Aloha!
Many of our Aloha on Rails attendees are coming to Hawaii early to enjoy the island. If you are on Oahu on October 2nd, we recommend coming down to Chinatown for First Friday. First Friday happens the first Friday of every month in Honolulu’s Chinatown district. You’ll experience the local scene as you bounce between art shows and happy hours.
To get the most out of First Friday, just come down to Chinatown, and start following the crowds. The area is small enough to easily walk everywhere, but big enough to explore the whole night.
The main attractions are the bars and the art galleries, which seem to fuse into this meta-event alive with its own pulse. Most of the art galleries are open with extended hours, pupus, and special exhibits. The many bars have happy hour specials, and will be packed with locals enjoying the Aloha Friday.
The Chinatown Boardroom is a personal favorite, featuring hand painted surfboards and other eclectic art. This Friday they will feature Monster Mash, featuring artists that have “been asked to create a monster to be mixed and mashed.”
We highly recommend this event. It’s chill, local, and full of surprises. Take a walk around and you’ll certainly find something interesting.
There are lots of restaurants to choose from, from the Hukilau to Little Village to Indigo. Other choices include JJ Dolans, Soul de Cuba, and Brasseire Du Vin.
Of course, no evening out is complete without a stop to the watering hole. Check out Indigo, JJ Dolan, 39 Hotel, and Bar 35. There are plenty other options, all inside Chinatown. Just follow the crowds.
If you are driving, there are municipal parking lots in Chinatown.
TheBus is a really easy option from Waikiki (with the bonus that no one has to be designated driver!) Each ride is $2.25, and bring exact change. ProTip: ask for a transfer which is good for a few hours and good for your ride home (within the time range allowed.) Just take the B Express line, picking it up on Kuhio Ave (running through Waikiki). Be sure to wait at a CityExpress stop to catch the B! You can also pick up the 2 or 13 from Kuhio, but that’s not express. Consider buying the $25 4 Day Pass, which gives you unlimited rides anywhere TheBus travels.
Follow @sethladd or @alohaonrails, or your other favorite Aloha on Rails attendees, to find out where we are. Some of us will be using GoWalla, so you might see the updates there, too.
