., Fusions is locally famous for its Gender Bender Lip Gloss Review, a showcase of both veteran and newcomer show queens. The review can be considered traditional: Most performances are about the reveal, when a queen coyly emerges from the velvet curtains at the beginning of her song, dazzling in an outfit that matches the musical track to which she undresses and lip-syncs. Under black lights and fueled by a two-drink minimum, the club takes revealing DIY outfits to the outer realms of relational aesthetics. Hosted by Leikia Williams, the review is a laugh riot, with frequent jokes about duct tape, genitalia, transgender identity, and debauchery.

The night I visit is a send-off for crowd-favorite Bucky Stun Guns, who is taking a month hiatus to prepare for the upcoming Universal ShowQueen Pageant. Held annually in May, the pageant has become the Pacific’s premiere drag competition since its inception in 1984. Spending her weekdays as a meter reader for the Honolulu Board of Water Supply, Stun Guns occasionally trades her blue collar for white rhinestones at Fusions. She has also performed with tours on the U.S. mainland and locally at luaus, weddings, and every other conceivable corner of Hawai‘i. This night, during her second performance at Fusions, she saunters in a white gown and chandelier earrings to Madonna’s “Take A Bow” as a mix of visitors and locals gleefully dole out bills. “The mainland has more festivity than our clubs,” she says after her performance, while accepting encouragement from patrons for the forthcoming pageant. “But we’re pretty competitive out here.”

In Honolulu, like in American media, drag has become mainstream. Any fan of RuPaul’s reality competition television series Drag Race could explain how the careers of Madonna, Channing Tatum, Lady Gaga, Tyler Perry, as well as shows like Lip Sync Battle and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, have lifted liberally from the styles and performances of drag culture, the kind of panoply that was expertly displayed in the documentary Paris is Burning , which followed the drag ball culture of New York City in the early to mid 1980s. It was during that same era when philosopher Judith Butler coined the term “gender performance,” writing that gender is “an identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts,” and that it “is instituted through the stylization of the body and, hence, must be understood as the mundane way in which bodily gestures, movements, and enactments of various kinds constitute the illusion of an abiding gendered self.”

BUCKY STUN GUNS, LEFT, PERFORMING AT FUSION WAIKIKI

All this talk of socio-political analysis is boring once you hit the club. In Honolulu, drag culture has been a force in local entertainment and identity for at least half a century. Most of the clubs have been, or historically have been located, in Waikiki and in Chinatown, situated in the heart of the Pacific city’s downtown. The Glades Project, a 2015 documentary by director and producer Connie M. Florez, excellently outlines the late 1960s to 1970s period. The Glade Show Lounge, or The Glades, as it became known, was a late-night club and show place in Chinatown where outlandish drag performances were created, which were later adopted by emerging luau shows for tourists. During that era, as the dazzle of drag was appropriated for visitor entertainment, Honolulu drag clubs and performers were victims of the violence and intimidation familiar to that of the U.S. mainland. Such tyranny included draconian laws that required performers to wear “I’m a boy” buttons, and stalking directed at performers and the trans community that frequented the scene. Despite this, the Glades was world-renowned for its scintillating, professional shows.

The world has since become far more accepting. In Honolulu’s Chinatown, the club Scarlet has reinvigorated the neighborhood’s drag roots. Two years ago, celebrity fashion designer and club owner Traver Rains met Hawai‘i television and radio host Lanai Tabura, who was on a mainland comedy tour. “He said, ‘I know this spot that would make a great gay bar,’” Rains remembers of meeting Tabura. “And that was it. We saw the place and got to work.” The club was inspired by New York City parties, the artistry of Rains’ friend and collaborator David LaChapelle, and Rains’ fashion company, Heatherette, which takes its design cues from outlandish drag balls.

Incorporating those influences, Scarlet is an explosion of fun, with its constant rotation of new deejays, appearances by celebrity drag performers, and themed party nights. A side area next to the club’s dance floor has become the Pineapple Stage, where colors, sounds, and a sequined, surfing mannequin come roaring to life nightly, as if a Waikiki convenience store just exploded onstage.

Scarlet’s Saturday night show, Scarlet Fever, does not disappoint. Applying the level of rigor seen on RuPaul’s Drag Race, the show is more modern vaudeville than academic gender performance. And honey, do these queens perform. At promptly 10 p.m., the lipsyncing explosion begins with a newly choreographed ensemble routine and several group sequences that have performers sashaying around the club. Acting as emcee, Rains wears a trademark cowboy hat, sensible heels, loud pants, toned obliques, and a perfect smile. “We’ve managed to bring nearly 200 performers here in the short time we’ve been open,” Rains says. “These girls usually stop in a town and are out, but here, they stay and get treated to the Hawai‘i experience. They leave obsessed and want to come back.”

Bucky Stun Guns will have ample competition at the Universal ShowQueen Pageant from Jerrica Benton, the current crown holder. Watching Benton’s solo numbers during Scarlet Fever, one would think her heels are made of military-grade steel and carbon, considering the stress they withstand as she twirls and pops perilously near the lip of the stage. Afterward, the

expansive club practically throbs, packed with every version of partier in the Aloha State. Arguably, this Chinatown destination has become the best place to dance in the islands.

Since its opening, Scarlet’s ambiance has expanded local tastes. “I’ve seen a change in plenty of the boys that have come here since we opened,” Rains says. “Now they’re showing up much more like themselves, in some heels and eye shadow, ready to dance.” The charismatic entrepreneur is also opening a restaurant adjacent to Scarlet, and has plans to expand the club’s popular Thursday night amateur drag competition, Tropical Fish.

Long before drag blew up the spot in this diverse city, there were already entertainers and night shows. But the islands’ famous luaus and evening stage attractions owe significant credit to the garish, expertly created outfits and performances at The Glades. And the fun of a modern night out in this Pacific metropolis owes a wink and a nod to Honolulu’s current drag renaissance.

EVERYBODY HAVE FUN TONIGHT

TEXT BY Kelli Gratz IMAGES BY Jonas Maon

Wang Chung’s karaoke bar in Waikiki rocks the scene thanks to its owner, Danny Chang.

The 1980s band Wang Chung took its name from the Chinese term for the first note of the Chinese musical scale, though the bassist said that “it means whatever you want it to mean.” When the band interjected the phrase into the lyrics of its 1987 hit “Everybody Have Fun Tonight,” the lingo became Generation-X shorthand for a wild night out. For the Waikiki karaoke club Wang Chung’s, the name is a metaphor for the experience, and like a mis-sung lyric, it sounds pretty close to the proprietor’s name, Danny Chang.

Befitting a karaoke entrepreneur, Chang is goofy, funny, and affable. On a typical Friday night, he flits among his hunky bartenders, who are stirring and shaking things up behind the bar, and the young professionals, couples of all ages, and amateur singers vying for the mic. Patrons enjoy plates of sliders, chicken “wangs,” and “flied” rice (Chang often spells things on the menu as if they are being read with a Vietnamese accent). The house-specialty Ho-Chi-tini, wordplay on the name of the Vietnamese Revolutionary leader Hô Chí Minh, is made with vodka and pandan, a fragrant herb found in Southeast Asia. After a few happy hours of these, the place practically becomes the Honolulu version of The Voice

Though Chang fits right in here in Hawai‘i, he is originally from San Francisco, California, where his parents found their version of the American dream after escaping from Vietnam as refugees. He graduated with a degree in engineering from University of California at Davis, and after, took a position as an industrial engineer for United Parcel Service. Working in and around airports, Chang was inspired to get a pilot’s license. So, when he moved to Honolulu in 2007 after his then-boyfriend was accepted into the William J. Richardson’s School of Law, he decided to go through the flight training. But he had always dreamt of owning his own karaoke bar, so when the lease for a nightclub in Waikiki became available, he halted his aviation ambitions just weeks after receiving his license to open Wang Chung’s.

