Yummy-licious by Design: Marukame Udon Restaurant in Downtown Honolulu.

Soichiro Honda (1906-1991) was a successful engineer and industrialist from Japan. He is quoted as saying, "There is a Japanese proverb that literally goes 'Raise the sail with your stronger hand,' meaning you must go after the opportunities that arise in life that you are best equipped to do." 

Well, when the owners of the Marukame Udon in Waikiki announced that it was opening a branch restaurant in downtown Honolulu I was more than ready to seize the opportunity to check out this new eatery off Fort Street Mall. 

Okay, I admit it. I love udon noodles, and I love them at Marukame Udon on Honolulu. So, there! 

Located at the corner of South Hotel Street and Fort Street Mall in downtown Honolulu, Marukame Udon provides a festive, few-frill and affordable venue for satisfying Japanese udon cuisine. Yummy-licious in my book! 

When I was an instructor at Kapiolani Community College's Honda International Center my students from Japan and South Korea raved about the restaurant off Kuhio Avenue in Waikiki. The lines to get in the door were always long. 

My students at that time said that the food served there was the closest thing to home they could find among Waikiki's numerous noodle shops. Still, I have a thing against standing in line for food. It's nothing to do with pride; it's about a hectic schedule that allows little time for such waits. 

Marukame Udon is a favorite among Honolulu's downtown business community and college students from Hawaii Pacific University's nearby campus. Don't be fooled by the line here. Things -and people- move quickly here. 

If you are a downtown Honolulu professional, college student or strolling the streets of nearby Chinatown as a tourist you will find a warm welcome and a refreshingly affordable experience at Marukame Udon's Downtown location. 

Just after you enter you get to choose the style of udon noodles you prefer from the selections here. The cooks behind the counter listen to your wishes and grant your culinary desires accordingly.  

The thick udon noodles served here are not defrosted from the freezers on tanker ships. No, your udon noodles and mine are hand-made. You don't see that too often at all in restaurants where the selections are below US$10.00. How refreshing!

You can be quite creative with a choice of side dishes to accentuate your udon and your palate. The friendly staff behind the counter are more than happy to comply with your wishes. 

These guys are well-prepared and the ingredients are fresh. This ain't no Red Lobster, McDonald's or Burger King. I never get the sense that Marukame Udon is contrived to be Americanized. This is affordable, budget-friendly Japanese cuisine at its best. Yes, even my former student from South Korea raved about Marukame Udon. 

Every time I come here I am reminded of the wondrous hawker food so delightfully enjoyed on my visits to Singapore. Everything here is fresh and healthy. You'll love the festive attitude the staff behind the counter exudes -all-smiles and lots of aloha! 

Yes, your udon cook will offer you these choices according to your wishes. Since I've become a bit spoiled by my cuisine experiences in Singapore the freshness of ingredients is a big issue with me. I was not disappointed at Marukame Udon. 

I've enjoyed both the calamari and fish cakes in tempura. Recommended and easy in the budget? Absolutely! 

I tend to stay away from fried chicken, but this side selection was milder than I expected. 

These imaginative sides include Tuna Mayo, Ginger Beef and Kombu wrapped in Japanese nori. So ono good!

That's not the annoying spam we online know all too well! Spam is huge in Hawaii. In fact, this state is the number one consumer of spam. I've tried the tofu wrap which is a mild and delicious healthy choice. 

On this visit I chose the paitan udon with tempura, fried chicken, sushi and a special green tea. That bowl is larger than it appears. All this, by the way, was less than US$10.00. That's not bad for Honolulu! 

There is a steady stream of activity behind the counter. Everything is immaculately clean. That's a big issue with me - cleanliness. The staff is friendly, festive and always helpful. 

