I would never guess that there would be a tiki bar on Lopez Island! I'll have to explore the San Juan Islands during one of my summer visits to Washington. I'm heading up there for 3 weeks this July, but I'm not sure of my plans for most of it just yet. Going to do some planning with my daughter when she comes to visit me here on Kauai next month and we just might go to the tiki bar here before they close!

@Julie808 Be aware the hotel was built decades ago when the Hawaiian theme was in vogue. It still advertises itself as a Tiki bar. A comment on FB.
"Fun Tiki Bar.. Especially if you are boater great marina and vibe. Live music weekend"

@jackjr Are you saying a Hawaiian theme is no longer in vogue? For some of us, it's always in vogue, haha! Well, here in Hawaii anyway!

@Julie808 Of course for a non-native. Wonder how many native Hawaiians travel and adopt other cultures?

@jackjr There are a lot of Hawaiians who moved to the west coast for school or work and they often keep their culture alive, while also adapting and absorbing their current surroundings. (Not so much the kitschy/tacky tiki bar thing, but the real life culture and values, music and hula, kindness as a way of life.) They might become fans of the local sports teams and that carries over when they come back home to Hawaii. For example, there is a store here on Kaua'i that sells "Alohawks" shirts and hats, a blend of Aloha and Seahawks.

@Julie808 Still, I'll bet there that come and stay. Maybe not so much in our temperate climate but perhaps in warmer ones like California.

@jackjr They go where the jobs are. There is such a housing shortage in Hawaii, that many residents of working age have to go elsewhere to live. We have a lot of retirees and vacation rentals, but not a lot of affordable housing for those of working age.

@Julie808 Sounds sadly common. After the major fire I'm sure things got a lot worse. So another common theme, more wealthy coming and and fewer locals being able to afford housing. In W. Washington we had that phenomenon in the 90's and it was called Californacation (I added it to the dictionary, lol).
This may create some controversy but we have serious homeless issues here. One thing I noted that the homeless items in the paper doesn't mention any causes (only useless fixes). More and more items about the local churches that can no longer handle the influx if migrants and have run out of homeless camps have appeared. Cause and effects. A big problem, of which few are privy is that religious groups actually sponsor immigrants to come here. We discovered this in some overpopulation group. My late partner (an immigrant from Iran) personally ran into an episode where 32 immigrants from Africa came to the area. One, older son came early, learned the language and became a spokesperson for the family (4 wives and 28 children). Many religious groups get away with a lot of crap (mostly to raise their numbers of members) and the government is wary of going after the abuses as it might make the government ans being anti-religion. I have more details on this particular case and it is scary.

Yes, they are married and live here on Kauai. They own the Tiki Bar mentioned in the article, which she's decided to sell after 10+ years. Before running the Tiki Bar, Michelle was active in various plays and shows. Years ago, I was lucky enough to attend one of the plays she put on in their back yard. She's a colorful character, for sure!

I remember when some investors were gathered to put up some capital for Tiki Iniki, one of the couples got married and I performed the wedding, after which everyone sung "I Saw the Light" on the beach. I only knew the chorus, not all the verses. Fun!

We've got a lot of musicians who live full or part time on this island. Including Bill Kruetzmann, drummer for the Grateful Dead, who I'm guessing by your avatar that you might know of.

You can experience the tiki bars here in the 50th state, if you ever feel like thawing out from your Alaska winters!