Now seven years in business, this popular karaoke spot has grown from a tiny 300-square-foot venue to a spacious location inside Stay Hotel on Lewers Street. “The building we were in was going to be torn down, so we found a much larger space further down the street,” he says. His dedicated patrons followed. In just a handful of years, Chang has fostered a loving community from all walks of life. In fact, the reason he was able to open the “bigger wang” in the first place was thanks to a successful Indiegogo campaign that raised nearly $13,000 in 22 days.

As the night goes on and the room grows loud, it’s clear that Chang’s mission is to upend outdated norms, stay fresh with quality ingredients, and create an environment where anyone feels like a star. “The opportunity I have here is amazing. There’s so much you can do with business,” Chang says. “l used to say moving to Hawai‘i was the worst financial decision I’ve ever made. But now I’m glad I stayed because being away from my comfort zone really forced me to grow personally.”

Wang Chung’s is located inside Stay Hotel, at 2424 Koa Ave. in Waikiki. For more information, visit wangchungs.com.

ONE CUP AT A TIME

TEXT BY Le‘a Gleason IMAGES BY Megan Spelman

For Mike Longo and Rob Nunally, growing tea became a way to savor a new life on Big Island.

The land that Mike Longo and Rob Nunally call home overlooks Onomea Bay and the Pacific Ocean, with a view spanning to Hilo Bay. Since 1999, the pair have worked to make the sprawling coastal estate, which includes their hardwood house, into the gorgeous property and home that it is today. The lush locale has also become a base for their newfound life project: growing tea.

The concept for the business—which they named Onomea Tea—came about in 2003, when Nunally and Longo were sipping tea at home and contemplating what to do with their acreage. The purchase of the land four years prior had been the result of a whirlwind romance that began when the two met through mutual friends in California, and a year later, Longo, who had lived in Hilo prior, brought Nunally to the Big Island. Neither knew much about farming tea, but the Department of Agriculture was giving away seeds, suggesting this might be a good income crop for the climate in East Hawai‘i.

While many experts say that tea grows best at an elevation of about 3,000 feet, it turns out that tea happened to grow mighty fine down at sea level for Nunally and Longo. From only 40 quarter-sized, round, brown seeds, the couple spawned rows upon rows of fertile tea plants, which today line their sloping hillside.

“Tea is consuming. Our whole life, everyday, has something to do with growing the tea or maintaining the business,” Nunally says. “Growing something, harvesting this leaf, and producing a substance that is the number one beverage in the world is quite a fascinating process.”

ONOMEA TEA OVERLOOKS THE PACIFIC OCEAN, WITH A VIEW SPANNING TO HILO BAY

Nunally and Longo own and operate Onomea Tea with just a few extra hands, and follow a revolving schedule of picking young tea leaves, drying and processing them, packaging the final product, and then pruning the plants. Their tea varietals include plants originating in India—yabukita, yutakamidori, benikaori, bohea—along with several hybrids they have developed on their own.

Along with the varietal, the way the tea is grown can determine its flavor, including factors like the weather between each harvest. “When you pick tea, it’s always exciting,” Nunally says. “Each batch we make is a little unique, just like each plant.”

How the tea is processed also affects the flavor. It can be dried completely, or retain some moisture, which changes the outcome. In fact, green, black, and oolong teas can all be made with the same leaves; it is just a matter of how the leaves are processed. To make green tea, the leaves are heated to about 300 degrees, then “fired” in a large metal machine—somewhat like the drum of a clothes dryer—for 8 to 10 minutes, which stops the oxidation, so that the leaf remains green. To process black tea, oxidation is encouraged, so the leaves are rolled and left to sit, then dehydrated. Oolong tea is oxidized to a range that falls in between the two. For Onomea Tea, all of these processes take place on the farm, with leaves grown on-site.

In November 2015, the national competition Tea of the United States held its first awards contest, in Volcano. Out of 79 teas judged—representing 10 states—Onomea Tea won six awards: first and third place for green tea, second and third for oolong, and second and third for black tea. It was recognition that Longo and Nunally have perfected the process, from growing to finishing, and made it their own.

For the duo, tea in all its forms has become not only a lifestyle, but a life motto for taking things slow. “We really do have a kind of a charmed life,” says Longo, who likens overexertion to attempting escape from a Chinese finger trap—the more you fight, the harder it is to break free. “Effort is the enemy. Just relax and let things go. Put in your energy, but do it in a relaxed way. … Acceptance is what it comes down to.”

Onomea Tea offers tours and tastings, as well as tea processing classes, at its Big Island property. For more information about taking a tour or class, or to order tea, visit onotea.com.

PUT AN UMBRELLA ON IT

TEXT BY Martha Cheng IMAGES BY Jonas Maon & John Hook

Cocktails associated with the Pacific were born of one man’s imagination, and have a lasting legacy in Hawai‘i.

Tiki drinks may have been inspired by Hawai‘i and other “exotic” places, but they actually originated in the imagination of one man in Los Angeles: Donn Beach. It was Beach, an erstwhile bootlegger shut out of his restaurants on the U.S. mainland, who brought tiki to Hawai‘i.

As a young man, Beach traveled the world, including the islands in the Caribbean and South Pacific, and eventually landed on the shores of Hollywood. Born Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt, he changed his name to Donn Beach after the success of his restaurants. During Prohibition, Beach became a bootlegger and ran a speakeasy. When Prohibition ended, he went legit, opening the first Don the Beachcomber restaurant and bar in 1934. Thus, the tiki bar—a fantastic figment of Beach’s imagination—was born. This tiki theme was named after the first man on Earth in Maori mythology, and its kitsch décor often referenced culturally significant wooden sculptures of Polynesian gods.

In Hollywood’s Golden Age, Beach’s bar drew stars like Charlie Chaplin, Orson Welles, and Marlene Dietrich, who reveled in its faux Polynesian decor and rum cocktails— tasty spirits that evoked exotica with names like “Caribbean Punch” and “Hot Tiger’s Milk.” Back then, rum was cheap, there was plenty of it, and no one wanted to drink it. But Beach knew what to do: He created drinks by blending multiple rums, layering molasses-heavy dark rums with lighter floral ones, and combining them with fruit juices and flavored syrups of his own invention. They were the first drinks of their kind.

When World War II called Beach away (to Europe, where, ever the restaurateur, he ran canteens for the Army), his wife and business partner, Cora Irene Sund, otherwise known as “Sunny,” took over operations of Don the Beachcomber, expanding the empire to 16 locations. When Beach returned, the couple divorced, with Sund retaining control of the restaurants and the company name in the United States. In a case of imagined exotica looping back to its original source material, Beach brought his tiki restaurant vibes to Waikiki, Hawai‘i pre-statehood, in 1948. He even built a fantasy Polynesian village around the establishment: the International Market Place.

