Family of turtles hanging out in shallow water.

Honu (turtles) gather at North Shore in shallow waters along this beach to nibble on limu(seaweed). It appears that only these green turtles in Hawaii come onto land to bask in the sun during the daytime.  Norm and I waited very patiently for several hours that day, but the turtle family (10 or so) never quite made it onto shore.

Turtle food!

I was so excited to see the turtles, I even had a vivid dream of seeing them the night before we went. In my dream there were small patchy islands and GIANT turtles that washed up from the sea.  At one point in my dream a GIANT turtle washed up right in front of me as I was walking along the beach. I was shocked and caught off guard, but too intrigued and curious to run away. I actually sketched the dream out (I keep a dream sketch journal of random dreams). It was trippy to experience the same “feeling” and similar occurrence at Laniakea Beach that very next day! Coincidence.. perhaps? Norm caught a pic of my encounter. A turtle suddenly appeared and came quite close to me while I was wading around in the water-albeit it was not as GIANT as the one in my dream =) I’ll have to paint a pic of my dream now that it has become even more meaningful ^^  I’ll have to write about my mongoose dream and encounter too.. at least I think that’s what they were.. ANYWAY,..

Well hello dere!

Laniakea Beach is one of the first beaches that pops up on your left after you pass by the famous North Shore town Haleiwa.  While we were there we enjoyed moments of lucid, bright scenic views as well as passing showers that would pour down big tropical rain drops for barely a minute and then ease up into a comfortable sprinkle.   We were lucky enough to catch a cute pair of lovey-dovey turtles  cruise by when the sky was clear and the water very blue and green.

Lovey-Dovey Turtles

Passing Shower

(Below) Here’s one of my favorite pics from Laniakea Beach that Norm took.  (He has such a photographer’s eye ^^)

I really enjoyed the colors and textures on the beach.  It’s definitely a memorable beach!

Random, but up until now, I wouldn’t say that I have a strong bond with turtles or anything and I don’t know why I dreamt of turtles, but one Japanese folklore from my childhood does pop into mind. It’s the story of Urashima-Taro. Here’s a random pic I drew a long time ago depicting parts of the story.

Urashima-Taro, charcoal and color pastel

The story is about a boy, Urashima-Taro, who saves a poor turtle that some boys were bullying on the beach one day. The turtle later returns to take the boy on a magical journey in the sea as a way to thank him for saving his life. He meets a princess in an undersea palace, is fed delicious delicacies, and upon leaving is given a mysterious box that he is told not to open. Once he returns to land, he realizes that many years have passed even though it has only been a day for him. In a state of profound loneliness and despair, he opens the box. Suddenly his age catches up with him and he becomes an old white haired man.

So anyway, if you find yourself in the company of turtles, look for one with a looooong tail of seaweed attached to its back because those are the oldest and wisest ones (so they say). I think they know the way to the undersea palaces, in case you fancy a looooong and potentially permanent escape from reality.  ^^