Me enjoying a Mai Tai at a restaurant in the Waikīkī section of Honolulu.
Since 1959, the U.S. has consisted of 50 states; in that year, Alaska and Hawai’i became the most recent jurisdictions to gain statehood. Just visiting all 50 of the states in the sprawling nation that I call home is a mammoth undertaking. In the final hours of 2018, I completed my project of karaokeing in all 50 of those states (as well as the national capital city of Washington, DC, which does not itself belong to any state).
For a more detailed background on the quest that I was pursuing, see my prior posts recounting my karaoke appearances throughout the U.S. in 2016, 2017, and the earlier part of 2018. Between July 2016 and July 2018, the number of states in which I’d karaoked increased from 20 to 49. That left only one state to check off: the archipelago of Hawai’i. I felt it was fitting that the 50th state to join the U.S. would become the 50th state on my American Karaoke Tour.
Blue Hawaii: saving the best for last
Geographically, Hawai’i differs greatly from any other state in the U.S. Consisting principally of 8 main islands (7 of which are inhabited), its territory also includes numerous additional islands, islets, atolls, and reefs. Did you know that Hawai’i is actually composed of 137 total islands of various sizes? Those islands, stretching from Hawai’i (often called the “Big Island”) in the southeast to the Kure Atoll in the northwest, extend for roughly 1,500 miles. But you only ever hear about the octet of main islands — such as Oahu, home to the state’s capital city of Honolulu.
That capital city lies over 2,500 miles southwest of Los Angeles. The Hawaiian state is located in the Tropics, the zone between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. In fact, the main Hawaiian island chain forms one of the corners of the Polynesian triangle. (That triangle’s other vertices are Easter Island and New Zealand.) Such an exotic setting seemed the perfect locale for the culmination of my American Karaoke Tour.
This image shows the complete Hawaiian archipelago.
My first stop in Hawai’i was the island of Oahu. (During the course of my trip, I would also hit the Hawaiian islands of Molokai and Kaua’i, as well as the Pacific Island nations of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia. This blog will cover that subsequent island-hopping in due course.)
By day, I took in some of Oahu’s more notable sites – such as Pearl Harbor, the military base where a Japanese sneak attack on December 7, 1941 drew the U.S. into World War II; the Dole Plantation, which grows large quantities of pineapples, bananas, coffee, cacao, and more; and the summit of the Diamond Head crater, a relic of an extinct volcano, from where you can enjoy sweeping views of downtown Honolulu and the Pacific Ocean.
Looking across Pearl Harbor towards the USS Missouri – the battleship on which the Japanese surrendered in Tokyo Bay in September 1945, officially ending World War II. Today it’s permanently at anchor in Pearl Harbor and serves as a museum.
Baby bananas growing on a banana tree at the Dole Plantation in Wahiawa on Oahu. Did you know that botanists actually classify the banana as a berry?
Seen in downtown Honolulu: the Ferrari that the titular detective drives in the reboot of the television series Magnum P.I., which takes place in and is filmed in Hawai’i.
Karaoke in Honolulu: everybody Wang Chung tonight!
While there was a lot of cool stuff to see on Oahu as well as on the state’s other islands, the impetus for my first-ever jaunt to Hawai’i was to karaoke there. And on December 31, 2018 – New Year’s Eve – it happened! The venue that I chose for the historic occasion was a bar called Wang Chung’s, in Honolulu’s Waikīkī neighbourhood. Waikīkī, best known for its beaches, is quite touristy; but it’s an action-packed and energetic area, abounding with bars, restaurants, and shopping. As a New Yorker, I felt right at home in Waikīkī.
Me in front of the entrance to Wang Chung’s.
The song that I chose for my Hawaiian karaoke debut was “Blue Hawaii,” originally recorded by Elvis Presley. It’s the title song from the 1961 movie of the same name in which the King starred.
When I handed the mic over to the next singer, I had officially achieved my goal of karaokeing in all 50 U.S. states! Several hours later, I rang in 2019 and ushered in a year full of new possibilities.
Future goals for my World Karaoke Tour
Now that I’ve knocked off all the states, the question naturally arises: what new goals will I be setting for my World Karaoke Tour (other than my perpetual drive to visit and sing in more countries)? Previously I’ve discussed a couple of possibilities: (i) add the U.S. territories (Puerto Rico; U.S. Virgin Islands; Guam; Northern Marianas Islands; and American Samoa); or (ii) complete my ongoing project of singing in all of Canada’s provinces and territories. (Thus far, I’ve karaoked in 4 Canadian provinces.) But I’ve decided to make a long-term aspiration of mine a higher priority than either of those other options.
