North Shore beach at sunset
Knox the Fox wound up in Hawaii last week! He crashed the 14th birthday celebration of my husband’s great niece, Emma, who was camping for three days on Hawaii’s North Shore Beach. The endless breathtaking views, and crystal-clear waters certainly are not the norm for most camping trips, but then most of us aren’t camping in Hawaii.
Camping on North Shore Beach seemed as ordinary for our local Hawaii family as going to Big Ridge Park if you live in Tennessee. They had a glow party, watched movies on the beach, played in the ocean, and had s’mores at the fire pit. Okay, so maybe not exactly the same as camping on the lake.
In addition to the stunning physical setting, the menu resembled something like a hibachi steak house ala camp site. While the family grilled cinnamon bread for breakfast which doesn’t seem so unusual, the main meals consisted of fried rice with Kalbi, Teriyaki beef, Teriyaki burgers and Teriyaki steak. That is definitely not my average camp fare of grilled hot dogs and fried crappie with hushpuppies. I wonder about Teriyaki crappie? According to my husband, it goes on anything and as Mr. Food used to say “Ooh! It’s so good!”
Emma Lee wearing the traditional Haku lei on her 14th birthday
Another tradition is using the Haku lei, an ornamental flower head lei made for celebrations. We might grab a cone-shaped party hat to recognize the honoree, but Emma donned a traditional Haku lei in honor of her special day. I can’t wait to see what the average 16th birthday party includes!
Susan Espiritu is the ultimate optimist who wants to share uplifting, entertaining stories from your communities and youth. Send them to susan@knoxtntoday.com
