Christmas in Downtown Honolulu

It wouldn't be Christmas on Oahu without visiting Honolulu Hale. The grounds are decked out with beautiful decorations, from a giant Santa waving the shaka and dipping his toes in the water, to dozens of Christmas trees decorated by the various City departments, to wreaths submitted by local residents, including school kids.

I like visiting during the day. I like seeing the vibrant colors of the decorations against Hawaii's bright blue skies. But I'll make it a point to at least drive by at night to see everything all lit up.

Here's just a sampling of what you can encounter when visiting.

The focal point (at least for me) is Santa and Tutu Mele, sitting atop a ledge, with fish in the water below.

Whimsical sea creatures circle the tree fronting Honolulu Hale.

The City normally gets a tree from an Oahu resident, but this years tree is artificial. Like last year, the ornament theme is a ocean one.

A couple of bears with musical instruments stand at the entrance to the building.

Dozens of trees fill the interior courtyard. This Piccachu is made out of the bottoms of plastic bottles.

A close up.

More trees.

A row of nutcrackers line up against a wall.

In a back hallway is the wreath display.

I thought this wreath was so clever; it was made up of those plastic tabs used to close bread wrappers.

Outside, on the lawn, there are many displays, including the snowman family.

This is really just a sampling of all the cool things you can see. If you're not in the holiday spirit yet, it will definitely brighten your mood. Christmas is just a few days away, but the displays are up until New Year. In fact, I kinda feel that after Christmas is the best time to go. There are no crowds and you have the place all to yourselves.

Merry Christmas!