Misconceptions

 It is easy to think you understand the basics of Hawaii, but then you find that what you thought you knew is ancient history or was never the case. Sugar cane is not a staple of the economy and is grown now as mostly a novelty. Dole pineapples and bananas also are no longer local. If you see a lady selling what I call a yellow pineapple at the farmers' market, she is taking advantage of the ignorance of tourists. The $8 pineapple you purchased was first purchased for less than $2 at COSTCO and it is the same pineapple you get from COSTCO back in the midwest. 

The pineapples grown locally that are unique are called "Sugar Loaf", are white, and have a different taste. A delicacy here is based on freezing these pineapples and then turning the frozen chunks into a type of soft serve that is expensive, but very tasty.

The bananas you purchase in the midwest also do not come from here. The local bananas are smaller and taste different (the following photo shows Sugar bananas and the more common banana available everywhere). Unfortunately, the angle from which I took the position distorts the size of each and the sugar bananas are actually about half the size of the more commonly eaten variety. It is weird how this photography stuff works.