Archive for May, 2007

2007 Obon Schedule

Published by
Donna
at May 28, 2007 in Events. 0 Comments

Summer months in Hawaii are synonymous with obon season: humid summer evenings, eating shave ice and spam musubi under the light of the chochin lanterns, enjoying the fellowship of friends and dancing around the yagura into the well into night. If you haven’t attended a bon dance, I urge you to take a few friends and check it out. You may find a new hobby to occupy your summer weekends!

Click here to download the 2007 bon dance schedule! I also have links to my photo galleries featuring pictures from previous years’ obon seasons here.

Blessings to you and your… pets

Published by
Ryan Suenaga
at May 27, 2007 in Community and Events. 0 Comments

I’ve never been to this temple, nor heard of this event before, but the banner caught my eye when I passed by…

Pet Blessing Festival Banners

The Honolulu Advertiser piece I found says that the Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha temple in Kalihi will give complimentary blessings for caged or leashed pets from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on June 3, 2007. They’re also welcome to a sampling of “pet shave ice” (whatever that might be). There’s parking on both the street and in the temple lot.

Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha Temple
1239 Olomea Street
Honolulu, HI 96817
(808) 841-4755

Tsukiji Fish Market & Restaurant

Published by
Donna
at May 26, 2007 in Food and Japanese Cuisine. 6 Comments

Tsukiji Fish Market
Tsukiji Fish Market and Restaurant
Ho`okipa Terrace, 4th floor, Ala Moana Center

The “coming soon” sign has come down after approximately two years in the making and Tsukiji Fish Market and Restaurant is finally open. It is the newest addition to Ala Moana Shopping Center’s Ho`okipa Terrace. As its name indicates, the 14,000 square foot site is a combination Japanese all-you-can-eat buffet and fresh fish market, selling local and imported fish, shellfish, poke and assorted seafood. The buffet offers not only fresh sushi and poke, but a salad and dessert bar, steaming hot soba or udon made to order, a variety of shrimp and vegetable tempura, and a some nice hot selections. The food was fresh and tasty and during the busy peak lunch hours, the staff were kept busy bringing fresh batches to replenish the buffet line.

Sushi

The dining area offers seating for more than 360 and, as you would expect, the tables are situated a little close together, but not uncomfortably so. I would rate the restaurant as famiy-friendly and the service was prompt and courteous.

Tempura and Kalbi

The restaurant also features live entertainment and facilities for meetings and private dining. Check out “Jazz it up Wednesdays” from 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m., featuring live jazz music. Or, bring your family for a Sunday brunch from 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., featuring live local entertainment.

Tsukiji Fish Market

Tsukiji Fish Market and Restaurant
Hours: 10:00 a.m. - 10:00 p.m.
After 9:00 p.m., only the sushi bar and yakitori bar will be open
Walk-ins welcome and reservations taken for parties of 7 or more
Website: tsukijifishmarket.com

Lunch Buffet
Adults: $17.95
Seniors (65 and better): $13.46
Children (ages 6-10): $8.97
Children under 5: Free

Dinner Buffet
Adults: $30.95
Seniors (65 and better): $23.21
Children (ages 6-10): $15.47
Children under 5: Free

A’s Barber Shop

Published by
Ryan Suenaga
at May 26, 2007 in Services. 0 Comments

I’m not nearly as picky about my hair as many others (nor am I as picky as I was when I was younger), so my prerequisites for a haircut are: cheap, fast, and decent (that and the hairdresser I used for years disappeared). So for the past few months I’ve been using A’s Barber Shop on King Street. I don’t (yet) have a particular stylist I like there–I’ve seen three, including “A”, who is the owner–but I’ve been satisfied each time.

A's Barber Shop

A’s is busy–they have six chairs for haircuts and every time I’ve gone there at least five of the six have been full, with people waiting (I’ve had to wait myself, as I tend to just walk in and not make an appointment). Even when I’ve had to wait, I’ve gotten service within 20 minutes. Today I got service right away! The whole haircut takes about 20 minutes (sans rinse, although they offer it) and makes me look about as good as a haircut can (which my friends will say is not all that good :). The best part: they will offer a shoulder and neck rubdown for a few minutes at the end of the haircut, for no additional charge.

A basic men’s haircut is $13, tip not included (and since they do so well I typically tip $5, which is almost 40%, pretty substantial in my opinion).

