Christmas at the Kamaka Ukulele Factory

I toured the Kamaka factory last December, and it was a terrific experience.  Kamaka is the forefather of the Hawaiian ukulele, and it was priceless to get a tour there.  I highly recommend it if you are ever in Honolulu.  As you can see, the Hawaii Visitors Bureau has marked Kamaka Ukulele as a historic Hawaiian site.

This is me, standing outside the shop, and posing like a dork.

While I was there, I saw that they had a lot of cute Christmas decorations up. I thought it would be fun to share a photo of how they decorated the Hawaiian Christmas palm trees...the ornaments are the koa wood circles from cutting out the soundholes in the ukulele. I can't think of a better, more Hawaiian way to decorate a Christmas tree...with koa. 

A Jake Shimabukuro special edition ukulele close up, in progress...

This is Fred Kamaka, our tour guide, with his dad's creation, Kamaka Pineapple #1.

Fred Kamaka shows us Kamaka ukulele necks in progress.

Pretty koa Kamakas all ready for their new owners...

A Kamaka pineapple ukulele gets its serial number.

My Kamaka tenor, Pele, poses with me, my Mom and Fred Kamaka at the end of our tour.

Kanile'a Ukulele Factory Tour

Although some of you know I play my KoAloha and Kamaka 99% of the time, my Kanile'a has a very special place in my heart, as my first "real" ukulele. And as much as I love it for its sound, and looks, it is the special customer service of Joe and Kristen Souza that will make me a Kanile'a fan for life.

I bought my ukulele in December of 2008 in California, but decided to tour their factory in May of 2009. I ended up taking the bus from Honolulu to Kaneohe, and got off at the wrong stop. I ended up walking about a mile to their factory, in the Oahu heat (I guess I should be happy I was on the windward side of the island!) and when I arrived, Joe and Kristen couldn't have been nicer. Kristen even said I should have called, they would have picked me up at the bus stop!

Joe took about an hour out of his day, to talk to us and take us through the factory -- it was a terrific experience, as I had the chance to see up close and personal the steps of ukulele creation from koa wood log to finished product.  I was also lucky enough to see the custom Kanile'a that Joe was building at that time for one of my favorite uke players, Aldrine Guerrero of Ukulele Underground!

The most amazing part was that even though I only met them once, I was shocked when I ran into them at the October Southern California Ukulele Festival, and Kristen shouted, "Joe, look it is Staci!" I couldn't believe they remembered not only my face, but my name.

I know the KoAloha folks have out of this world customer service (the stories here at UU certainly prove that), but it is hard for me to imagine two nicer folks in the ukulele industry than those at Kanile'a. The people at Kamaka were terrific, but the people at Kanile'a make you feel like family. Here are just a couple of the photos I took that day...

When I first arrived, Joe and I posed in the front of the factory. We both are wearing Kanile'a Ukulele tshirts.

A stock of koa wood, ready to be turned into musical goodness.

The best use ever of binder clips.

"Waimea" my Kanile'a K2 tenor gets the drill from Joe as he installs her strap button. I was trying not to faint, like an expectant parent.

Joe Souza, "Waimea" and I pose in front of the hall of fame in their shipping area, filled with Kanile'as and some other brands used in the ukulele lessons in the nearby Windward Mall.

I can't thank Joe and Kristen enough for giving me a wonderful day, and making me feel so special when I saw them again in October. My KoAloha may be my favorite ukulele to play, but my Kanile'a will always be special to me because it came from some of the nicest people in the ukulele industry.

Fave Hawaiian foods and drinks

As I get ready to leave for Hawaii next week, one of the things I'm most excited about is the great food and drinks that await me in Oahu and Kauai. Here is a list of my countdown of my top five favorite things to eat and drink while in the Aloha state:

5. Kalua pork (anywhere and everywhere)

Kalua pork is the king of the luau.  Slow roasted pork is pulled apart into tender bits of deliciousness.  Unlike pulled pork barbecue in the South, it isn't covered in sauce, but rather it is the taste of the pork itself that stands on its own.  You can get it everywhere from fast food restaurants to expensive luaus, just be sure to get it somewhere while you are in town. You won't regret it.

