Momma Linda: December 23. Saturday, Christmas Eve Eve in Hawaii.

Today is my day to have some fun. But first I had to do breakfast. I guess we had banana smoothies again. I really can't remember (typing this on Sunday). I had to meet the kayak people down at the beach at 11:15, but that morning, Mike and I also wanted to get some laundry done. We gathered up our stuff and tore out of here looking for the "Washereette" that we knew was somewhere nearby, as we'd passed it coming or going at one time or another. When we found it, I realized after watching he clock and timing our drive out of Napo po'o po'o road (11 minutes) and how long to get to Washerette that we'd be cutting it really REALLY close in getting me back to the beach, not to mention back to Kay's in time for me to get changed and walk down there. As it turns out, there was plenty of time cuz many other people in our group didn't show up at 11:15. I have no way of knowing since I wasn't wearing my watch, didn't take my phone. Anyway, we just drove back to Kay's house. It's Saturday and she'd gone to the Farmer's market to peddle her wares. I had plenty of time now to get changed and ready. When I walked in the door, Gayela was just finishing up the breakfast dishes which I had totally forgotten about and ran out and left in the sink. MIKE took the car and went to go do the laundry. By himself. I tried to prime him for the experience, as I had just gone to a laundramat a week or so ago (for work, washing up the lost and found items before donating them) and he couldn't even remember the last time he'd gone to one. It did end up costing quite a lot and he brought home wet clothes to try on lines and hangars here. But we have clean travel clothes. yay.

While I was getting ready, I checked to see if my phone had finished charging and found that there was a missed phone call and a voice mail from the Carls'. Again. They had been sitting out in front of Kays that morning (like around 8:30 or 9 am, never knocked on the door. They said, "We thought someone would be poke their head out, but I guess you're resting...." Oh. My. Goodness. Berenice has been so anxious to meet with these people and they have been so elusive! Whey don't they just walk in the yard and knock or holler? So strange. So I called and left yet another message saying we were there, we were just eating breakfast, they should have knocked, etc. I guess since they don't really have a "door" that is not in their habit. ha. Their home burnt down, and the home had been a coffee shack. There may have been a gate or something, but pretty sure there wasn't much of a door. Any way, we got that squared away, I let Berenice listen to the voicemail which she could not hear or understand even though it was on speaker phone and Gayela across the room COULD understand it just fine. I finished getting ready for my snorkel trip via kayak across the bay and left so I could meet up with the kayak company on time. It's just down at the "T" in the road where you get to the bottom of the hill. Paper work, gear up, instructions, paddle, paddle, paddle. Sunny day, slight breeze. Our trip was to last till 3:30 or so. I was paired with Brian from northern Idaho. The others came in groups of two to four. There were 13 people, 7 kayaks. We landed at the little spit of land by Captain Cook Monument. I was the first from our group to jump in the water.

And the fish were so pretty, but I was so sad to see the state of the coral. 30 years ago, I went snorkeling out there. 30 years ago the coral colors were vibrant and oh-so gorgeous. I was like diving in an aquarium. Today? Not so much. It is mostly just gray. Gray, gray, gray. So sad. I stayed in the water about 40 minutes or so, went all up and down (dodging other snorkelers and boats--crazy busy out there!) and never really got over my disappointment. I liked seeing the parrot fish and hearing them munch the coral, and there was a fair variety of fish, but I never saw a turtle or eel, I tried doing a little surface dive but succeeded only in getting water in my ears and nose. The snorkel and mask weren't perfect and my jaw is still giving me enough problems that I really didn't enjoy holding that snorkel in my teeth.

I'm glad I went. I'm glad I have some memories of the former days. I only told two of the other people about the difference between now and 30 years ago. One started to say something about "Climate..." but I interrupted and said, "Oh, climate has nothing to do with it. This is all people damage and abuse." And I really think it is. I didn't take a camera since mine isn't waterproof, so I don't have underwater photos to prove it. There were some places where there was light green coral. But there was no fan coral, no pinks, nothing much but blah. I was just in tropical waters 2 years ago in Guam. There was plenty of green there, Sea anenomes. The sea urchins were fairly prevalent in some areas of the Kealakekua bay. I know they are trying to regulate things and improve, but it will take centuries. :-( That photo is what I remember it looking like. I think it's pretty accurate.
The fish are pretty...and the water is mostly clear, but when gazing down the side slope, I was kind of creeped out. I couldn't see too terribly far. It's hard to judge distances in water, but it was less than what the visibility was in Guam, I think.

On a lighter note, when I walked back from the beach, I found that my family had only just returned slightly before I did. They had gone to see the Carls! Apparently they (Carls) had called shortly after I left and as soon as Mike got back from the Laundramat, Mike, Berenice and Gayela headed up to the Carls' tent and had lunch together. They were there about 2 1/2 hours. They even brought me a plate of leftover food.

Since they'd eaten a late and big lunch, we cancelled our reservations for dinner out tonight. Oh well. We have had plenty of big expensive meals out since being here. And we need to eat up the food we purchased at the grocery store. Mike and I did go out in the evening to purchase a loaf of bread so we'd have some for Sunday sandwiches, but after playing cards, shopping from Kay's truck for the nuts we wanted to bring home, we just retired early. And I needed that! I was beat from my 2 1/2 mile paddle and 40 minute snorkel, plus the baby walk to and from the beach. Long day. Fun day.

A fellow kayaker from San Diego took these photos and emailed them to me. We did have a bit of excitement on the way back. One of the kayaks tipped over. That had to have been hard to get back in! Ours managed to stay stable, thanks to Brian and his experience in steering us across the swells. It was a bit rougher when we returned. Since the two who tumbled in the water weren't feeling well, we just hurried back without stopping. Oh well. My arms were not even sore the next day! Also, the Kayak in front of us had a little mishap while trying to get on the dock. One gal lost her balance and fell in, taking the guide with her. ha. We just sat back and observed the whole thing, as we were last to go ashore. The water in Kealakekua Bay is 900 feet deep. ! It is a volcano caldera, has collapsed lava tubs under the floor, and is very significant to Ancient Hawaiian Royalty. I honestly wondered how much of the stuff our guide (8 months into it and probably using Google exclusively) was accurate, but hey! I was just along for the ride. ha.

I snapped this photo down the street from Kay's place. The little cove down there is so nice. Rocky, but nice. I sat down there one afternoon watching kayakers come in. I thought if I didn't get any ACTUAL photos of me on the bay, this one would do and no body would be the wiser. ha.

This is really me on Kealakekua Bay . I'm in front. We appear to be a bit low in the water. ha.