Surf's Up!

R's cousin A arranged for surf lessons for M and J with his buddy Kevin, owner of Heʻe Nalu Surf School. Since Kevin scouts out several locations for the best conditions each morning, we were up early, eagerly awaiting the notification about where to meet up. By 8:30AM, we were at Kalapaki Beach in Lihue. A was already there, ready to go out on his foil.

Kevin was a fantastic instructor! He went over the basics on the beach with the boys, then the three of them paddled out into the cove.

When they were younger, M and J tried surfing in SoCal with friends of ours with only minimal success. But today, M popped right up and rode a wave on his first try, while J made it up on his second! From the seawall, R and I watched them both catch wave after wave. Super fun to watch A ride his foil, too!

Mahalo, Kevin!

M and J agreed that it was much easier to get up on the boards here as compared to California because the waves moved faster. And because the sets came one right after the other, they had more opportunities to ride. Having much warmer water temps was a welcome bonus! What a great experience for the boys, thanks to "Uncle A"!

Afterwards, we went back to the house for a cookout with the cousins. What a spread! 

C working the grill and R cutting tako

Got to try opihi and tako (octopus) for the first time!

After we had eaten our fill, M, J, and their second cousin R got some lessons from C in how to throw a fishing net. 

Gorgeous view of Nounou Mountain from the backyard

Later in the afternoon, R gave us an informal tour as we drove him back to his house, pointing out several areas of significance to our family. 

The field just beyond the trees was where the family farmed rice

The two youngest cousins of the next gen - R edges out J by 7 months.

R and I were really happy that the boys were able to spend so much time connecting with our ʻohana over the past few days. So important for them to know the family history!