The interior is cafeteria-style with comfortable seats and benches. It's hot and humid in Honolulu most of the time, so the air-conditioning was a welcomed relief. The loft-like atmosphere of the place felt comfortable, too. I sat that the far table near the window. There are electrical outlets for recharging your phone or laptop. There is a McDonald's across the street, and if you are able you might be able to tap into its free wifi.  

Yes, not that the obvious needs repeating. Marukame Udon is on Facebook. Click here! 

Marukame Udon's Downtown Honolulu location is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. It is closed Sundays. Reservations are not taken, nor are they necessary. Yes, it accepts credit and debit cards. 

Parking can be a big issue -though that's true anywhere in the business district. Bike parking is available. There are convenient bus stops on South Hotel Street, as well as off South King and Bishop streets. Just expect to be dodging some of the downtown area's street characters (meth-heads and homeless). 

The restaurant does not deliver, but there is a take-out window facing out South Hotel Street. So, for those of you on-the-go or desiring to bring your udon-fix to the office this is very convenient. 

This is a great place for families with children to come, and it's popular with groups. I've seen tour groups and office staff alike here enjoying themselves and the food. Don't concern yourself with dressing up. The atmosphere here is casual. 

Trust me when I tell you that when you come to Downtown Honolulu you will enjoy your meal and the experience here -and you will be back for more! 

"Besides the Autumn poets sing"

The Second Congregational Church, Greenwich, Connecticut USA. November 2013.

Besides the Autumn poets sing

A few prosaic days

A little this side of the snow

And that side of the Haze

Grant me, Oh Lord, a sunny mind-

They windy will to bear!

Emily Dickinson

"This is God's Country-right here." The Round Hill Store, Greenwich, Connecticut USA

“As my grandfather used to say, this is God’s country—right here.”   

  Bill Strain

Welcome to America's oldest existing and continuously operated general store -open since 1801. Yes, that is before my time.  ;)

My late-father and Bill Strain were good friends and members of the Round Hill Volunteer Fire Department as far back as I recall. On Sundays Dad would be on duty at the firehouse, and I often went with him to wash the fire trucks, munch on TV dinners while watching ABC's Wide World of Sports or Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom, being stationed at the Round Hill Country Club for the July 4 Independence Day fireworks, and go on occasional fire calls

Oh, yes, there were the intermittent cat-stuck-in-a-tree rescues, too. The firehouse were the only ones with ladders tall enough to reunite stuck feline family members with their more earthbound human members. 

Just a stone's throw away from the firehouse is one of backcountry Greenwich's quintessential small town America landmarks -the Round Hill Store. This past August I journeyed back to this special place for the first time in over fifteen years. 

Earlier that day I was with local photographer Christopher Semmes. He asked me to come along on a photo-shoot that morning at one of the Greenwich's prominent law firms. After business was completed Christopher looked at me and asked if there was any place I'd like to visit -he was more than happy to drive. 

And the first place that came to mind was -you guessed right- the Round Hill Store. 

There is something mythic about the Round Hill Store. There's no denying it. Located in the heart of the Round Hill section of my ancestral home town, Greenwich, Connecticut, this special spot has been a witness to history, and to almost every form of inclement weather known to humanity in this corner of America. Through good times and bad the Round Hill Store has seen it all. It tugs at our heartstrings and ever shall. 

This was the first sight I beheld when we walked in the door. It hasn't change in decades. Literally. You can still buy deli sandwiches, groceries -and yes, even electric model trains! 

Breakfast cereal, cake mix, tissues, ice cream bars, maple syrup, Oreo cookies, sandwiches, you name it! You can find it here at the Round Hill Store. 

No holds barred here. Yes, pay for the news before you read it. 

This cupboard functions almost like a museum. Bill Strain said it contains a sampling of products the Round Hill Store has sold over the generations. 

A very, very old cash register is on display. 

Note the sign with the store's "official" no smoking policy: Smokers all be pummeled with punishing blows all over their bodies.  They are serious -well, to a point, I'm sure! 