In its heyday, the International Market Place encompassed 50 shops, night clubs, and restaurants, three of which were owned by Beach, including Don the Beachcomber’s Treehouse, built high in a banyan tree and located at the center of the property. The Treehouse was a private place for two, complete with a bed, sarongs (should a couple desire to slip into something more comfortable), and a door that could be locked from the inside. In 1961, legendary surfer and swimmer Duke Kahanamoku opened a restaurant and club at the marketplace, called Duke Kahanamoku’s Supper Club. Here, Kahanamoku launched Don Ho’s music career while serving drinks like the Duke’s Pearl, a mix of passionfruit juice, honey, lime juice, and light and dark rums, with every fifth drink garnished with a real pearl.

Over at Don the Beachcomber, bartenders whipped up libations like the Vicious Virgin, Missionary’s Downfall, and Cannibal Grog. But the Mai Tai, which became the iconic drink of both tiki and Hawai‘i, was actually invented by Beach’s greatest rival: Victor Bergeron of Trader Vic’s restaurants. Bergeron had started his own restaurants after visiting Beach’s, opening his first establishment in Oakland, California. In 1941, Bergeron debuted a Trader Vic’s in Honolulu on Ward Avenue, near King Street. Like Don the Beachcomber’s sprawling empire, this bar also morphed into a franchise of 25 restaurants.

Tiki culture grew steadily in the ’50s, as imitators opened their own tiki bars, and soldiers returning from the war looked to relive their memories of Hawai‘i and the South Pacific at these watering holes. The post-war economy—and statehood—fueled travel to Hawai‘i, adding more even fire to the tiki craze.

But by the ’70s, the tiki trend had faded. The original Don the Beachcomber was paved over to make way for a parking lot, and tiki drinks—once complex concoctions made with fresh fruit juices—gave way to syrupy cocktails. In 1989, Beach himself was laid to rest in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu.

Now, decades later, bartenders looking to the past for flavorful inspiration are shaking and stirring tiki culture into the modern craft cocktail movement.

HILTON HAWAIIAN VILLAGE’S BLUE HAWAI‘I AND TROPICAL ITCH

O‘ahu

SCRATCH MAI TAI AT THE ROYAL HAWAIIAN MAI TAI BAR

The Mai Tai’s origin story is set in 1944, when Victor Bergeron mixed together aged rum, fresh lime juice, orange Curacao, rock candy syrup, and orgeat (almond syrup) at his original Trader Vic’s restaurant. He served it to friends, who as the tale goes, exclaimed, in Tahitian, “Maita‘i roa ae,” or “Out of this world!” And into this world came tiki’s iconic drink, forever to be copied, modified, and bastardized.

Bergeron himself tweaked the drink in 1953, when the Royal Hawaiian Hotel commissioned him to create drinks for its menu. It was there that he added pineapple juice to the Mai Tai. The Royal Hawaiian still serves this cocktail, now called the Scratch Mai Tai, a fruitier and sweeter concoction that swaps out the lime for pineapple and orange juice, but otherwise keeps much the same ingredients as Trader Vic’s very first Mai Tai.

MAI TAI AT HOUSE WITHOUT A KEY

Mai Tai purists gather at the House Without a Key, where the cocktail hews closely to the original recipe. This version is strong, with two rums in its base and a float of dark rum, but swirls of rock candy and orgeat syrups work to smooth any rough edges, as do the sunset views.

BLUE HAWAI‘I AND TROPICAL ITCH AT HILTON HAWAIIAN VILLAGE

Harry Yee, who served as Hilton Hawaiian Village’s head bartender for 30 years, created some of the tiki scene’s most iconic drinks. He was also the first to garnish the cocktails with paper umbrellas and Vanda orchids, and the first to stick a backscratcher in a drink of his own invention, aptly named the Tropical Itch. When he was starting out, Yee said tourists would ask for a “Hawaiian drink.” He didn’t have any on the menu, so he invented the Hawaiian Cooler, Guava Lada, Hot Buttered Okolehao, and Diamond Head. The Blue Hawai‘i and Tropical Itch are still served at the hotel’s bars to this day.

LA MARIANA SAILING CLUB

As the tiki trend faded, parts of disassembled bars found their ways to La Mariana Sailing Club: carved tikis from the Sheraton’s Kon Tiki Room, koa wood tables from Don the Beachcomber, fishing floats from Trader Vic’s. Here, the drinks are strong and deviate from the original recipes (the Zombie is nothing like Donn Beach’s invention), but soak in the atmosphere and the alcohol, and all will be ok.

ALL IN THE REFLEXES AT THE PIG AND THE LADY

Named for a line in Big Trouble in Little China, this cocktail, shown being made on the previous page, brings southeast Asian flavors into the mix. Ko Hana agricole rum, distilled in Kunia with locally grown sugarcane, is shaken with egg white, lime, basil, coconut milk, and crème de banane infused with Thai chilis, resulting in a frothy, fizzy, yet creamy drink that packs just enough heat to make your tongue tingle.

LOKELANI SWIZZLE AT KA‘ANA KITCHEN

New York mixologist Julie Reiner created the cocktail menu at Ka‘ana Kitchen, and it’s filled with refreshing and balanced tropical drinks, such as the Lokelani Swizzle, shown above, featuring layers of delicate flavors including white rum, rosehip, hibiscus tea, lime juice, and liliko‘i.

ROLLIN’ DOWN THE STREET AT MONKEYPOD KITCHEN WAILEA

At Monkeypod Kitchen, the Rollin’ Down the Street cocktail boasts a gin base, as opposed to tiki’s traditional rum roots. But the drink tastes as tropical as those concoctions from the 1940s, if not more so, thanks to the addition of housemade macadamia nut orgeat syrup, pineapple juice, lemon, and macadamia nuts.

Maui

SWEET SENSATIONS

TEXT BY Coco Zingaro IMAGES BY Bryce Johnson

This bakery owned by two couples infuses its nostalgic treats with island-inspired flavors.

Chris Spinosa admits that he’s a bit behind schedule as he dashes around a quaint commercial kitchen tucked behind a car dealership in Lihu‘e, Kaua‘i. It’s only 9 a.m., but he has been hard at work since 3:30 a.m., an indecent hour for most of us still snuggled in bed. The scones he’s busy arranging are so deliciously fragrant that my mouth begins to water. “Look at how even and beautiful they look,” says Spinosa’s business partner, Morris Wise, who is taking a break from his administrative duties.

Spinosa, Wise, and their respective husbands own and operate Ko Bakery (“ko” means sugarcane in Hawaiian). “All of our baked goods are what your mom would have made, but better. But don’t tell your mom that,” Wise jokes. Their menu is nostalgic—think pound cakes, cookies, and brownies—but with an island-inspired twist. Macadamia nuts and liliko‘i (passionfruit) are among the favored local ingredients.

