Last week I had the pleasure to swim in Hanauma Bay. First though, I would like to mention the means of arriving at this almost sacred destination.
Driving up to Hanauma bay, I noticed a sign saying FULL for the parking lot. Noticing two overweight female 'enforcers' with audio cables leading into both of there ears, and also multiple empty spots from a vantage point on the road above the bay's parking lot, I had to shout to get their attention. To my outrage, the two refused to listen to my explanation and simply yelled PARKIN LOT'S FULL, TRY AGAIN! Pulling to the side of the road opposite the parking lot, they pulled out their loudspeaker and yelled MOVE!, and then proceeded to chuckle and laugh amongst themselves.
Thanks to my immaculate patience, I was finally able to enter after 5 rounds of going back and forth waiting for their superiors to call and tell them there were spots available. On the fifth time around they were gone, and so were the signs. Problem solved, without bitter confrontation and without having to see the two ever again.
Once down to the bay, parked and ready to swim, I was again irritated when sudo-guards appeared and forced me after I had already bought my ticket without warning of such requirement to attend a mandatory education session in a room packed with semi-naked underly clad tourists such as myself. The session began with a video clip that was 80% ethnic Hawaiian music displaying some nice scenery without words and the rest repeatedly warning the potential swimmers and snorkelers not to step on reefs or feed the fish.
After finally getting into the water, the wait and irritations paid off. I was able to see under the water dozens of fish and a few special reef dwellers and bottom-movers such as the sea-snail, sea cucumber, eel, pufferfish, and a mighty scary looking fish with teeth outside its mouth that continuously rammed into the coral, eating it. There were quite a few fish whose species I do not know yet they were quite colorful and vibrant.
I had gone to the bay with my cousins and their kids, and unfortunately neither of them got to see what I had as they stayed quite close to the shore to protect their younglings from danger. Once I swam my fill, I joined them on the beach to find other wonders of nature such as wild roosters running about and also a pack of mongoose that made loud noises as they literally went dumpster diving from a nearby rock ledge.
While leaving the beach I took quite a few photos and also had a coin printed using the ever so ingenious device that costs 51 cents and spits out a deformed 1 cent.
