Tuesday, January 27, 2015

A (kind of) Hidden Gem

There's a place in Honolulu that few tourists know about and even fewer get to visit. It's a beautiful estate (an area of land or property) located near Diamond Head. The name of the place is Shangri La, and it's a mansion built by American philanthropist (a person who donates money to a good cause), Doris Duke.




In 1936, Doris Duke began construction of Shangri La. She spent almost 60 years, through the end of her life in 1993, collecting and commissioning (asking someone to do something for you) works of art from the Islamic world. Her vision was to marry (to combine) her love of Islamic art and architecture with the tropical landscape of Hawaii.






Today, visitors may join a two-and-a-half hour tour of this exotic place with its dramatic views of the Pacific Ocean and Diamond Head. But you can't just show up there; you must book your tickets in advance here: http://honolulumuseum.org/385-about_shangri_la