A boyhood's best car dealership with the latest models has been at the store for years.  :)

When I ask many friends, Round Hill natives and expats alike what they remember most about their visits to the Round Hill Store hands-down it's the penny candies. 

Tootsie rolls and fireballs, anyone?  :)

All aboard! Lionel trains have been produced since 1900. I grew up with Lionel trains, often finding them under the Christmas tree and on my birthday. 

This is an antique Lionel electric toy train that sits on the display shelf. 

Do you know any retailer who sells Lionel trains over-the-counter?

Some of the items on display include a radio, washboard and a pinball machine. 

The Round Hill Store also features an automobile service station. In such a rural part of Greenwich a place like this was necessary. The nearest service station was about three miles away -and grocery store about five miles. The area is still dominated by small farms, horse stables, and estates. Especially in the winter places like the Round Hill Store and its service station are indispensable. 

The repair shop was abuzz with activity when Bill Strain brought Christopher Semmes and I through it. 

No car or truck is too new or too classic -like this one- for tender loving care and trustworthy repairs than that found at the service station. They also service and repair farm equipment and lawn mowers. 

I do not have adequate words to describe the smiles this antique marvel brought to my heart. They would not let me have the keys, but I did try! Truth be told, I have a very special-someone in Singapore who I would have loved to take on a summer or autumn Sunday drive around my old Round Hill neighborhood in this classic beauty.  Sorry, everyone, this baby just fits two -and that seat will be taken.  :)

These two houses next door come with an interesting story courtesy of Bill Strain. He said that a man who also shared the same first and surname as my father lived in one house with his wife. Things did not work out between the two, so they divorced. It did to take long for that Mrs. Mead to move herself and her things to the house next door and the man who married her rather quickly. All continued to live next door to each other for many years. How awkward indeed!

This way to the firehouse located near the Round Hill Store on Old Mill Road. 

Bill Strain told me a heretofore unknown story about my Dad. Years ago Dad was on duty during a raging winter snowstorm. Apparently he was bored. Dad decided to hike home -and like the former U.S. Marine that he was, Dad thought the nearly three miles it would take to walk from the firehouse to our home would be quite manageable. He promised to call when he arrived at our house. When the other firefighters had not heard anything they sent out a search party, discovering his whereabouts on Burying Hill Road. Yes, they brought him home. 

This Queen Anne-styled home is nestled between the Round Hill Store and the Round Hill Firehouse. It is undergoing extensive renovation and restoration. Soon, it will be reborn as the offices of the Greenwich Land Trust, a local conservation nonprofit that safeguards the open, undeveloped lands under its care. 

For over two centuries the Round Hill Store has endured. General stores in the New England states like this one have endured by changing with the times and yet have stayed true to their histories and their traditions. I pray that it shall endure for generations to come. In a time when mom-and-pop stores across America have sailed off into the sunset this special place to our hearts has stayed true to its historical foundations. 

The Round Hill Store is independent and practical -just like the people who call this place home. 

Why does this place and others like it tug at our heartstrings? This was more than just a place to buy penny candies, sandwiches, breakfast cereal, laundry detergent and all the other necessities of life. The store was for us fortunate to grow up here and still serves as a gathering place. For generations news was shared, people scattered across the landscape could share and nurture friendships, a place to call home-away-from-home. It was the place where you could visit the store's bulletin board, scan its notices for ads for math tutoring, a lawn mower for sale, perhaps a dog or a cat gone missing. 

We remember with fondness Mrs. Strain, those 1950s eyeglasses she wore and how she would count the penny candies you purchased one-by-one, putting them in a bag and sending you on your way. 

As many who called Round Hill home and gone off to parts all over the world, I'd like to think that those penny candies mean something else today to expats everywhere.

One last look, until we meet again -and we shall. 

I've heard it said that your true friends are the ones who you can go for months without talking to and when you reconnect nothing has changed. You mention this place to people of all walks of life from Greenwich and the nostalgia the store evokes pours out from the heart like no other place does. 