“I worked a long time on a lot of these recipes,” Spinosa says. A professional pastry chef from Washington, D.C., he received formal training at CakeLove, the celebrated D.C. bakery that initiated the cupcake renaissance of the last decade. Prior to moving to Kaua‘i in 2011 with his husband, David Schwartz, Spinosa spent several years ideating his brand of sugary concoctions. “Some recipes come together quickly, some take forever,” he says. It took him roughly 50 tries to perfect the Ko Bakery brownies, while his specialty cakes featuring indulgent flavors like haupia lime (haupia is coconut cream pudding) were whipped up with far greater ease. Try the crispy cookies and you’ll understand what a perfect marriage of flavors he strives to achieve.

In 2013, Spinosa gladly joined sugar-coated forces with Wise, who now lends a hand in recipe development. A professional musician and pipe organ builder (the kind you see in cathedrals), Wise moved to Kaua‘i from California in 2009 with his husband, Byron Barth, and was already running a successful biscotti business, Hula Baby, when he met Spinosa. His recipes survive with Ko Bakery, which now produces Hula Baby biscotti featuring flavors like blue Hawaiian basil and chocolate coconut, great pairings for morning coffee.

The Kaua‘i Community Market on Saturdays at Kaua‘i Community College is the best way to find Ko Bakery products and to meet their makers. Aside from this, a number of retail outlets on the four main Hawaiian Islands sell Ko Bakery goods. The couples also run a catering business and create custom cakes—picture marbled cakes with caramel swirls, vanilla buttercream, and homemade caramel sauce made with Koloa Rum— for private events, weddings, and birthdays.

The bakery has won over hearts and bellies with products like “Sweet Pahoehoe,” a brioche with chocolate and cinnamon (an island version of a popular east coast dessert called Babka, and named after lava because of its signature swirls). They’re also committed to celebrating all of their customers, including LGBT couples getting hitched on the Garden Isle.

“We’re an inclusive business,” Wise says.

“Except for gluten-free,” Spinosa chuckles.

You really can’t match their macaroon, made with toasted coconut, Swiss meringue, and cake flour, which gives the small delicacy a unique texture and deep flavor. Though, I have to wonder, while savoring the pleasing smells permeating from the kitchen, how they manage to keep their waistlines from expanding along with their business.

“I have a sweet tooth, I will not deny it,” Spinosa says.

“Me too,” Wise agrees.

It probably helps that the owners are on their feet a lot, sometimes 10 hours a day, in order to keep up with demand. But having a bustling business and supportive community is not something you’ll ever hear them complain about. “The aloha spirit is still alive here,” Wise says. “We live in this awesome place that we don’t take for granted.”

For more information, visit kobakery.com. To place an order, call 808-212-9437.

SHAVE AND A HAIRCUT

TEXT BY Harrison Patino IMAGES BY Jonas Maon

Joe Randazzo of Phil’s Barber Shop looks to bring men into the modern age of grooming at his old-school shop.

Walking inside Phil’s Barber Shop, a cozy, 300-square-foot space tucked away in J Salon in the Honolulu neighborhood of Kaka‘ako, feels like stepping back in time. A record player fills the room with the crackling croons of Frank Sinatra, and the scents of talcum powder and aftershave linger in the air. The walls are adorned with old pomade advertisements, haircut charts from the 1950s, and other vintage haircutting memorabilia—including a framed pair of scissors and a straight razor that belonged to Phil Marsala, the shop’s namesake and owner Joe Randazzo’s Sicilian grandfather.

“Those scissors were sitting in my mom’s drawer since I was a child,” Randazzo says. “I remember seeing them and thinking, ‘What is this rusty old piece of junk?’”

When Randazzo was a child in Chicago, he certainly didn’t think that working with hair would be his calling. “My mom would take me to the barber when I was a kid,” Randazzo recalls. “I used to cry because he used a razor, and it hurt.” This aversion was assuaged when he started to accompany his sister on her hair appointments at a Vidal Sassoon salon in Chicago. “I was inspired,” he says. “I knew that was where I belonged.”

Randazzo started styling hair in 1981, where he was an assistant, stylist, and eventually, an art director for Vidal Sassoon in Chicago. Since then, he’s had a storied career that has seen him cutting hair in Tokyo, Hamburg, Berlin, and New York. He moved to Honolulu in 1999 for, among other things, the warmer weather.

But it was only recently that Randazzo was able to combine his passion for haircutting with his reverence for old-school barbers like his grandfather, with the opening of Phil’s Barber Shop. “His barbershop was where him and all the Italian guys would hang out in the neighborhood,” Randazzo says. “We hope [Phil’s] becomes more of the gathering place.”

Phil’s Barber Shop handsomely contrasts the minimalistic design and sleek feel that characterizes J Salon. Offering shaves, cuts, and trims in the vein of the classic barbershop model, Randazzo caters to Honolulu’s style-conscious men looking for a classic, refined look. “We’ve created an environment,” he says. “It’s a place where guys can come and feel comfortable.” And look dapper, of course.

Phil’s Barber Shop is located within J Salon at 210 Ward Ave. #101 in Honolulu. For more information, visit philsbarber.com.

A DAY AT THE MUSEUM

LOCATION:

PHOTOGRAPHY BY John Hook STYLED BY Bradley Rhea, Barrio Vintage

HAIR BY Jeff Bermoy, Citizen Salon MODELED BY Travis Flazer & Mark Pei

Honolulu Museum of Art

ON TRAVIS: SHORTS AND LONG-SLEEVE SHIRT

WORN AROUND NECK, J.CREW; LONG-SLEEVE BUTTON-UP, TED BAKER. ON MARK: WHITE T-SHIRT AND JACKET, ALLSAINTS; PANTS AND BELT, TED BAKER. WATCHES, MODELS’ OWN.

[ABOVE]

ON TRAVIS: SWEATER, T-SHIRT, AND BAG, J.CREW; PANTS, TED BAKER; VINTAGE SCARF TIED ON BAG, BARRIO VINTAGE. ON MARK: SWEATER, PANTS, AND WALLET, TED BAKER. WATCH, BRACELET, AND SHOES, MODELS’ OWN.

ON MARK: STRIPED TEE, J.CREW; PANTS AND VEST, TED BAKER. ON TRAVIS: SWEATER, ALLSAINTS; HAT AND SHORTS, J.CREW; BAG, TED BAKER. SHOES, WATCH, AND SOCKS, MODELS’ OWN.

ON TRAVIS: SHORTS AND LONG-SLEEVE SHIRT WORN AROUND NECK, J.CREW; LONG-SLEEVE BUTTON-UP, TED BAKER.

ON MARK: JACKET, ALLSAINTS; PANTS, TED BAKER. WATCHES AND SHOES, MODELS’ OWN.

[RIGHT]

ON MARK: PRINTED COLLARED SHIRT AND JACKET, ALLSAINTS; PANTS, J.CREW; BELT, TED BAKER. ON TRAVIS: SHIRT, J.CREW; JACKET, ALLSAINTS; PANTS, TED BAKER; BAG, BARRIO VINTAGE. SHOES AND SUNGLASSES, MODELS’ OWN.

[ABOVE]

[RIGHT]

ON MARK: SHIRT AND BELT, J.CREW; PANTS, TED BAKER. ON TRAVIS: LONG-SLEEVE SHIRT AND SHORTS, J.CREW; CAPE, TED BAKER. SHOES AND SUNGLASSES, MODELS’ OWN.

