Best known as a place of rendezvous for honeymooners and surfers, the fiftieth and final US State, composed of a myriad of islands, reveals a new face. Stop on two of them: the trendy Oahu, Maui and the beautiful wilderness.Hawaii Destination, cool paradise
Of course, there are the rolls of several meters high, turquoise and warm Pacific water, surfers, skin tanned by the sun and Barack Obama (Honolulu is his hometown). But this place truly have lost more than 12 000 kilometers of Belgium, in the middle of the Pacific? If, for some, Hawaii is synonymous with idyllic landscapes and walk on the beach at sunset, it's also an archipelago with many faces. None of the islands, sometimes wild and volcanic - it identifies five main craters - and sometimes urban and tourism, is unlike any other. Among the best known, there was initially Hawaii, the largest of all, called "The Big Island" for its size, then Oahu, home to Honolulu, the capital, Maui, known for its surf spots, Lanai, Molokai, Kauai, Niihau and Kahoolawe.This set, where temperatures never fall below 20 ° C, attracts nearly 8 million tourists who come to populate their palm patterned shirts countless resorts XXL format. Now it's a new travel community begins to show interest, urban youth in the wind in search of real scenery.
Oahu, a breath of modernity
From the plane, which begins its descent into Honolulu airport, measure all the beauty of the landscapes that spread under our feet. It is precisely the fantasy image we had of the place: in the background, a row of greener heights as each other, including the highest peaks disappear under a fine mist, jabbing straight to the shades blue ocean and, in the foreground, Honolulu, whose towers, rivaling in height, come hemming Waikiki beach of white sand. With 340,000 inhabitants, it is the most populous city in the state, and certainly the most Americanized. The English language is widely democratized it, and in its streets, rub the bastions of US stores. In the mid-nineteenth century, was the preferred Waikiki resort local kings and queens. For years, the Moana - the oldest hotel on the island, built in 1901 - was frequented by the crowned family and friends. After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, a handful of architects breathed a clean modernist style in Hawaii - named "Kamaaina". Far from the tourist trail, it is still possible to admire the latest works of these men. At the church the image of St. Augustine by the Sea, built in 1962 by George McLaughlin, or the Bank of Hawaii (1967) George Wimberly, the last vestiges of that architectural movement.
Since then, it has become a must stop for tourists Oriental - China and Japan are within a few hours by plane. Moreover, a whole avenue was designed for them, a kind of exotic Champs Elysees where the greatest luxury brands are elbow. Carrara marble, lustrous tiles, large volumes ... every shop rivals the splendor with its neighbors. The streets are beautifully flowered and sanitized, it is easy to walk barefoot. If it does not appear very attractive, the ride is worth seeing. Populations that come together every day on this street have nothing in common. It is not unusual to see a Chinese family, arms full of designer bags, a surfer and board still wet hair under the arms, or Hawaiians in work clothes.
If Honolulu is above all the economic capital, it is also a center for the kitchen: Australian chef Bill Granger has installed its new stronghold, a néobrasserie on two floors, with huge volumes of wood and large windows for enjoy the hustle of the streets discovering its dishes of Japanese and Vietnamese-indigenous inspiration. Since opening, there is one and half years, her table is always full. As Waikiki became a tourist place of worship, it is best to dig into the city to discover the most authentic neighborhoods. As one of Chinatown, which concentrates many new addresses for conferring connected HQ status. Strolling in this vibrant area, colorful and full of odors, is exhilarating. Sometimes the corner of an alley, we find the entrance to a covered market. Inside, crawling, it is agitated, the fish is thrown under our noses; further, animal carcasses dangling before the eyes of passersby.
Are offered on a stand of fruit and plants mostly unknown. In the corner, a shop room detonates in this mess. Owens & Co is run by a young thirty came to settle here two years ago. "I love this neighborhood, we find everything and anything, and there are great restaurants," she says. For its rays, she mottled cream local and Western products. Soap from beautiful brand Shaka Street Soap Works, hand made on the island of Maui, T-shirts with the message Public Salvage, a small Hawaiian rising claw, but also stationery, candles, beach towels ... In his pop and colorful showcase, she motioned to a young woman: "My girlfriend has the most amazing hair salon in the city!" A few blocks away, Mojo Barbershop & Social Club has indeed nothing traditional. We come to this place modeled on the American model - seats old school sound cranked to hairdressers and looks hipsters - to have their hair done while sipping a beer. But the prize for the coolest place returns to The Pig and the Lady, restaurant in the New York fashion, brick walls, with its large central bar and fusion cuisine blending Asian and Western.
