"Aloha" Honolulu by Ramonq

click: Hawaiian music

The most isolated city in the world is marooned in the middle of the vast Pacific Ocean. From outer space at night, apparently, a lonely white sparkling dot could be spotted in the middle of darkness like an insignificant star in the Milky Way. Move much closer and this lonely star is actually an urban tropical paradise. Even though it's got lots of tall modern buildings in the business centre and along its shores, Honolulu has still managed to retain a semblance of a holiday resort. Palm trees and bouganvillas are everywhere to be seen and the warm tropical weather is just right to sunbathe at Waikiki beach and beyond. No wonder, thousands of Japanese honeymooners come over here to relax and enjoy its nightlife.

Honolulu, in the island of Oahu, is the capital of the 50th state of America, Hawaii. The name means protected harbour in the local dialect. Its deep sea harbour plays host to various types of water vessels who traverse the largest ocean in the world, and with no land in sight for thousands of miles, the city is a logical berthing place to stock up on supplies and fuel. The city also has fine beaches with the fantastic Diamond Head mountain looming over it, attracting loads of tourists from mainland America and Asia. Thousands of these sunseeking tourists are disgorged from planes every year to sample the sweet Hawaiian life. This combination of a vital trading port for Hawaii's agricultural produce and an international tourist mecca as made Honolulu a prosperous yet relaxing town.

The people of Hawaii are a diverse lot. The original Hawaiians are of Polynesian stock, descendants of a brave sea-faring race who anchored in these isolated islands nearly 2000 years ago. The Hawaiians, although outwardly Westernised by missionaries and contact with European seamen, colonisers, adventurers, and merchants, still have their own code of conduct and cultural expressions. Their way of life are being challenged by external forces, but they still manage to maintain a sense of being Hawaiian.The
Hawaiians were once fragmented but became united under the rule of King Kamehameha I in the early 1800's. A monarchial dynasty ruled the islands until Hawaii was colonised by the Americans in the turn of the 19th century. In 1850, Kamehameha III proclaimed Honolulu the capital city of his kingdom

In the streets of Honolulu, you'll also notice a lot of Oriental faces. They are descendants of thousands of peasants and whalers from the Philippines, China and Japan, who migrated to the islands to labour in the pineapple and sandalwood plantation or whaling stations in the ealy 20th century under the American rule when the colony needed farm and sea labourers. The Asians have made some contribution to the social life of the islands and gave Hawaii a unique cultural blend.

Honolulu also has a strong European influence. The first European to enter the harbour was Captain William Brown in 1794. By the 1820's groups of missionaries from New England arrived and left a lasting contribution to the island's religious, educational, economic and political life. When the United States took over, Honolulu became a large defence installation port for the American Pacific Coast, but this was briefly shattered by the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour. Hawaii voted to become part of the USA in 1959 and the Americanisation of Hawaii became most pronounced in Honolulu.

Today, Honolulu is as American as it can be. Downtown Honolulu appears like any North American city of glass skyscrapers and fast-food joints. The world-famous Waikiki Beach could be Miami or Acapulco crammed with resorts and entertainment premises. Despite the modern appearance, I still quite like Honolulu. I could live here, but the city is so expensive to move into. Maybe this is how Honolulu keeps away the tourist hordes from permanently settling here.

• Pros:Warm weather
• Cons:Can be expensive
• In a nutshell:Urban tropical paradise