ON TRAVIS: SHIRT, ALLSAINTS; SHORTS, J.CREW; BELT, TED BAKER. ON MARK: LONG-SLEEVE SHIRT AND BELT, TED BAKER; SHORTS, J.CREW; SCARF, STYLIST’S OWN. SUNGLASSES, MODELS’ OWN.

FIND THESE LOOKS IN HONOLULU AT:

ALLSAINTS ALA MOANA CENTER, LEVEL 3, CENTER COURT; BARRIO VINTAGE 1161 NUUANU AVE.; J.CREW ALA MOANA CENTER, LEVEL 2, MAUKA WING; TED BAKER LONDON ALA MOANA CENTER, LEVEL 2, EWA WING.

WHALE OF A TIME

IMAGES BY Megan Spelman

Niki Buldun and Taelor Pleas tied the knot on the Big Island of Hawai‘i on their 10-year anniversary. Here is their love story, as told by Pleas.

Niki Buldun and Taelor Pleas

From: Sarasota, Florida

Married: January 16, 2015, Mauna Lani Bay Hotel and Bungalows

Why Hawai‘i: We went to Hawai‘i to get married because Paul Mitchell was flying us out there for its hair conference. We live in Florida, so we were waiting for Florida to pass equality, but we decided to have a destination wedding after I proposed to Niki in Poland in May 2014. With Paul Mitchell sending us out, we just felt it was the universe saying it’s time to get married. Funny enough, the day we were boarding the plane to fly to Hawai‘i was the day that Florida passed equality.

Advice for couples marrying in Hawai‘i: A destination location is the way to go. Whatever you can do to have as little stress as possible—like not having to make the dreaded list—is key. Hire the hotel’s wedding coordinator, and she will be your angel! She helped me with the flowers, cake, drinks, and she even recommended the best wedding officiant. It all went so smooth and seamlessly. Also, it was good that we were in Hawai‘i for two weeks before we got married. Our thought was that we wanted to get to Hawai‘i, relax, swim, tan, do the Paul Mitchell seminar, and end the amazing experience with us becoming wives.

Favorite wedding memory: Niki was waiting in the restaurant to walk across the bridge, and I was waiting on the other side in a cabana watching whale tails breach the water’s surface. Then the wedding team told us to start walking out toward each other. When Niki was crossing the bridge, a man was running, and when he saw Niki, he fell flat on his back like a turtle! Niki felt bad because she kept walking and didn’t stop to help him up. We all said her beauty knocked him off his feet.

Favorite thing about Hawai‘i: Hawai‘i was so much more than just pretty water and pretty beaches. Snorkeling with the turtles was an amazing experience, and watching whales breach was breathtaking. (The biggest animals in our Florida waters are “sea cows,” or manatees.) We went out on a catamaran and got to watch a mother whale teach her calf how to breach. Hawai‘i’s tagline should be, “If you have been there, then you know.” The energy, the people, the water is like nothing else in the United States. You have to go there to experience it.

SECOND HOME DREAMS

TEXT BY D.J. Dole

One minute you are enjoying the warm sun, the clear ocean waters, and the scent of plumeria, and the next thing you know, you are sitting on an airplane, flying back to reality and asking yourself, “How can I do it? How can I make Hawai‘i not just a vacation destination, but a home?”

Owning a home in the Hawaiian Islands is a dream for many people who visit Hawai‘i for the first time, or year after year. If you are one of them, whether you are looking to purchase a second home, invest, or relocate to Hawai‘i, now may be the perfect time to do so, thanks to low interest rates and an active local and vacation rental market.

Another thing contributing to the ideal timing is the number of corporations encouraging their employees to work from home. This not only saves such companies millions of dollars each year, but has also been correlated with increased employee productivity. Because of this, many people are moving to Hawai‘i, looking to balance their work and quality of life.

But the benefit of this move isn’t merely figurative. In Hawai‘i, home values are up, and they are only expected to continue to increase. In addition,

inventory in most areas of the state is down, and is expected to shrink further. On O‘ahu, the singlefamily medial price is now $725,000, up 5 percent for the first quarter of 2016. For about one of every eight homes that sold over $2 million, the bids were over the initial asking price. The pace of sales also increased 17 percent for single-family homes over the same time period.

Additionally, Hawai‘i is experiencing an increase in rental prices. In many areas of the United States, you may find yourself paying a higher amount for rent each month than you would if you were paying your own mortgage.

From the new condominium developments in Kaka‘ako on O‘ahu to the tranquil areas of Wailea on Maui, it may be time for you to have a little piece of paradise to call your own. Hawai‘i offers a great variety of environments and accommodations, a little something for everyone in a great range of prices. If you are at all interested, the first, and quite enjoyable, task is to learn about what the Aloha State has to offer.

D.J. Dole is a Branch Manager at the Hawai‘i Kai branch of Honolulu HomeLoans. For more information, visit honhl.com.

GUIDES

IMAGE BY IJfke Ridgley

EXPLORE THE SIGHTS, SOUNDS, AND SCENTS OF HAWAI‘I

Past mile marker 16 on Hana Highway is a sign for Ke‘anae, a picturesque peninsula well worth the detour. Rough waves crash on its rocky beaches, and the village found here consists of nothing more than a handful of houses hidden in the foliage and a beautiful rock-walled church built in 1856, shown here. Grab some shave ice or banana bread from Aunty Sandy’s, the only vendor in the area, and take in the dramatic cliffs and high surf of Maui’s north shore.

F

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HONOLULU RAINBOW FILM FESTIVAL

August 2016; Honolulu Museum of Art, 900 S. Beretania St. hglcf.org

This year marks the 27th installment of this LGBT film festival, one of the longest-running and celebrated festivals, featuring both national and international films.

MAUI PRIDE

September 30–October 2, 2016 mauipride.org

Pride Weekend on Maui celebrates, encourages, and educates all people on the positive diversity of the LGBT community.

IRONMAN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

October 8, 2016; Hapuna Beach State Park to Mauna Lani Resort ironman.com

Known for its grueling components including a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bicycle ride, and 26.2-mile run, the Ironman Triathlon has been challenging athletes from around the world since it kicked off in Kona in 1978.

HONOLULU PRIDE PARADE & FESTIVAL

October 22, 2016; from Magic Island to Kapi‘olani Park facebook.com/HonoluluPride

This event aims to bring together all of Honolulu’s Pride celebrations.

HAWAI‘I INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

November 2016; various locations hiff.org

Established in 1981, the Hawai‘i International Film Festival is dedicated to the advancement of cultural exchange and media awareness in the Pacific Rim, showcasing an average of 150 features each fall.

HAWAI‘I FASHION MONTH

November 2016; various locations hawaiifashionmonth.com

A month-long calendar of events to promote and elevate all aspects of Hawai‘i’s fashion industry, including design, manufacturing, education, art, and retail.

HONOLULU MARATHON

December 11, 2016; Ala Moana Blvd. to Kapi‘olani Park www.honolulumarathon.org

Whether you are a fast runner or a casual walker, with around 30,000 participants each year, this marathon is a great experience.

ARTISTS OF HAWAI‘I 2017

February 9–May 28, 2017; Honolulu Museum of Art, 900 S. Beretania St. honolulumuseum.org

In its 62nd year, this much-anticipated biennial juried show features the work of Hawai‘i artists.

