Welcome
to Oahu, known for centuries as “the Gathering Place”
of the Hawaiian Islands. Today, Oahu is still Hawaii’s
gathering place, famous for its Waikiki resorts, university
campuses, the Hawaii Convention Center, Hawaii State
Capitol, major industries and historic downtown area—home
to America’s only royal residence, Iolani Palace.
Oahu
is also home to the the majority of the state's population,
a rich ethnic potpourri of people that includes Native
Hawaiians (approximately 20 percent of the population
is part-Hawaiian), Caucasians (accounting for about
29 percent of the total) and the descendants of laborers
that came to Hawaii in the 1800s to work on sugar and
pineapple plantations. These immigrants came from Europe
and Asia, including Spain, Portugal, Japan, China, Korea
and the Philippines. In recent years, more immigrants
have added to the mix, coming from Samoa, Vietnam and
other parts of Southeast Asia.
The
statistical breakdown for the State of Hawaii is: 33.4%
Caucasian; 22.3% Japanese; 15.2% Filipino; 12.5% pure
and part-Hawaiian (approximately 3,000 pure Hawaiians
still living in the State of Hawaii); 6.2% Chinese;
and a mix of others, including 24,454 Korean and 15,034
Samoan.
The
diversity of Oahu is best represented in its Chinatown,
the historic part of Downtown Honolulu that is filled
with open-air markets catering to long-time residents
and newly arrived immigrants in search of the foods
that remind them of their homelands. There are Chinese
herbal shops, Vietnamese vegetable stores and Thai shops
that sell spicy-hot curries. Visitors come from around
the world to enjoy the equally rich offerings of restaurants
that serve up everything from exotic Filipino dishes
to gourmet Chinese dim sum.
Move
a few blocks south and downtown’s appearance soars with
the skyscrapers of Bishop Street, the heart of the business
and financial center of the Hawaiian Islands. The brand-new
First Hawaiian Bank Center typifies the grand architecture
of Hawaii’s future, while just across the street are
several beautiful historic buildings that represent
the days when the Islands destiny was controlled by
“The Big Five” (Alexander & Baldwin, Castle & Cooke,
C. Brewer, Theo. H. Davies and American Factors), a
group of merchants who ran the agriculturally dominated
economy and the ships that carried freight in and out
of the most isolated islands on the face of the earth.
A
few blocks farther south and the face of the cityscape
changes once again, harking back to the days Hawaii
was a Pacific kingdom ruled by Hawaiian royalty. Stepping
into the halls of Iolani Palace, Kawaiahao Church and
the Mission Houses on King Street is a journey back
to the tumultuous time when the East and the West converged
on Hawaii, when missionaries, whalers and merchants
from around the world were flocking to this crossroads
of the Pacific.
Between
highrise and historic Honolulu and the resort area of
Waikiki is the Kapiolani Corridor, flanked by several
world-class shopping complexes, including Ala Moana
Center (once the largest of its kind in the entire world)
and the new Ward Complex, offering a variety of shopping,
dining and entertainment experiences.
From
simple beginnings to a modern present, Oahu is a unique
gathering place for visitors and residents alike.
