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City and County of Honolulu - Honolulu City Lights
by ALOHA DEAN

Honolulu Hale, the City Hall in downtown Honolulu, is the focal point for the decorating of O'ahu at Christmas time (hale, pronounced "hah-lay", means "house" or "home"). And boy-oh-boy does the island get decorated! From little Hale'iwa on the north shore to sprawling Waikiki in the south; from rural Wai'anae on the ewa (west) side to urban Kaneohe and Kailua on the windward (east) side; from Pearl Harbor to Manoa Valley; from Barbers Point to Wahiawa: O'ahu likes to get dressed up for the holidays!

Where else would you find a giant barefoot Santa giving a shaka (better known outside of Hawai`i as a "hang loose" sign) with his wife Tutu Mele (formerly known as Mrs. Claus? You may notice that Tutu Mele is making a fashion statement by wearing a red mu'umu'u with a hibiscus design, a Hawaiian Heritage bracelet and wedding ring, a kukui nut lei, and a bright red hibiscus in her hair.)

Where else would you find a children's choir dressed in mu'umu'us, a hula halau performing Christmas hulas, Grammy award winners singing Hawaiian/Christmas music outside, dressed in aloha wear-- no jackets, no sequins, no breath steaming in the cold air? And how many other cities dress up their buses, garbage trucks, cranes, and other hard-working vehicles in thousands of lights for an electric lights parade through downtown? And how many cities of comparable size could draw 20,000 plus spectators to watch it?