GREAT ALOHA RUN

February 20, 2017; Aloha Tower to Aloha Stadium greataloharun.com

Since 1985, this 8.15-mile race attracts professional runners as well as parents with children, all taking part to support the local community.

HONOLULU AIDS WALK

April 17, 2017; Kapi‘olani Park, 2805 Monsarrat Ave. lifefoundation.org

Jog past landmarks such as Honolulu Hale and ‘Iolani Palace during this sponsored 3K walk or run while supporting those who live with HIV/AIDS.

LEI DAY

May 1, 2017; Queen Kapi‘olani Park, 2806 Monsarrat Ave.

Take part in the celebration of Hawaiian culture and the spirit of aloha, and enjoy the sweet smells of the flower lei, the symbol of the Hawaiian Islands.

UNIVERSAL SHOWQUEEN

May 2017; Hawai‘i Convention Center, 1801 Kalakaua Ave. universalshowqueenpageant.com

Established in 1984, Universal ShowQueen is one of Hawai‘i’s most prestigious female impersonation pageants, continuing to positively promote and enhance the art of female illusion and impersonation.

The Tchin Tchin! Bar

39 N. Hotel St. THETCHINTCHINBAR.COM

The newest offering from the restaurant group that brought you Lucky Belly and Livestock Tavern, this bar located in the heart of Honolulu’s Chinatown arts district offers an extensive selection of wines, artisan cocktails, and a small plate menu with Mediterranean flare.

Artizen by MW

Hawai‘i State Art Museum, 250 S. Hotel St., ground floor ARTIZENBYMW.COM

A spinoff of MW Restaurant, a Hawai‘i Regional Cuisine fine-dining establishment, this café tucked away inside the Hawai‘i State Art Museum offers contemporary fare for breakfast and lunch, with most dishes less than $10 and utilizing fresh, local ingredients.

Halekulani

Renowned for its legendary beachfront location and flawless hospitality, Halekulani is an icon, an unforgettable retreat in the heart of Waikiki. The hotel’s refined sophistication, idyllic Pacific Ocean views, and unsurpassed standards of service have made Halekulani the premier destination in Hawai‘i. What makes a stay at Halekulani truly unforgettable is the extraordinary service offered by the dedicated staff and its unwavering commitment to providing exceptional guest experiences. Guests of the hotel can partake in memorable activities with programs such as “For You, Everything,” which offers (when available) complimentary tickets to local museums, the symphony, or seasonal film festivals. Whether it’s the award-winning cuisine, the healing island traditions at SpaHalekulani, or the rare encounters that leave you transformed, Halekulani promises to live up to its name: “House Befitting Heaven.” Image courtesy of Halekulani.

Halekulani is located at 2199 Kalia Rd. For more information, visit halekulani.com.

WWII Red Light District Tour

This is a one of a kind tour that will take you on a respectful yet irreverent stroll through Chinatown, Honolulu’s former red-light district. The fun and charismatic guides offer a unique perspective, sharing real stories on the area’s absurd history during WWII. The colorful characters come to life and the listener gets a feel for what it might have been like to be a sailor on leave, a local trying to provide for family, or a “lady of negotiable affection” working in the brothels. Throw in some corrupt cops and the history of tattooing, and you’ve got an adventure that’s well worth the price of admission.

The Honolulu Exposed tour begins in front of the Hawai‘i Theatre, 1130 Bethel St. It runs Thursday through Monday at 9:30 a.m. or by appointment, and tickets are $30. For more information on how to purchase tickets, call 808-670-7090 or visit honoluluexposed.com.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts

With its breathtaking scenery and warm, gentle breezes, a Hawai‘i getaway is synonymous with pleasure—and romance. In addition to legendary vacations filled with sun, surf, shopping and nightlife, in Hawai‘i, opportunities abound for idyllic weddings and honeymoons. Each of Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ 11 hotels in Hawai‘i offers outstanding, authentic wedding, honeymoon, and vow-renewal experiences that capture the spirit of one’s special day. Starwood’s romance packages are as varied as the Hawaiian Islands themselves—combining the finest rooms and suites with popular amenities like breakfast, golf, massage, champagne, and sunset sailing adventures. The stunningly beautiful venues and unforgettable experiences include poolside and beachside ceremonies, grand celebrations and intimate dinners by candlelight. Image courtesy of Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort and Spa.

Get ready for paradise and start planning the perfect getaway at starwoodhotelshawaii.com/lgbt.

Oliver Men’s Shop

Kailua, 49 Kihapai St. Waikiki, The Surfjack Hotel, 412 Lewers St. OLIVERHAWAII.COM

Started by Parker Moosman, this carefully curated clothing and accessories shop in Kailua, along with its newly opened boutique in the Surfjack Hotel and Swim Club, bring high-quality items to men living a coastal lifestyle.

The Public Pet

3422 Waialae Ave. THEPUBLICPET.COM

Started by Jordan Lee and Matthew Guevara, whose two dogs, Lola and Pfeiffer, were the inspirations for their store, this urban pet supply store carries goods for dogs and cats from local designers like Roberta Oaks and Dee Oliva, as well as companies that align with the owners’ values and aesthetics, like Dog for Dog and Wildebeest.

Mono

2013 S. King St. MONOHAWAII.COM

Husband and wife team Dean and Cassy Song curate Mono, a boutique with accessories for the home or office, with a tightly honed eye. A minimalist design aesthetic with touches of wood and splashes of color set the mood, while an open, airy ambiance makes it easy to shop the eclectic housewares and modern gadgets within the space.

Hound and Quail

920 Maunakea St. HOUNDANDQUAIL.COM

Owned by Mark Pei and Travis Flazer, this curiosity shop in Honolulu’s Chinatown gives second life to a bizarre collection of antiques, including furniture, globes, medical supplies, anatomy models, and skeleton keys. The shop also plays host to monthly rotating events like art exhibitions and wine classes.

Hula’s Bar and Lei Stand

Hula’s Bar and Lei Stand, known internationally as Hula’s, is a legend among the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer audience everywhere, but is also known as the epitome of aloha for all. In 1998, Hula’s relocated to its current location on the second floor of the Waikiki Grand Hotel, offering spectacular views of Diamond Head and Waikiki Beach sunsets. Uniquely situated in Waikiki, and regardless of whether you’re looking for a beach bar, lounge, or nightclub, at Hula’s, guests will enjoy Hawai‘i’s best live talent, served with sumptuous beverages and food by Hula’s entertaining and attentive staff.

Hula’s is located on the second floor of the Waikiki Grand Hotel, at 134 Kapahulu Ave., and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. For more information, visit hulas.com.

Footprints of Life, ©Yayoi Kusama

Hawaiian Railway Society

91-1001 Renton Rd. HAWAIIANRAILWAY.COM

The only operating railroad museum in the state, the Hawaiian Railway Society restores and protects Hawai‘i’s railroading history, which begins in 1888, when King David Kalakaua permitted tycoons Benjamin Franklin Dillingham and James Campbell to begin work on the islandwide railroad system. Today, the society offers three weekend train rides: Saturday at 3 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

Kualoa Ranch

49-560 Kamehameha Hwy KUALOA.COM

Located about 24 miles outside of Waikiki, Kualoa Ranch and Private Nature Reserve offers an amazing Hawaiian experience for locals and visitors alike. With daily guided tours via ziplines, ATVs, horses, boats, jeeps, and buses, there are many ways to explore the 4,000 acres of history, beauty, and adventure.

