CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING AT MARKET CITY
Tuesday Dec 2 – 6:30pm
Market City Shopping Center will ring in the holiday season with its annual tree lighting festivities. The event will feature the inflation of the 32-foot-tall Santa Claus, lighting of the landmark monkey pod tree and concert by singer Danny Couch. For more information call 524-6441.

MILILANI HIGH SCHOOL CHORUS CHRISTMAS CONCERT
Thursday Dec 4 – 10am
Students from the Mililani High School Chorus will be presenting a Christmas Concert in the lobby of the Pacific Beach Hotel. For more information call 921-6125.

HAWAIIAN CEREMONY FOR EDDIE AIKAU
Thursday Dec 4 – 3pm
A traditional Hawaiian blessing ceremony for competitors in the “Quiksilver In Memory of Eddie Aikau” big wave surfing event will be held on the beach at the memorial stone of legendary big wave rider and Waimea Bay’s first lifeguard, Eddie Aikau - the namesake of the event. The event is held annually in his memory and this ceremony signals the start of the holding period (Dec 5 thru Feb 28). For more information call Jodi 638-7700.

ANNUAL FESTIVAL OF TREES CRAFT SHOW
Friday Dec 5 to 7 – 10am to 5pm
The 49th Annual Festival of Trees craft show and sale benefiting the Queen’s Medical Center Auxiliary will feature custom-decorated trees and an exciting array of beautiful, handmade holiday decorations, including intricately crafted Christmas shadow boxes. Festival is located at the Ward Warehouse, 2nd Floor Conference Rooms. For more information call 547-4397.

KANEOHE CHRISTMAS PARADE
Saturday Dec 6 – 9am to 10:30am
The annual Kaneohe Christmas Parade is a great way to welcome in the holiday season. The parade begins at the Windward Mall, heads into Kaneohe on Kamehameha Highway and ends at Castle High School. It will include local school bands, marching units, floats and of course, Santa. For more information call 845-4111.

HONOLULU CITY LIGHTS OPENING CEREMONIES & PARADE
Saturday Dec 6 – 4pm
This annual Christmas event starts with children’s entertainment and food booths on the lawn of Honolulu Hale. At 6:00 p.m., the Public Workers Holiday Season Parade begins at Aala Park and travels 4 blocks to Honolulu Hale, passing in front of City Hall at 6:30 p.m., precisely the time the big Christmas tree on the lawn and the lights in the downtown corridor are lit. Santa arrives at 7:30 p.m., and there is a Christmas concert on the lawn from 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. For more information call 523-2489.

CHORAL CHRISTMAS CONCERT
Saturday Dec 6 – 7pm to 8:30pm
The Hawaii Pacific University International Chorale and Vocal Ensemble will present the 2nd Annual “Christmas Around the World,” holiday concert. The groups will join together to sing holiday music from Spain, Austria, China, Puerto Rico, Great Britain, South Africa, North America, Korea, Latvia, among others. The event is free, and will take place at St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Honolulu. For more information call Susan 544-1127.

CANCER RESEARCH FUNDRAISER
Saturday Dec 6 – 7pm to 10pm
The Cheesecake Factory, at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center, will be hosting its Very Grand Opening to benefit the Friends of the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii. The “friends” will receive 100% of all ticket sales for the event. For tickets and more information call 524-6441 ext 22.

ANNUAL CHRISTMAS FESTIVAL
Saturday Dec 6 & 7 – 9am to 4pm
The 29th Annual Pacific Handcrafters Guild Christmas Festival will be held at Thomas Square Park. The festival will feature fine arts & crafts, these include pottery, wood, clothing, glass, jewelry, seed leis, Japanese style bags, polymer clay art, folk art, metal sculpture, miniature Hawaiian hula ornaments & fish hook pendants. For more information call 841-0171.

COWBOY CHRISTMAS SALE
Sunday Dec 7 – 10am to 6pm
Naturally Hawaiian Gallery and Gifts will be hosting their annual Cowboy Christmas Sale at the gallery in Waimanalo (41-1025 Kalanianaole Hwy). The sale will include artwork, books, handmade Christmas ornaments and Santa will be there too. For more information call Patrick 259-5354.

