Life — April 11, 1930 — page 11: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Page 9: "On the Beach at Waikiki" This page contains a humorous dialogue between two travelers meeting at Waikiki Beach (Hawaii). One character, Jones, encounters Smythy and they reminisce about romantic travel experiences—referencing Cook's voyages, gallant conquistadors, and exotic locales with "jasmine and wistful white ginger." The joke satirizes tourists who romanticize travel while ignoring mundane reality. Smythy suggests they go "down the street and having a hoot" (get drunk), deflating the grand romantic pretensions just expressed. The cartoon at top depicts apartment dwellers eating outdoors, with a caption about adopting "European habits" from abroad—gently mocking how travelers adopt foreign affectations. The illustration shows a woman at Waikiki with the caption "George, you're five minutes late!"—suggesting vacation romance is as ordinary and domestic as everyday life.