Capture Hawaii: Omiyage

Hawaii Omiyage

Whenever I travel, there’s one thing I can’t afford to forget! Omiyage. It’s always custom for my family to bring a little something back for our family, friends, and coworkers whenever we travel. The tradition of omiyage or souvenirs originally stems from Japanese culture; however, it’s still strongly practiced in Hawaii! It’s quite similar to the Hawaii local custom of never showing up empty handed when visiting someone’s home. Anyway, this time I brought back some goodies from Hawaii for my friends and coworkers in Japan: Big Island Candies chocolates, Hawaiian Cookie Company cookies, Li-hing powder, Li-hing gummies, Kona coffee, lilikoi butter, hibiscus tea, and Maui garlic salt! It’s always interesting to see what people bring back from their travels

 

 

 

 

 

Capture Hawaii: Eat the Street

Eat the Street, Kaka’ako Honolulu

One of the aspects I love most about Hawaii is the local community… and the food! Hawaii definitely has one of the most unique and delicious cuisines around (although I know I’m incredibly bias, haha)! Just to be clear though, for those of you who are unfamiliar with Hawaii, there is a difference between local food and Hawaiian food. Traditional Hawaiian food are dishes like poi, lomilomi salmon, haupia, etc., while local food is more of a blend of Hawaiian, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, American, and Portuguese cuisines (i.e. loco moco, mochiko chicken, saimin, spam musubi, etc.), which is reflective of local Hawaii culture as well. Hawaii is often referred to as a “cultural melting pot,” and local food is a great representation of that! Anyway, in Hawaii we also have this great event called Eat the Street, which is usually held a couple times per month. There is usually a set theme for the event and local food vendors will set up dozens food trucks where people can go and enjoy the various dishes. The last time I went the theme was garlic, haha! Anyway, it’s a great little event to check out if you’re ever in Hawaii to get a small taste of the delicious local cuisine!