If you are feeling a bit teary-eyed I have some news. You are not alone, I assure you. 

As I close I draw to your attention a superb article authored by Timothy Dumas in Greenwich Magazine. Click here for the link. It will make you smile. 

In a time of whirlwind change, globalization and uncertainties in life one could always find the doors open to a place perpetually consistent and calm like the eye of a storm. 

As we thanked our hosts for such a precious trip down "Memory Lane," I felt reconnected. I could not say good-bye, because I knew as we drove off to our next destination that I would return. I wanted so much to bring my old friends and neighbors back to the Round Hill Store. But I also have those friends and former students in Hawaii, in Asia -and a special-someone- who I wanted to share this place with. I pray that day comes. 

The Round Hill Store is like that for us -a true friend that is always there waiting and welcoming. 

Happy Aloha Friday! Today's Sunrise at the Eastern Tip of Oahu at 6:23 a.m. Hawaii Standard Time

Pointing the Way to Heaven: The Second Congregational Church's Iconic Steeple

The August 28 edition of Greenwich Time featured this story on our journey up the steeple of the Second Congregational Church. The photos were all contributed by me. It was not in the online edition of the paper.  I received two copies from Christopher Semmes literally on my way to Newark Airport and my return to Honolulu on August 29. By the way, I am a native of Round Hill, not Cos Cob -though I did live in Cos Cob when I was in graduate school while attending Manhattanville College in New York. 

It was a dream come true.

I was about to boldly go where very few people had gone before -up the interior of the steeple of Greenwich, Connecticut's Second Congregational Church.

Just before I was due to leave town and return to Hawaii Christopher Semmes, Church Caretaker Tony Izzi and I were to ascend to the top of the steeple. It had taken a long time to get to this point. Scheduling conflicts made for a complicated route to get us all together in late August. But as we like to say, "God will provide."

A pictorial story was featured about our journey in the Greenwich Time newspaper. It was published the day before my departure. It was not, however, featured in the online edition of the paper. So, for Greenwich residents and expats everywhere I have some wonderful news for you!

You have been invited by me -a church member and direct descendent of the founders in 1705- to come along for the climb! I've included many more pictures and comments than the published story in Greenwich Time.

So, without further delay, let's go!

At long last! I had not been up inside the steeple in many years. Here I am in the cemetery next door with the steeple in the background. 

At 217 feet tall, the steeple is the tallest structure in Greenwich. It was dedicated in 1858. I am a bit partial when I say that there are very few places elsewhere in which I feel so centered and connected than here. 

This is an image I captured of the steeple in July 2008. I was standing on Island Beach, a small recreational island off the Greenwich coastline. I estimate that the distance is three miles. The steeple is used as a navigation landmark for passing ships going to or coming from New York City. It's been that way since 1858!

This nondescript door off the west balcony in the main sanctuary was our gateway to the ascent up the steeple. 

This is the sound and light room for the main sanctuary. A second doorway would lead us to the initial steps of our ascent. 

So, now you know where the Christmas decorations are stored. 

One of the first things I did when we entered the steeple was look straight up. Here's what I saw. You can peer all the way to the level where the clock mechanism is housed. 

This is a section of the original weathervane that once stood atop the steeple in 1858. The one you and I see today is a reproduction. It's quite big, by the way. In the space provided this was the best I could do for an comprehensive shot. 

These were the first set of "stairs" we ascended to the next level. Tony said that the incline is at 70 degrees, not the usual 45 degree angle! It was more like climbing a set of ladders. Those steps or rungs are not very wide either. 

After ascending the first set of stairs this was the scene I encountered. One of the aspects of our journey was that each level inside the steeple had a character or personality of its own. The warmth emanating from the window fostered a sense of stillness that I found calming. As you can see another set of steps awaited our ascent. Up, up and away we went! What would be find next? 

