O'ahu - Hawaii - page 36

flower garden, but a mature and largely wooded arboretum, where related rainforest spe-
cies cluster in a seminatural state.
Among the plants in the Hawaiian ethnobotanical garden are ʻulu (breadfruit), kalo
(taro) and ko (sugarcane) brought by early Polynesian settlers; kukui , once harvested to
produce lantern oil; and ti , which was used for medicinal purposes during ancient times
and for making moonshine after Westerners arrived. To reserve your spot on a guided
tour, call at least 24 hours in advance.
If you hike uphill for about a mile along a signposted dirt jeep road, a narrow, tree-
root-entangled footpath continues to seasonal ʻAihualama Falls , a lacy cliffside cascade
(no swimming).
From Ala Moana Center or University Ave, catch TheBus 5 to Manoa Valley and get
off at the last stop, then walk 0.6 miles uphill past Paradise Park to the end of Manoa Rd.
Limited free parking.
Honolulu Museum of Art at Spalding House MUSEUM
( 526-1322; www.honolulumuseum.org ; 2411 Makiki Heights Dr; adult/child 4-17yr $10/5, all free
1st Wed of each month; 10am-4pm Tue-Sat, noon-4pm Sun, tours usually 1:30pm Tue-Sun; )
At an estate house with meditative sculpture and flowering gardens, this small museum
features changing exhibits of paintings, sculpture and other artwork dating from the
1940s onward by Hawaii-born, mainland and international artists. The lawn pavilion
shelters the museum's most prized piece, an environmental installation by David Hock-
ney based on his sets for Ravel's opera L'Enfant et les sortilèges.
Admission tickets are valid for same-day entry at downtown's much bigger Honolulu
Museum of Art ( Click here ) . Downstairs, the modest Spalding House Cafe serves drinks,
desserts and light lunches; reserve ahead for a romantic picnic basket for two to enjoy on
the museum's grassy lawn.
From Waikiki, take TheBus 2 or 13 toward downtown Honolulu and get off at Alapaʻi
St. From the corner of Alapaʻi and King Sts, catch TheBus 15 bound for Pacific Heights,
which stops at the museum.
Manoa Heritage Center GARDEN, TEMPLE
( 988-1287; www.manoaheritagecenter.org ; adult/senior & military with ID/child $7/4/free;
tours by appointment only; ) Hidden on a private family's estate in the lush upper
Manoa valley, the centerpiece of this unique Hawaiian heritage site is a stone-walled ag-
ricultural heiau surrounded by Hawaiian ethnobotanical gardens that include rare native
and Polynesian-introduced plants. Walking tours are led by knowledgeable volunteers
and staff eager to share island lore and Hawaiian traditions.