I highly recommend it for folks who are like me: not a lot of time, not a lot of money, and wanting things done well and quick.

A’s Barber Shop
1275 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814
(808) 589-1595

Wahiawa Pineapple Festival

Published by
Donna
at May 25, 2007 in Community and Events. 0 Comments

PineappleLooking for something fun to do with the family tomorrow? Check out the Wahiawa Pineapple Festival, featuring live entertainment, activities for the keiki, old plantation games, contests, and delicious samples from Hawaii’s top chefs.

Special pineapple-themed dishes from restaurants including Alan Wong’s, Roy’s, Ola at Turtle Bay and the Poke Stop. Appearances by celebrity chefs Alan Wong, Roy Yamaguchi, Elmer Guzman and Fred DeAngelo. 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM (or until samples are gone)

When: Saturday, May 26, 2007
Time: Parade down California Avenue - 9-10 a.m., Festival - 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Location: Wahiawa District Park (see map for details and parking info)

Go to pineapplefestival.com for more information on events, activities and even a history of Wahiawa — which happens to be my hometown.

Memorial Day Lantern Floating Ceremony

Published by
Donna
at May 24, 2007 in Events. 1 Comment

Toro Nagashi

Mark your calendars and make plans to be at Magic Island on Memorial Day for the annual Lantern Floating Ceremony or “toro nagashi.” I have never been to this event, but am hoping to be able to make it this year to take some photos of the beautiful lanterns floating on the gentle waves out to sea. This event kicks off the obon season in Hawaii, which typically runs from June through Labor Day when the last bon dance of the season is held at the Okinawan Festival. I hope you’ll be able to join the hundreds of islanders who will gather along the shores of Ala Moana Beach Park to honor the memory of their departed loved ones.

This upcoming Memorial Day, May 28th, the 9th Annual Lantern Floating Ceremony will be held along the shores of Magic Island at Ala Moana Beach Park on the island of Oahu. We invite the general public, as well as non-profit organizations, cultural groups, high schools and colleges to participate in this solemn and enriching event. The public may also make consolatory prayer requests from 1:00 - 6:00 p.m. at Magic Island on the same day.

The Lantern floating is a time-honored Buddhist rite originating in Japan and conducted in order to pay respects to our ancestors and comfort the spirits of the deceased. During this Toro-Nagashi, or “lantern offerings on the water,” candle-lit lanterns are individually set afloat on the ocean and are said to ferry spirits “from the shore of delusion to the shore of salvation.”

These lanterns carry our heartfelt prayers for victims of wars, water-related accidents, natural disasters, famine and disease, as well as for our loved ones and ancestors. It is through this that the sincere prayers of everyone are united… prayers for a future in which harmony exists among all people regardless of differences between race, religion and culture.

Monday, May 28th, 2007 ~ Memorial Day
Magic Island at Ala Moana Beach Park
Time: 6:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Website: lanternfloatinghawaii.com

FREE SHUTTLE SERVICE
Schedule:
Before event from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
After event from 8:00 pm (depending on traffic)

Location:
Hawaii Convention Center (see map)
Handicap shuttle also available at the “Port Cochere” ground floor entrance.
Parking entrance is on Kalakaua Avenue.

Little Village Noodle House

Published by
Ryan Suenaga
at May 24, 2007 in Food. 1 Comment

Located in downtown Honolulu, Little Village Noodle House is not exactly a secret (it’s been around for over 20 years and reviewed many times, including several times on Yelp). It’s been around for quite awhile for good reason: it has some real appeal.

Sign for Little Village Noodle House in Honolulu

First off, it has its own no charge parking lot! It’s not huge, but in downtown Honolulu, this is a gargantuan advantage. We showed up on a Friday evening at about 5 pm and were seated very quickly, but when we left about an hour and a half later, there was a line eight patrons deep, so I would suggest arriving early for dinner.

Long time friends of mine would be shocked to read me reviewing a Chinese restaurant as I am well known to not care for that particular cuisine (as an aside, while I can’t really know how this is, I suspect being local to Hawai’i and saying, “I don’t like Chinese food,” is similar to coming out of the closet. Once when I said this, a friend of mine said, “That can’t be. Local guy like you?”). However, given that my dining partner is vegetarian and the location was convenient, I went for it.

