Friday, April 27, 2012

W is for... Waikiki

Waikiki is Hawaiian for "place of spouting waters".  It was once a wetland, where Native Hawaiians built fishponds and farmed taro.  It is said that the Ali`i, or Hawaiian chiefs, surfed an "endless wave" that broke all the way across the Waikiki coast.  

Once "development" began, the wetlands were drained, the reefs were blasted, and the "endless wave" no longer existed. Sand was brought in to make beaches, and hotels slowly began to line the coast.  Today, Waikiki is a major tourist destination.


 Our family doesn't visit Waikiki much.  Yet, occasionally, I like to brave the crowds and spend an evening eating dinner on the beach and watching the sunset.  Tonight I took my son, and we had a lovely time.

  
We stayed out a little later than we should have, but we were rewarded with a spectacular sunset.  

 
Want to know more about the history of Waikiki?  

Check out Down Wind Productions.

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