MISSION HOUSES MUSEUM

The houses where the first missionaries lived, who came to Oahu in 1819, are still standing and have been transformed into a museum. The furniture, the dishes, the books, the paintings, the tapestry... Everything has been left as it was in the Mission Houses Museum. We dive into the past and the daily life of these Protestants from the Boston area, who left a comfortable life to come and convert the Hawaiians to their religion. Most of them had never traveled and knew absolutely nothing about Hawaiian culture. So they learned the language of the natives to better transmit their beliefs, even translating the Bible into Hawaiian; a vintage copy is on display in the museum. The construction of churches and schools on the island at the same time are evidence of the assiduous work of Christianization of the priests among the locals. The visit (obligatory guided) of the houses is fascinating because it allows to better understand the fundamental role played by the missionaries in the history of the archipelago. Two slots are available from Tuesday to Friday, at 11am and 1pm, and also at 3pm on Saturday. Reservations can be made online. The visit is all the more interesting since it is often a direct descendant of the missionaries who is the guide! The museum has a store with original "made in Hawaii" souvenirs. Finally, conferences (in person or on video) are regularly organized to "make the archives speak".