Those stairs are narrow and steep, trust me. Tony laughed when I showed up wearing white pants given all the dust that was everywhere. Somehow I managed to keep myself clean. Ha ha ha!

The light streaming though this lower level of the steeple evokes both the light of hope and creation.  As I peered out this window this is what I saw:

Have you ever wondered what the right turn at the top of Milbank Avenue at East Putnam Avenue looks from up on high?  To the left in the image is part of the main gate to the former Milbank estate that once graced the nearby landscape. The skies above us were hazy. If you look closely at the image you can see the North shore of Long Island on the horizon. 

More steep stairs awaited us. Each portal to the next level was very narrow. I could barely fit my shoulders though them. 

The next level was an interesting contrast to the one below.  The subdued light in this space reminds us that true beauty is revealed when there is a light from within.

The stairs to the next level were the first to be off-center. It would be on this level where we would encounter the steeple's clock mechanism.

The amount of space for us to move had considerably narrowed and dwindled by this time. We could not peer into the clock mechanism itself since it was housed behind and underneath a wooden covering.

Walking atop the wooden housing of the clock mechanism was the most delicate part of the journey. What you are seeing here is from the platform at the base of the final stairs to the church bell level -and the outside.  The pole that you see is what controls the hands on the clock you see from the streets and sidewalks below.

Yes, that is natural sunlight! We're almost there!

One last look down before I ascended the final stairs to the top. 

Christopher Semmes went up just before me and after Tony Izzi reached the top. I was next. 

The truth? I felt like a kid in a candy store when Tony Izzi, Christopher Semmes and I reached the top. I suppose this was the first time anyone would be able to share images of the experience via the Internet. With that in mind I'm really glad you could come along -no matter where in the world you happen to be. 

When I emerged to the bell level I captured this image looking straight up into the pinnacle of the top of the steeple.  

The February 14, 1919 of the Greenwich News & Graphic reported that "that Charles N. Mead had presented a bell for the new spire, in memory of six successive generations of deacons in his family, serving this church for nearly 200 years."

"It will be a victory and peace bell, bearing the inscription “Glory to God in the Highest, and on Earth Peace, Good Will Toward Men.” It will be cast at the Meneely Works in Troy, and probably will be installed by Easter Sunday."

Christopher Semmes was having the time of his life. Could you blame a photographer for feeling a bit joyful? Commanding views such as what we were treated to are rare. 

When the steeple was built almost 160 years ago lime, sand and mortar were used in the stonework. Weather extremes and other factors caused the top section in particular to disintegrate. This was discovered during World War I. The entire steeple was rebuilt using the scaffolding pictured here. Each stone was removed and labeled. But a windstorm around Easter Sunday 1918 caused the scaffolds to sway dangerously. Without the stonework there to anchor it, the scaffold collapsed. 

A view of the adjacent cemetery from the top of the steeple. From 1917 to 1919 the steeple was methodically removed and rebuilt. Scaffolds were supported by guy wires, one of which was connected in the cemetery. During a sudden windstorm sometime around Easter, 1918, the scaffolds collapsed into the cemetery and damaged a number of the gravestones. A number of those damaged gravestones still dot the cemetery. 

This is a direct view from the steeple looking out towards the Village of Cos Cob, Riverside, Long Island Sound and Long Island, New York in the distance. 

This commanding view looks out towards the First Presbyterian Church's steeple, the downtown Greenwich district and beyond into Southern Westchester County, New York. If you look closely at the horizon you can catch a view of the Manhattan skyline in New York City, about 45 miles away. 

Pointing Heavenward, Greenwich's Second Congregational Church was designed by Leopold Eidlitz and dedicated in 1858. The steeple is 217 feet tall. 

In 1994 my local history column was entitled Looking Back. Greenwich Time published an article I penned, When a Town Landmark Almost Tumbled. Here it is, transcribed in its entirety from the Sunday, April 17 edition: