Maui: Day 3.

Our day started with a snorkeling excursion to a sunken volcano crater, Molokini (second photo below). We departed bright and early at 8:00 am with juice and breakfast in hand. The journey to Molokini was sunny and offered great views of the cobalt water. An hour later, we moored at Molokini and jumped in to snorkel. The water was so clear that we could see everything quite easily. We saw several types of coral, urchins, fish and other living creatures just below us. We spied the state fish (humuhumunukunukuapua'a), a red octopus (he looked at us!) and possibly a needlefish or eel. Lots of friendly black and white fish were hanging out near the surface swimming with us.

As we left Molokini, we were fed a subpar lunch and Shawn began to feel a little seasick. Our next stop was Turtle Town (also known as 5 Caves / 5 Graves). The water was much cloudier, but we eventually saw a sea turtle (honu) swimming around. A few minutes later, a giant one appeared just below us! We also saw one while on-board, popping his head out of the water every now and then.

Later that evening, we drove back to Lahaina for their Friday night art walk. We ate a burger along the shore at sunset and explored the shops. I particularly enjoyed seeing a gallery of vintage European travel posters. On our way back to the car, we ran across a hula dance being performed by local seniors and a funky drunk guy. Good times!