When I sang in Casablanca, Morocco in February 2011, Africa became the 6th continent on which I’d karaoked. Since that time, for nearly 8 years, I’ve been stuck on 6 continents. As you can probably guess, Antarctica is the missing 7th continent for me. Oh, sure, I can make excuses for why I still haven’t made it down there: The southern continent is really far away. It’s extraordinarily expensive to get to. The scientific research bases that have bars with karaoke can’t be reached by the cruise ships that are the form of transportation that conveys most leisure travellers to Antarctica. But I refuse to give in to those excuses any longer. I believe that logistical hurdles, no matter how seemingly intractable, always have solutions. So I’ll find a way. And to incentivize myself to find a way, I’m going to put it out there: within 3 years from the date of this blog post, I’ll karaoke in Antarctica!
Gazing towards downtown Honolulu from the peak of the Diamond Head crater.
Have you been to Hawai’i? If not, is it on your list?
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H-Bomb's Worldwide Karaoke 
Way to go, Harvey! Uncle Marvin and I loved Hawaii. We visited Maui, Kauai and Honolulu! All gorgeous.
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Wow! Congrats. You saved the best for last! Loved that you picked a fitting tune!
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Karaoke or no Karaoke you do look as if you had fun in Hawaii. Looks like there is plenty to do – and I’m amazed that the pearl harbour battleship is still in situ – looking very pristine too
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@Fiona: The Missouri was actually commissioned in 1944, so it wasn’t at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.
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Congrats on finishing your 50 state tour. I think the real question on Antarctica is if karaoke on a cruise ship really counts? Does it need to be in port? Can you bring a portable machine and bust out a set on a shore trip? I would love to see you complete the seven continents but you have to, as they say in pool, call your shot before you make it or it doesn’t count.
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@Jenn and Ed: it has to be on land, unless it’s like in an internal lake or river which for obvious reasons I don’t think exist in Antarctica.
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Hawaii is getting pretty close to the top of my travel wish list. I did not know that Hawaii actually included 137 islands! I would not be sure which of the main islands to start a visit. Certainly Oahu has some historic spots to visit. Hubby is retired navy so Pearl Harbour would probably win the vote. So fun that you sang Blue Hawaii in Hawaii. It will be interesting to see where you karaoke next.
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@Linda: Pearl Harbor is a fantastic place to visit, and there’s a lot to see there.
The next place I sang after Hawai’i was Majuro, Marshall Islands a few days later.
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Wow! You have sang in every single state! You rock! And saving Hawaii to last, great thinking. I wonder if anyone else has done this or are you the first? 😛
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@Danik: whether anyone else has done this is a contentious issue that I won’t get into publicly. I will say that I have reason to believe that at least one person may have completed the same achievement just months before me! So my focus is on the amazing journey that I had, as I can’t control what others have done.
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Wow that sounds like amazing time in Hawaii. So good to listen to you sing. You are doing a unique tour of touring all the states of US.
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@Indrani: Thanks for your kind words.
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Love that you’ve taken on this mission! It’s definitely a passion project and Hawaii sounds great for Karaoke. There are so many different lenses to see the world and communities to join. Wonderful and keep going!
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I love it Karaoke in every State. Well done and Hawaii sounds like the perfect place to finish the list.
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Congratulations! You’re very brave. I would not do that. I’ve only sang karaoke in my own house with friends. That was scary enough. I lived in Hawai’i as a child and it really ruined me for cold weather, which is unfortunate since we have a place in Alaska. I’ve been back one other time, but would love to take my husband some time.
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@Kathleen C.: Hawai’i ruined me for cold weather and then I had to return to NYC during the winter . . .
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Congratulations. And speaking of Hawaii….
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@David C.: Now that is a weird cartoon. 🙂
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Echoes of my childhood. I probably saw every Warner Bros. cartoon made before I was 10 years old, including several that are too politically incorrect to be broadcast (or even released to home video) today.
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amazing congrats on accomplishing your goal..and what a FUN time you must have had?! what was the best state you sang in? Your trip looked fun in general and looking forward to your world tour!
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