Little Village bills itself as health oriented; their current menu is MSG free, although the actual physical menus were printed when MSG free was “on request”; the “on request” part is now covered up with stick on labels. The food menu is online as well, at their Web site; we had a variety of dishes–their menu definitely does not lack variety–mostly vegetarian but also including minute chicken. The servings were large enough that there were enough leftovers for the two of us to go home with a meal for the next day. Total damage to the pocketbook was approximately $30.

The restaurant (and restrooms) are more than decently clean, the food is varied and reasonably priced, the parking is available and free, the service is decent, and they take credit cards. They are, however, quite busy and a bit noisy (not overly so).

I’d recommend it if you want somewhere to eat downtown, and moreso if one of you is vegetarian.

Little Village Noodle House
1113 Smith Street
Honolulu, HI 96817
Phone: (808) 545-3008, fax: (808) 545-3738

Hawai’i Book and Music Festival review

Published by
Ryan Suenaga
at May 24, 2007 in Community and Events. 0 Comments

The second annual Hawai’i Book and Music Festival was held this past weekend (May 19-20, 2007). Publishers, bookstores, authors, storytellers, musicians, poets, and everyone else was welcome to get some free slushies and Starbucks and peruse some bargain book selling tents, participate in contests, buy some cookies, and otherwise enjoy some very warm and humid days at Honolulu Hale. A large collection of local publishers were selling their wares (including Bamboo Ridge Press selling some back issues of their well known journal for just a buck apiece), as well as larger companies like Borders having a tent for author book signing and selling both hot new items and closing out things that have probably been on their shelves for awhile. Bargain hunters as well as those wanting signed books by authors like Maxine Hong Kingston had their needs met equally. I for one was very impressed by the number of local publishers and other vendors (and was really surprised at how many books on local pidgin are available). For a fun and free family outing or date, I’d recommend it highly; the only problem being it’s just once a year.

Gizmobies - iPod skins

Published by
Rod
at May 21, 2007 in Gadgets. 4 Comments

I first saw Gizmobies at Meadows Mall in Las Vegas.  I thought they were so kewl, I wanted to buy an iPod just to plaster some on.  But since they weren’t readily available in Honolulu, I passed on buying an iPod - and bought a Samsung K5 instead.

But hold on to your earbuds!  Gizmobies are now available at Ala Moana center.  I don’t know how the guy did it, but he was able to secure a kiosk right in front of the Apple store.  Talk about location, location, location!

What are Gizmobies, you ask?  They are soft cushion skins for your iPod video, nano, and mini.  They simply stick on to your iPod.  Also, the skin is a little tacky too so you can leave your iPod on your dashboard without worrying about it sliding off.  And when you remove the Gizmobies, it doesn’t leave any sticky residue on your iPod.

Cost?  $20 each.  However, you can buy 2 for $35 and 3 for $40.  And you can mix and match them too so if you don’t want to drop $20 for one, get together with a couple of your friends and go in together to buy 3 at once - even if you all have different styles of iPods.  Or buy a couple for youself for when you feel like changing around the skins.  They also make great gifts.

btw, I’m not affiliated with Gizmobies or the guy who’s selling them (although I do own some Apple stock).  I just wanted to pass on this find.  And as all gadgetphiles know, YMMV.

5/13/07 Only - Free Messaging for T-Mobile Customers

Published by
Rod
at May 11, 2007 in Techie. 1 Comment

May 13th isn’t just any old day. It’s the day we thank our moms for all they do for us. And what better way to do that than send her a message from her favorite kid? Whether you send Mom a text message, a photo message, video message, or an IM, it’s FREE all day on Mothers Day.

So, if you don’t subscribe to text/photo/video messaging and want to know what all the fuss is about, now’s your chance to play with messaging - for free! All day long! Send a message to yourself if you’d like. It’s free!

Details can be found here.

Ever see a picture on the web that you thought would make a good wallpaper for your phone? Now’s your chance to load it to your phone:

  • Right click on the picture
  • Select E-mail picture
  • Send to: areacodephonenumber@tmomail.net
  • A picture message will be sent to your phone
  • Open the message and save the picture to your phone
  • Set it as your wallpaper or screen-saver if you’d like
  • *May not work for all picture formats such as .bmp or .png.

Have fun playing with messaging!