Family Vacations in Hawaii

Whether your interests are history, native cultures, hiking, water sports, or simply relaxing in the sun, Hawaii has abundant choices to keep you and your family entertained.

This famous two-mile stretch of sand is home to scores of family-friendly beach hotels and all kinds of action-packed excitement. Waikiki Beach is the perfect place to go if you’re looking for warm ocean water and golden beaches. Kids will enjoy walking along the beach, stopping for shaved ice or an ice cream and taking a dip in a safe area of the ocean.

Some of the tallest ocean waves in the world are found at Oahu, Hawaii’s North Shore coastline during the winter months. These crashing walls of water are born for surfing and offer one of the best free shows on the islands. The North Shore is home to world-class surf contests, attracting the world’s top surfers.

Nothing appeals to the whole family like Hawaiian past coming alive. Besides, the colorful costumes, lively songs, and traditional dances in the Pacific region are presented here. You’ll see customs of Fiji, New Zealand, Marquesas, Samoa, Tahiti, Tonga, and Hawaii all represented in Polynesian Cultural Center’s re-created island villages, which is decorated with palm trees and tropical gardens.

More than 3,500 feet deep, this landmark on Hawaii’s island of Kauai is the largest canyon in the Pacific. Unlike Grand Canyon, plentiful rain keeps Waimea Canyon and its surrounding area thick with vegetation (植被), and visitors are frequently treated to the sight of vivid rainbows. It offers a great canyon view and a covered picnic area.

Being cut from a school team can be a difficult experience for a kid. But when 13-year-old Emmie Tallent who has Down syndrome (唐氏综合征) didn’t make her school’s cheer squad (啦啦队), she responded in the most impressive way — she cheered anyway. Emmie Tallent, agirl with firm determination, took to the sidelines while her school’s cheer squad performed. She matched the entire routine, moving for moving, in a black dress and tie-dyed shoes.

Her sister, Sydnee, recorded this moment on video, and it’s now capturing hearts worldwide. The video, with over 3 million views and 87,000 likes, shows Emmie facing the official squad and performing the routine alongside them. Her performance is nothing short of inspiring. “Girl didn’t make the cheer team, but she didn’t care,” Sydnee wrote, admiring Emmie’s confidence.

“Emmie may not be on the cheer team this time, but I’m sure her talent and spirit will shine through somewhere in the future,” Sydnee said with a smile. “Right now, she’s satisfied and happy doing what she loves. Thank you all for supporting her. I want to show the world Emmie’s joy from pursuing what she likes and the beauty of diversity.”

The team did not have a lot of spots and even neurotypical (神经正常的) girls who were much better than Emmie didn’t make it to join it. Emmie’s school was giving Emmie help and kept encouraging her, but there are hard decisions that have to be made sometimes. Though Emmie didn’t make the squad, she wasn’t feeling upset at home, and continued to follow cheer squad’s routines and moves to please herself and spread joy to others, even if from the sidelines.

In the face of rejection, this tough 13-year-old chose to dance rather than sit by and let it define her, inspiring us all to embrace our uniqueness and find joy in every moment.

Lucy was rescued from a rural farm in New South Wales, Australia, two years ago. She was suffering from chlamydia (衣原体病), a disease widespread among koalas. Today, she is one of “the lucky” living creatures in tree corridors (走廊) that have been created by volunteers to protect koalas and other animals by saving their quickly shrinking habitats, or natural environment.

The corridors, planted by the local conservation group Bangalow Koalas, are made up of large systems of plants. They are intended for koalas and other animals like the glossy black cockatoos, possums, and wallabies. All of them are endangered, or at risk of becoming extinct. The corridors provide a safe path across the koala’s increasingly broken habitat. “Our corridors are actually trying to get them away from humans, from cars and from dogs,” said Linda Sparrow, president of Bangalow Koalas. “They can safely move across the landscapes and don’t have to put up with us humans.”

The koala is predicted to be extinct in the wild in New South Wales by 2050. Some of the biggest dangers include wildfires and habitat loss through land clearing for development. Koalas have already been declared endangered in several Australian states. A recent report by the Australian Koala Foundation said the animal was worth an estimated $3.2 billion per year to the tourism industry.

Founded in 2016, Bangalow Koalas has planted over 936,000 trees on 119 properties, helping koala conservation and improving the local ecosystem. The group, which depends on com munity volunteers, aims to plant 500,000 trees by 2025. Volunteer Lindy Stacker, who has been planting trees for over five years, still remains devoted to the cause. She said the activity is good for mental health and has brought the community together. “I can’t imagine a world where there’s no koalas in the wild. We’re going to do everything we can possibly to. make sure that won’t happen,” Lindy said.

Deep sleep doesn’t just rest your body. Scientists believe it’s also when the brain washes away toxins (毒素), with a new project looking at whether the brain’s self-clean can be boosted.

South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) neuroscientist Dr Tim Sargeant has teamed with Dr Edward Robins from SAHMRI’s Molecular Imaging and Therapy Research Unit to develop a brain scan that shows how well a brain is cleaning itself. Studies have shown that a clean brain would help with memory while fighting dementia (痴呆).

Scientists believe our brains clean themselves out each night when we enter deep sleep. Cerebrospinal fluid (脑脊液) is thought to wash through the brain, cleaning out toxins. Studies have shown a clear link between poor memory and toxins like the buildup of sticky plaques (粘性斑块) in the brains. Scientists believe brains that have a buildup of this plaque over time may not be cleaning themselves properly, putting people at risk of dementia.

Fortunately, the hope is that a clean brain would help with memory while fighting dementia. The brain scan will use special material to track how well the brain can keep itself clean and healthy through the process of removing and recycling its waste. “We’re aiming to catch the signs of the brain struggling to keep itself clean in individuals around the age of 50 or 60, well before the onset of Alzheimer’s disease (老年痴呆症) in most people,” Dr Sargeant said.

This new scan, an exciting imaging technology, will allow scientists to form a picture of a living brain and watch how it’s recycling wasting material in real time. “The scan takes out a lot of the guess work, by allowing scientists to see with their own eyes if they’ve hit the target or not,” Dr Robins said. “Without imaging, a researcher can get all the way up to the trial stage before realising they’re at a dead end.”