Honolulu

Over 900,000 inhabitants live on the island of Oahu with 380,000 calling Honolulu home. It's the capital of Hawaii as well as the business hub. The compact downtown fronts the waterfront and is anchored by a half-dozen or so high-rise office buildings including several spiffy-looking new ones. Nary a single building sports a company name or corporate logo on the exterior. Why? It's against the law. Billboards are also banned. Walk a few blocks and you're at the Hawaii State Capitol (built in 1969). Heck, go five miles and you're at the airport or go three miles in the other direction and you'll wind up at Waikiki beach. The University of Hawaii has campuses on three islands with the University of Hawaii, Manoa campus (located about three miles from downtown Honolulu) being the largest with over 21,000 students. I mention the University of Hawaii because it's a large university AND being close to the beach usually means an extensive network of bike routes and bike lanes for cyclists. Not so here in Honolulu. What's with the picture on this page? That's Iolani Palace. Built in 1882, it's the only royal palace used as an official residence by a reigning monarch in the United States. Kings and queens ruled Hawaii until the monarchy was overthrown in 1893.