4. Pukadog with lilikoi mustard and pineapple relish

Pukadogs are found in both Oahu and Kauai, and worth the search.  They come in Polish sausage or Veggie dog styles, and then the real adventure begins. You choose from mild/spicy/hot or hot/hot special sauce, then you can add yellow, dijon or lilikoi (passion fruit) mustard, and top it off with the relish of your choice (mango, pineapple, papaya, coconut, banana or starfruit).  My recommendation?  Go for the lilikoi mustard and pineapple relish.  It is a huge hot dog, way too big for me to eat by myself, but oh so tasty.  The toppings are placed in a unique bun (toasted on what Anthony Bourdain said looked like a torture device), and then the dog is dropped in. The only downside?  They serve only lemonade.  So go get your soda or water next door to wash it down.

3. Local Boy hamburger at Duane's Ono Burger in Anahola, Kauai

Duane's is well off the beaten path, but oh so worth the trek. This was the best hamburger I have ever had in my life. The meat is a perfect size, not so thin to vanish under the toppings, but not so thick as to be overwhelming. It was cooked perfectly medium well, and covered in toppings of cheddar cheese, sweet pineapple and tangy/salty teriyaki sauce. I opted to leave off the mayo, but it comes along with it for those who want a complete heart attack in a bun. I've had teriyaki burgers elsewhere (Carl's Jr., Cheeseburger in Paradise, and Islands to name a few) but none can compare to Duane's. None.

2. Yummy Korean BBQ takeout at Ala Moana Shopping Center

I am 1/4 Korean (my grandmother was Korean) so I absolutely love having the food that I grew up eating. Unfortunately, Korean barbecue is often extremely expensive at sit down restaurants or not very good at takeout places. The one exception to this rule is Yummy Korean BBQ at the Ala Moana shopping center in Honolulu, Hawaii. Every time I go to Oahu, I make sure I stop and get this at least once. It is reasonably priced, and the meat is always well done and well flavored, not bland or fatty like it often is at takeout places. Pair some kalbi with some cabbage kimchi, cucumber kimchi, two scoops of white rice, and a large Diet Coke for a meal that is divine.

1. Frozen mai tai at Keoki's Paradise in Poipu, Kauai.

This is hands down, the best drink I have ever had. The first thing I do whenever I land in Lihue is grab the keys to my rental car and drive to Poipu Shopping Village to get a frozen mai tai at Keoki's. They are smooth, delicious and strong. My only regret is that I can only have one at a time since I'm always the driver on the rental car. It is indescribable bliss. And their carrot muffins aren't bad either.

My Ukulele Collection

My big passion right now is playing the ukulele. I started playing about a year and a half ago when I was on a cruise to Hawaii, and they held introductory ukulele lessons onboard. My mom bought me my first ukulele (a Hawaiian Ukulele Company soprano) when we got into Oahu. After that, I haven't looked back.

I really wanted to buy a Hawaiian made ukulele of solid koa wood, not because I was any good at playing, but because it would be my little piece of Hawaii that I could keep here at home in California. I looked around at all of the ukulele manufacturers and chose one made by Kanile'a Ukulele. Kanile'a is owned and operated by Joe Souza, a firefighter in Honolulu. Since I'm married to a police lieutenant, that was the tie-breaking factor for me to keep it in the "911 family." I purchased a Kanile'a K2 tenor at Island Bazaar in Huntington Beach, CA in December of 2008. Here is a shot I took of it in Poipu, Kauai near my mom's timeshare (the Point at Poipu). I named it "Waimea," after my first pet, a Ragdoll cat that passed away when she was less than two years old.

After a while, I officially came down with Ukulele Acquisition Syndrome (henceforth known as UAS), and I decided I wanted to buy another ukulele. Kamaka Ukulele is a Hawaiian company that has been making ukuleles since 1916, and they are generally accepted to be the grandaddy of the uke companies, the standard by which many others are judged. Since my passion is for all things Hawaiian, I figured I simply had to have a Kamaka.