To see the latest secrets of Oahu, take the road towards North Shore. Where surfers and gypsetteurs fled the buildings of Honolulu quiet beaches and feel cool to the coast bobo.The landscapes there are of singular beauty. Here the term postcard makes sense. It is best along the coast - the road is clearly a visit - to Haleiwa. A hamlet mostly frequented at lunch hour. The food trucks will create real traffic jams! The best known, Giovanni's Shrimp Truck, a truck with dilapidated aspect, serves as shrimp do you want, that's it."This is the specialty of the island," said the young waitress at the controls. In lemon butter, garlic or spicy, accompanied by white rice, they are divine! The attraction of the area remains Matsumoto Shave Ice, even more famous than the brand to yellow M. The Shave Ice is another specialty of the island, crushed ice flavored granita way with dyes.
Sea, surf and sun in Maui
In contrast to the bustling Oahu - and less than an hour's flight - is Maui. More secret, more wild than its neighbors, this island of 900 km2 area of 1 - the second largest in the archipelago - is well known for its surf spots and changing panoramas. Within hours, we pass a tropical landscape to volcanic lands. "To give you an idea of the place, take the road to Hana" we-says one at the airport. Here, the palm trees have replaced the concrete towers, and bird cries are like car alarms; nature has reasserted itself. The mythical and fabulous highway to Hana is 83 km long, connecting the city of Kahului to Hana town. It winds along the coast crossing the corners more incredible than each other at every turn - in total, more than 500: those prone to motion sickness beware! - Is the unknown. And at each stop surprise. At first is Haiku-Pauwela, a small town composed of a few streets along which the colorful houses are home to coffee and surf shops and organic supermarkets. In the second, it must leave your car and climb to Wailua Falls, a majestic waterfall where Hawaiians get cooler.
Farther down the road, we pass near a national park with an equatorial forest, a creek whose black sand beach and small caves are the delight of tourists and beach of Ho'okipa and indigo carpet . The island is known as the Sliding Mecca - with the North Shore of Oahu - and in particular they practice paddle and kitesurfing. On arrival in Hana, a rest is well deserved. Cape Lahaina, the former capital of the kingdom of Hawaii and whaling town. Listed building, it is now dotted with a few luxury hotels. To complete the journey, essential visit to the Haleakala National Park, located in the crater of the eponymous volcano, which rises to 3050 meters. Up there, the temperature is significantly cooled, heavy fog just fall on the road. When one sees the summit, the place is lunar desert. An entirely of volcanic scenery, where the atmosphere is like wadded. Here, fauna and flora are almost nonexistent. Rare flowers seem straight out of a science fiction film, like the silver sword, whose stems, growing by 2.50 meters in three months, are covered with hundreds of purple flowers, amidst tapered leaves with metallic reflections, and the birds are not very reassuring. Besides, a little brown bat flies over the heads a little too closely. From our perch, we see the "Big Island", it seems tiny. The flanks of the mountains seem bitten right down to the sea, and its vivid colors sparkle like a lighthouse. A final mental picture, before taking off.
In practice
ASK ABOUT
Information, visits and stays of ideas on the site of the Hawaii tourist office:
www.office-tourisme-usa.com/etat/hawai
GO
Flights to Honolulu only from Paris: from 1048 euros A / R with Air France.
www.airfrance.be
HOUSING
The Modern: A Oahu, this hotel embodies a hotel with his pop revival and contemporary rooms, a bar and a restaurant. From 177 euros per room.
www.themodernhonolulu.com
The Travaasa Hana: A Maui, away from and facing the ocean, this hotel consists of huts offers a change of scenery sized. From 309 euros per room.
travaasa.com
RESTORE
The Pig and the Lady: A Oahu, fusion cuisine with Asian and Western influences in a very New York atmosphere. Lunch menu from 22 euros. A la carte: count 25-30 euros.
thepigandthelady.com
Mama's Fish House: A Maui, a seafood restaurant set on the beach. We enjoyed grilled shrimp and / or fish of the day. Must! Count 85 euros.
www.mamasfishhouse.com