Like a lovely Parisian street bistro, Belle Surf Cafe serves an assortment of crêpes both savory (salmon, bacon, chicken, and mozzarella) and sweet (strawberry, banana, Nutella, and honey), along with expertly prepared, small-batch specialty coffee.

Belle Surf Cafe

Maui Dragon Fruit Farm

833 Punakea Loop MAUIDRAGONFRUITFARM.COM

Tour the grounds of this 20-acre USDA-certified organic farm, which specializes in growing 16 distinct varieties of dragon fruit, and discover firsthand how organic practices create these exotic fruits.

Malolo Farm Proteas of Maui

Located on the slopes of Haleakala in Kula, Malolo Farm Proteas of Maui is the only certified protea propagator in the state, growing the world’s most unique varieties of the otherworldly bloom, and offering floral packages or rooted plants available for purchase.

Merriman’s Kapalua

A dream combination of natural beauty and locally sourced cuisine, Merriman’s Kapalua is an experience not to be missed for any foodie traveler. At the scenic location, which overlooks turquoise Kapalua Bay, diners take in panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean while enjoying house-made cocktails and dishes composed of 90 percent Hawai‘i-sourced ingredients. Chef and owner, Peter Merriman, known as the pioneer of Hawai‘i’s locavore movement, ensures the freshest line-caught fish, grass-fed beef, and Mauigrown produce are on the menu nightly. An ideal location for a special event, the restaurant’s oceanfront Point Lounge boasts live music, intimate fire pits, modern décor, and an ideal backdrop to soak in the Maui sunset and share the aloha spirit.

Merriman’s Kapalua is located at 1 Bay Club Pl. For more information, visit merrimanshawaii.com/kapalua.

Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop

820 Olowalu Village Rd. LEODAS.COM

Known for its freshly baked goods, Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop also serves up drool-worthy fare inspired by grandma’s home cooking, like chicken potpie and juicy burgers. Try the seared ahi sandwich for a fresh taste of the islands, and end your meal with the homemade banana cream pie.

Ali‘i Kula Lavender Farm

1100 Waipoli Rd. ALIIKULALAVENDER.COM

Enjoy tours through this Upcountry farm, which boasts more than 40 varieties of aromatic lavender, alongside lavender tea or coffee and lavender scones.

Hale Pa‘i Museum

Lahainaluna High School Campus, 980 Lahainaluna Rd. LAHAINARESTORATION.ORG

When the first missionaries arrived in Lahaina in 1823, they stressed to the royalty of Hawai‘i the importance of education and literacy for their people, and by 1831, Lahainaluna Seminary was established, as the first secondary school west of the Rockies. Today, on the campus of Lahainaluna High School, visit Hale Pa‘i, a printing museum that still stands where the first Hawaiian-language newspaper, Ka Lama Hawaii, was printed. Hale Pa‘i Museum is open Monday–Wednesday from 10 a.m.–4 p.m., and admission is free.

Makawao History Museum

3643 Baldwin Ave. 808-572-2482

Visitors to this one-room museum, which brims with old photos and artifacts, will discover rotating exhibits that explore the history and heritage of Makawao’s settlers, including Hawaiians, Chinese, Portuguese, Japanese, and Filipinos, as well as the town’s paniolo (Hawaiian cowboy) culture. Makawao History Museum is open Monday–Sunday from 10 a.m.–5 p.m., and admission is free (donations welcome).

Road to Hana

TEXT AND IMAGES BY IJfke Ridgley

It would be a mistake to think that the journey to Hana—52 miles of hairpin turns through dense jungle and along sheer cliffs—is more important than the destination. While Hana Highway offers enough roadside attractions and worthwhile detours to turn a two-hour car ride into an eight-hour adventure, it is precisely the difficulty of this journey that makes the final destination so special. Hana grew rapidly in the late 1800s when six sugar plantations were operating there, but many families moved away once the plantations closed after World War II. These days, Hana’s approximately 1,200 residents are committed to keeping the area largely unchanged. From pristine waterfalls and secluded beaches to charming roadside eateries and ancient Hawaiian sites, the stunning beauty of this rugged landscape give pause for a spiritual experience.

Haleakala National Park

Haleakala National Park is home to Maui’s tallest peak, Haleakala, whose graceful slopes can be seen from nearly anywhere on the island. The park, which is comprised of more than 30,000 acres of public land, includes Kipahulu Valley and ‘Ohe‘o Gulch. Haleakala, which means “house of the sun,” provided the backdrop for the Hawaiian legend of Maui, the Hawaiian demigod who lassoed the sun and whose many labors created the world.

For directions or more information, visit nps.gov/hale.

Farmers Markets

Hawai‘i Island has a slew of farmers markets to choose from. At the Hilo Farmers Market, browse farm fresh offerings and handmade crafts from more than 200 vendors on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The market is open on all other days of the week but is pared down to 30 vendors. Another great market to check out is the Waimea Homestead Farmers Market, where, every Saturday, you can find produce, crafts, and made-to-order hot foods like pies, tamales, French crepes, and more.

The Hilo Farmers Market is located at the corner of Mamo Street and Kamehameha Avenue. The Waimea Homestead Farmers Market is located at Waimea Middle School, 67-1229 Mamalahoa Hwy.

Show your commitment in gracious Hawaiian style with Martin & MacArthur koa eternity rings. Martin & MacArthur’s Hawai‘i craftsmen designed their rings featuring their private stock of radiant koa from the Big Island, and chose tungsten, the hardest metal in the world, for lasting quality. No polishing ever needed. More than seven styles to reflect each individual’s particular style. Guaranteed in your size.

Waimanu Valley

A journey along the Muliwai Trail into Waimanu Valley brings about a certain reverence and appreciation for unexplored parts of the island of Hawai‘i. It will be worthwhile to make your visit to any one of the nine camping spots on the Hamakua Coast last at least a couple of days. There are many magnificent waterfalls, like Wai‘ilikahi Falls featured in the image above, that start a couple thousand feet up from the top of the valley walls, as well as secluded beaches you more than likely will have to yourself. Note that camping here is by permit only.

Sig Zane

122 Kamehameha Ave. SIGZANEDESIGNS.COM

Sig Zane has been producing contemporary Hawaiian wear since 1985, sharing the knowledge and values of the Hawaiian people through designs that are wedded to place, nature, and culture. Sig Zane prints are inspired by the beauty of Hawai‘i’s flora and fauna, whether it is koa leaves on an aloha shirt or puakenikeni blossoms on a dress.

Paniolo Adventures

Mile 13.2, Kohala Mountain Road PANIOLOADVENTURES.COM

Experience open-range horseback riding with Paniolo Adventures at Ponoholo Ranch. The 11,0000-acre working cattle ranch, which stretches from mountain to ocean, offers the most spectacular views of the Kona and Kohala coastlines, Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa, Hualalai, Volcano, and Haleakala on the island of Maui.