By this time, I had been well versed enough in ukulele manufacturing to know that koa wood is traditionally used in Hawaiian ukuleles, and that curly koa appears in nature on occasion, but is extremely rare. Curly koa is when the grain of the wood appears to take on a 3d appearance, and an almost tiger striped pattern. I decided that for my Kamaka, I would wait until I could find one made of curly koa, as opposed to the straight grain koa on my Kanile'a.

I finally found the right Kamaka for me online, and I drove all the way to Fresno to purchase it in July of 2009. I ended up naming it "Pele," after the Hawaiian volcano goddess. I did this for two reasons, first, I wanted a traditional Hawaiian name for my most traditional Hawaiian ukulele, and second, for the way that the curls in the koa reminded me of flowing lava.

In December of 2009, I decided that my collection was sorely lacking without a pineapple shaped ukulele. And for me, there was only one pineapple that called out to me: the Pineapple Sunday, by KoAloha Ukulele. The Pineapple Sunday is part of Papa KoAloha (Alvin Okami's) Masterpiece Collection. They are hard to find, and unfortunately, very expensive. I began my search and managed to find a factory second Pineapple Sunday, which I quickly purchased.

This ukulele was a gorgeous honey color, and had a sweet voice. It was a fairly recently produced instrument, as it had the straight bridge and laser etched top that Papa KoAloha had begun to use in his luthier process. Previous Pineapple Sunday ukuleles had a debossed top (which had a less uniform, more unique appearance) and a spiky bridge instead of the straight style. I got it into my head that I simply had to have one of the old style Pineapple Sundays. So a few ukulele purchases, and trades, later, I ended up with my newest ukulele, "Po'okela." Her name means "best of the best" and I gave it to her for two reasons: 1) she was the best of the Pineapple Sundays I looked at, and 2) she is by far the best sounding of my four ukuleles.

I believe that every Pineapple Sunday is like a snowflake, similar in design but unique in its own way. The etching on the top, the bridge design, the color and grain of the koa wood, all make them unique unto themselves. Although all four of the Pineapple Sundays I owned were wonderful in their own ways, this one was the best for me of the lot.

So I'm done buying ukes for now. I lust after a KoAloha tenor Sceptre, or a Moore Bettah custom ukulele, but I probably will never be able to convince my family that I should get one of those. It was hard enough to get the Pineapple Sunday without having them lock me up in the loony bin. But a girl can dream...

Aloha!

Aloha to my new blog. I've called it Kama'aina at Heart because even though I live in California, my heart is always in Hawaii. A kama'aina is someone who has lived in Hawaii for a long period of time. Even though I reside in CA, my heart has lived in Hawaii for many years. I've traveled there every year since I was a kid, and I've been fortunate enough to be able to start visiting more frequently lately.

I own a travel agency so I have been lucky enough to travel all over the United States, Europe and Asia. But there is still one place that calls to me, and speaks to my soul, and that is Hawaii. If it was at all possible, I would move there, but my spouse's job keeps us here in Los Angeles (I'm married to an LAPD lieutenant). We are hoping to be able to get a vacation home in Oahu or Kauai in the future, but until then I will have to tide myself over with visits a few times each year.

Why do I love Hawaii so much? It isn't just the scenery -- though I've never found its equal. It isn't just the food, although oh, how I love local cuisine (mmm, kalua pork). It isn't just the people, although rarely have I experienced such warmth and spirit elsewhere. It is the combination of all of the above that lead me to long for Hawaii on a daily basis.

So I immerse myself in Hawaiian culture here in California by taking ukulele classes, dancing hula, and getting my weekly fix at King's Hawaiian Bakery. And I live for the moments that come each year when my plane touches down in my home away from home, and I can smell the plumeria, and wave the shaka, and feel the tradewinds once again.

This blog will be a collection of my takes on Hawaii, from my ukuleles, to my attempts at learning new hula dances, to my favorite places to eat or shop in the island.

I'm hoping to update it pretty frequently, in between trips back to Hawaii. I am leaving again for Oahu and Kauai next week, so I should have lots to add once I get back home. Mahalo nui loa for reading, and aloha oe!