TOYS FOR TOTS RUN
Sunday Dec 7 – 10am
The Street Bikers United 30th Annual Toy for Tots Run will support the needy children of Hawaii. All SBU members and motorcycle enthusiasts are encouraged to attend and participate in the parade. Meet at Magic Island at 10:00 a.m., the parade will leave at 3:00 p.m. heading down Kalakaua Ave. through Waikiki. For more information call 291-3370.

GINGERBREAD FESTIVAL
Sunday Dec 7 – 10am & 1pm
The Neal Blaisdell Center Exhibition Hall will once again be filled with laughter, delight, and lots and lots of gingerbread as the 4th Annual Gingerbread festival returns for the holiday. The festival is produced by Easter Seals Hawaii and is a wonderful opportunity for friends and family members to get together and enjoy the enchantment of the holidays. For reservations (call as soon as possible) and more information call 536-1015.

HONOLULU CITY LIGHTS TROLLEY TOURS
Sunday Dec 7 to 30 – evenings
The annual trolley tours give you the opportunity to sit back and enjoy the thousands of twinkling lights and festive holiday displays throughout downtown Honolulu. The tours begin at the Victoria Ward Center (Auahi Street trolley station). Tickets can be purchased at the Ward Warehouse Customer Info booth; proceeds from the ticket sales will benefit the Hawaii Foodbank. The trolley will not run on December 24 or 25. For information call 591-8411.

MEDITATION WORKSHOP
Monday Dec 8 – 6:30pm to 7:30pm
A meditation workshop, “Stress reduction for the Holiday Season” will be conducted by Dr. Dean Nelson at WindHorse HealthCare, 970 N. Kalaheo Ave. #C135. For information call 254-5577.

DEAF SANTA CELEBRATION
Thursday Dec 11 – 10am to Noon
The state’s only deaf and signing Santa will be at Pearlridge Uptown (2nd floor) to celebrate the holiday season with over 100 deaf and hard-of-hearing keiki from around the state. For more information call 488-0981.

WAIMANALO CHRISTMAS PARADE
Saturday Dec 13 – 10am to 11am
The parade will begin at Waimanalo District Park and end at Waimanalo Beach Park. This year’s parade will include school bands, marching units and Santa. For more information call 259-7342.

KAPOLEI CHRISTMAS PARADE
Saturday Dec 13 – 5:30pm to 6:30pm
As part of the Sunset on the Planes, the annual Kapolei Christmas Electric Light Parade will travel from Kapolei Hale to the Kapolei Fairgrounds. It will feature Santa in an airplane, a variety of well-lighted vehicles, marching bands, (including the Royal Hawaiian Band), and other surprises. For more information call 349-5992.

HAWAII AVIATION CELEBRATION
Saturday Dec 13 & 14 – 10am to 4pm
The aviation celebration will be celebrating 100 years of flight and 93 years of flight in Hawaii. The event will be held at Kalaeloa Airport and will feature a spectacular air show; a display of military, commercial, and civilian aircraft; and historical and educational aviation exhibits, including a Wright Brothers flyer flight simulator and Wright Brothers flyer replica operating engine. For more information call 838-8712.

HONOLULU MARATHON
Sunday Dec 14 – 5am
The 31st Annual Honolulu Marathon will run through Honolulu, Waikiki, Kahala, Hawaii Kai and Diamond Head. The finish line will be near the bandstand in Kapiolani Park, the first finishers will be expected to cross the finish line just after 7am. For more information call 734-7200.

MERMAIDS HAWAII
Friday Dec 19 – 7pm
Mermaids Hawaii present their 33rd annual Christmas Water Show in the beautiful and historic pool at the downtown YMCA (1040 Richards St.). The show will feature synchronized swimming set to modern, Hawaiian and classical music – the routines are cute, glamorous, loaded with sparkle and will feature at least one real-live mermaid. For information call 538-3255.

MOCHITSUKI FESTIVAL
Sunday Dec 28 – 9am to 2pm
Come and experience the Japanese culture of mochi pounding at the annual Mochitsuki Festival held at the Honbushin International Center (95-030 Waihonu St., Mililani). Families can actually take part in the pounding and shaping of mochi. Free samples will be available for tasting. For more information 623-7693