CHINATOWN

Between the historic center to the east and the Nuuanu River to the west, Chinatown is a tangle of streets where most of Honolulu's Asian population works rather than lives. Built in 1860, on Honolulu's red-light district where sailors came to get drunk and see prostitutes, it is in fact the oldest Chinatown in the United States. It was founded by Asian workers who came to Hawaii at the beginning of the 19th century to work on the sugar plantations. It is therefore above all the Asian countries from which these workers came that are represented in Chinatown, namely China, Japan, Korea, the Philippines and Vietnam. Other nationalities, such as Thai or Taiwanese, came to the district during the 20th century. The district does not really resemble the other Chinatowns in the United States with their dragons and well decorated scarlet doors. Honolulu's Chinatown was not built as a tourist attraction. Grocery stores and craft stores abound. However, beware of the many counterfeit items that could cost you a lot of money when you go through customs, if you were unfortunate enough to buy them. Finally, you should plan to go to Chinatown early in the morning and, possibly, have lunch in one of the typical canteens on the spot because, after 3 pm, the stores and restaurants almost all close. It is better not to linger after this time because the district becomes less frequented