Volcanoes National Park

You could spend an entire week at this national park that preserves two active volcanoes (Kilauea and Mauna Loa), but if you only have a couple hours, check out the Kilauea Caldera via Crater Rim Drive. Stop at the Jagger Museum, which overlooks the massive steaming crater, and journey to the center of the Earth at the Thurston Lava Tube, a massive 500-year-old cave that once pulsed with lava.

IFA.HAWAII.EDU/INFO/VIS

Catch the sunrise at the Onizuka Center for International Astronomy at Mauna Kea, located 9,200 feet above sea level. Trips to the 14,000-foot summit will require fourwheel drive vehicles, and be sure to call 808-935-6268 for current road conditions.

Mauna Kea

Lava Lava Beach Club

Whether you are exploring the beauty of Kaua‘i or the beaches of the Big Island, Lava Lava Beach Club sets new standards for island-inspired cuisine and creative cocktails, served up with a toes-in-the-sand ambiance. Its flagship location on Anaeho‘omalu Bay is at the legendary Waikoloa Beach Resort on Big Island, while its newest beachfront restaurant is located at Kauai Shores, an Aqua Hotel, in Kapa‘a, on the Coconut Coast of Kaua‘i. Locals and visitors love both beachfront destinations, where guests can dine, drink, celebrate, or simply relax in laidback Hawaiian-style luxury. Named World’s Best Beach Bars, Top 100 Best Al Fresco Dining in America, and Top Beach Wedding Venue, gay-owned-and-operated Lava Lava Beach Club is the place to be for romantic dinners or fun gatherings with friends and family. Whether you’re looking to nibble and nosh, sip and savor, or party and celebrate, Lava Lava Beach Club is the perfect beachfront dining experience. Lava Lava Beach Club Kaua‘i is located at 420 Papaloa Rd. and Lava Lava Beach Club Waikoloa on Big Island is located at 69-1081 Kuualii Pl. For more information, visit lavalavabeachclub.com.

Little Fish Coffee

3900 Hanapepe Rd. LITTLEFISHCOFFEE.COM

For a morning pick-me-up, head to Little Fish Coffee for its freshly baked sticky buns, croissants, and handbrewed Ka‘u coffee. Try the Midnight Marauder—four shots of espresso and sweetened condensed milk that will have you bouncing off the diversely decorated walls—and take advantage of the Wi-Fi, an amenity hard to come by in sleepy Hanapepe town.

JJ Ohana

3805-B Hanapepe Rd. JJOHANA.COM

For authentic Hawaiian jewelry, go to JJ Ohana, which houses a large jewelry selection, including a wide variety of rare Ni‘ihau shell jewelry that owner Gale Sagucio fashions into earrings, bracelets, and long, multi-strand lei.

Taro Ko

3940 Hanapepe Rd. (808-335-5586)

Although this quaint former plantation home has seen better days, the true beauty of this abode is that it’s a cache for arguably the island’s tastiest homemade chips, including taro, Japanese sweet potato, and regular potato varieties. Can’t decide on which one to buy? At just $5 a bag, a safe bet is purchasing all three, if they’re not already sold out, that is.

COMMUNITY RESOURCES

ALOHA BEARS

Whether you consider yourself a bear or an admirer, building strong bonds with the community, land, and sea are just some of the things offered by Aloha Bears. For more information, visit thealohabears.com.

BLAZING SADDLES HAWAII

This free LGBT country-western dance club meets every Tuesday at the Ala Wai Golf Course Clubhouse (except on the second Tuesday every month, when it is held at Scarlet) for line-dancing, two-step, and waltzing fun. For more information, visit blazingsaddleshi.org.

EXPRESSION!

Published monthly since 1998, this print and digital magazine inspires authenticity in the lives of Hawai‘i’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community. For more information, call 808-722-8027 or visit expression808.com.

EQUALITY HAWAI‘I

Equality Hawai‘i nurtures a discussion of relevant topics that are alive in the LGBT community in Hawai‘i today and aims to secure equal rights through work with the community as well as legislators. For more information, visit equalityhawaii.org.

GAY MEN’S CHORUS OF HONOLULU

Since 2012, Honolulu’s first openly gay musical organization has been providing Honolulu with men’s choral concerts in a wide variety of styles. For more information, visit gmcofh.org.

GREGORY HOUSE PROGRAMS

This foundation offers support for those who live with HIV/AIDS by providing a safe and healthy living environment as a form of health care. Gregory House is located at 200 N. Vineyard Blvd., Ste. A310. For more information, call 808-592-9022 or visit gregoryhouse.org.

HAWAI‘I LGBT LEGACY FOUNDATION

With a main goal of bringing the community together, this foundation empowers and unifies Hawai‘i’s LGBT organizations through grant support, at-risk youth housing, and assisted living for elders. For more information, visit hawaiilgbtlegacyfoundation.com.

HONOLULU FRONTRUNNERS

This club offers weekly runs on Saturdays as well as other activities for anyone that has an interest in running or walking. For more information, visit honolulufrontrunners.org.

HONOLULU GAY AND LESBIAN CULTURAL FOUNDATION

Since 1997, this foundation has instilled a sense of pride and community by giving back to the community with events such as the Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival, one of the longest-running and well-respected LGBT film festivals in the country. For more information, visit hglcf.org.

HONOLULU MEN’S DINING CLUB

If fine dining and lively conversations with other likeminded men are your thing, then this club is for you. For more information, call 808-955-3134 or email info@hmdclub.com.

HULUMANU FOUNDATION

This foundation aims to use appropriate language associated with the LGBT and Asian Pacific Islander populations in schools and in public by improving social, health, and legal issues that impact equality in Hawai‘i. For more information, call 808-7239154 or visit hulumanufoundation.org.

LESBIAN & GAY BUSINESSES OF HAWAI‘I

LGB Hawaii strives to build stronger connections between gay-friendly businesses in Hawai‘i, as well as increase visibility and promote growth for businesses that offer support to the LGBT community. For more information, call 808-216-6965.

LGBT CENTER WAIKIKI

This center in Waikiki offers services such as assisted living for elders, small grants, and an integrated home for at-risk youth. LGBT Center Waikiki is located at 310 Paoakalani Ave. For more information, visit them at facebook.com/LGBTCenterWaikiki.

LIFE FOUNDATION

This organization is dedicated to stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS by offering free testing as well as assisting people living with HIV/AIDS. Life Foundation is located at 677 Ala Moana Blvd. For more information, call 808-521-2437 or visit lifefoundationhawaii.org.

LIKE HIKE

Explore the outdoors with likeminded individuals by joining one of this club’s Sunday hikes. For more information, call 808-455-8193.

MAUI PRIDE

Centered on a yearly festival and scholarship program, Maui Pride also gathers the LGBT community for monthly events such as hikes, beach parties, and dining out. For more information, visit mauipride.org.

PRIDE GUIDE

A guide to accommodations, restaurants, shopping, cultural events, and entertainment for the LGBT traveler. For more information, visit gogayhawaii.com.

RAINBOW FAMILY 808

This nonprofit resource organization is dedicated to promoting understanding and equality within Hawai‘i’s schools, churches, and families. For more information, visit rainbowfamily808.com.

A HUI HOU, UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN

Off the shore of Kaihalulu Red Sand Beach in Hana on the eastern end of Maui.

IMAGE BY John Hook