Shark, Turtle, Bobblehead.

“In one drop of water are found all the secrets of all the oceans”

Kahlil Gibran 

We had spent the last few days enjoying the local flora and majestic beach and mountain vistas. Today was the day we wanted to see indigenous fauna. It was time to don the snorkels and get up close and personal with the creatures of the deep. First stop was Shark's Cove although no-one has a clue why its called that as the water in the tide pools is not very deep.

 

“Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean.” 

Ryunosuke Satoro

Next stop Laniakea or Turtle Beach in search of the Honu, Hawaii's only indigenous reptile, the Green sea turtle. These creatures existed alongside the dinosaurs and well before Hawaii erupted into creation.  According to local folklore, Honu was created from a drawing on a rock.  This legend holds that because the turtle was part of the earth, the creature must return to land to lay eggs. The turtles of Laniakea use their flippers to drag themselves ashore to bask in the warm sun, they are not there to lay eggs but to feed on the prolific seaweed in the area. They seemed ambivalent to the tourist hordes encircling them while snapping pictures. Native Hawaiians honor the Honu as an ancestral spirit guide, a symbol of wisdom, longevity, peace, humility and good luck. The only longevity I could see being respected were the long lines of traffic crawling along the road which runs parallel to the sand.

"Hanau ka po ia honu kua nanaka"

Meaning "From the darkness of time came the sea turtle with its plated back" 

Kumulipo: A Hawaiian creation chant

The Turtle represents an ancient connection between land, primordial sea and man. The kids and I decided to snorkel up and try to take a closer look. There were so many turtles and they were so unaffected by humans it was difficult to always maintain a respectful distance. Especially so when wearing a fogged up mask underwater. The turtles are difficult to distinguish from the very rocks they are feeding upon. I suppose that put me between a Honu and a hard place.

“My eyes are an ocean in which my dreams are reflected.”

Of course, when the second turtle appeared in my viewfinder the camera made a weird flashing signal I'd never seen before and stopped working. I was forced to just float and enjoy the experience of these solemn stately creatures as they scraped at the seaweed on the coral. The abudance of large boulders and rocky coral shoreline protect the turtles from their main predators, tiger sharks. Just the thought of the word and I started to hear the Jaws music in amongst the underwater sounds.

“May your joys be as deep as the ocean, your sorrows as light as its foam.”

I paddled in every increasing concentric circles while simultaneously trying to keep my bikini under control, fix the camera, breathe through a semi-blocked snorkel and avoid bumping into turtles or tourists. Hauling myself ashore, I flopped onto the sand with far less grace than the reptiles that had pulled in ahead of me. We lay in the brilliant sunshine drying off and I drifted off into a dreamy state of wonder. Turtles can live around 80 years, these turtles of Laniakea have lived through unbelievable changes. Hatched in an era of Duke Kahanamoku they have seen the Pacific Clippers fly overhead, paddled along beaches patrolled by Eddie Aikau and have watched the numbers of tourists increase from around 20,000 in 1930 to over 7 million in 2012. It was amazing that these reptiles had endured the onslaught of man and were so comfortable existing right next to me. It was so easy to sight turtles here, either the ancient gods of the Honu were smiling down on me or my new plastic trinket of another Hawaiian native was bringing me luck. It seemed strange to think of the President anywhere else other than Washington DC.  Now I was even more curious to go to Honolulu and experience Waikiki.

“You can’t really understand Barack until you understand Hawaii.“

Michelle Obama