I was long overdue for some exploring after working last weekend. Today I decided to get up early and head to Hanauma Bay. One of the most popular snorkeling areas on the island, you have to get there early because they often end up turning people away by mid-morning due to lack of parking. It feels like a bit of an ordeal to actually make it to the beach - there's a slow-moving line to pay the entry fee ($5 for you people, free for me and my Hawai'i driver's license), you're required to watch a movie (more on that later), then a walk down into the cove to the beach area. The guy in front of me did his best to ruin my morning, he couldn't complain enough ("how hard can it be to count five dollars?" and "why do we have to wait in one line?"). When he got to "is the weather going to improve?" (Seriously? It was cloudy and a bit overcast because it was 8:30 am, but I have lived here for almost 3 months now and it has been breezy and sunny every day I've been here. No exaggeration. Every day.) I got annoyed and decided to warn him about jellyfish (even though I knew there were none -that was last week, and they are a monthly phenomenon). He was lucky, in that I almost felt compelled to pull out my drowning statistics to scare him as well (that's true - get out a bit too far and there are currents there that will take you down fast - "drowning in Hanauma Bay" is a frequent cause of death reported to me at work). And on that cheerful note, on with my story...
HB is actually a nature preserve, so they have fantastic conservation measures in place. They're closed completely once a week for repairs and upkeep, every person who attends must watch a video about respecting the reef (and not drowning), and there are knowledgeable volunteers all over the place.
Anyway, I got settled in and didn't want to leave. I snorkeled a fair amount, and was pretty amazed that you could see some really cool, large, bright fish in knee high water. Typical - there were people around who claimed to see sea turtles, but no such luck for me. I probably would've snorkeled even more, but my rental mask was for shit - it had a small leak that got pretty annoying, but I couldn't make myself return it for a new one, since it was my second. I broke my first one before I even got in the water (shh). I'm guessing that snorkeling gear is probably a good investment for me, considering it's not that expensive, and I do live in Hawaii. I also see people a lot snorkeling in a specific area off the beach closest to my house, and I'm curious to know what's out there.
Anyway, wrapping up. Fantastic day, swam, read, enjoyed a snack shop hot dog, finally decided to leave due to concern for sun exposure. I was there for over 4.5 hours. When I got home, I realized that I was diligent as all get out about sunscreen protection on all parts of my body... except for my face. How do I forget that? After the first application, I kinda forgot. As a result, I'm sunburned like crazy. Got home, made a snack, changed to go walk around Diamondhead.... and promptly fell asleep for a two hour nap. Haven't left the apartment since. Those days at the beach really take it out of you.
So that was my day. Oh, pictures, you ask? I had my camera in the car, but didn't take it down to the beach as I would have had to leave it unattended for hours while in the water. I did go to take a couple of picks from the lookout before I left, only to discover my camera batteries were dead. Boo. This is what you missed: http://www.terragalleria.com/pacific/oahu/hanauma-bay/picture.hawa33078.html . And yes, the water is really that color. It's stunning. For pics of the fishes: http://www.honolulu.gov/parks/facility/hanaumabay/underwatertour.htm.
Oh, one more thing. On my way out, the author and illustrator of a children's book were there for a book signing. The book's pretty cute, so, while she doesn't know it, my niece is now the proud owner of an autographed copy of A Fishy Alphabet in Hawai'i. While I mostly bought it because it's cute and I have a book-buying obsession when it comes to the kid, I'm not going to lie - there is the added bonus of the thought of my brother and sister-in-law having to read unfamiliar Hawaiian words out loud. It starts out uneventfully - C is for clownfish, E is for eel, etc. Then you get to H is for Humuhumunukunukuapua'a and I is for I'lao. That's funny. (Humus are the state fish, FYI).
More on tomorrow's (perhaps indoor) adventures. Happy birthday to Mom and Audrey, congrats to Jackie (marriage) and Lisa (pregnancy). Lots of well-deserved happiness for the Schoeneberg/Sigler/Daugherty/whatever Brian's last name is (sorry, Brian, I cannot remember to save my life) families.
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