Kembali by nature

“And the turtles, of course… all the turtles are free, as turtles and, maybe, all creatures should be.” Dr. Seuss

Beyond the beautiful landscape of Kembali Coast in Island Garden City of Samal, lies a tropical cradle for one of nature’s many delightful secrets. Its attractive beach front is home to several green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) that crawl in at night to bury their eggs beneath the warm sands.

Commonly known in Filipino as the pawikan, an adult green sea turtle can grow up to 4 feet, and are the largest hard-shelled sea turtles found. These herbivores eat algae and sea grasses, which are thought to account for its green fat in the body. Native to the Philippines, the biggest protected area and major nesting ground is in Tawi-Tawi, co-protected by neighboring Malaysia.

Sadly, it is listed in CITES as Endangered in the Philippine List of Threatened Wildlife Species.

Kembali coastline © Jojie Alcantara

Kembali Coast is a high class leisure residential development in the Davao Region with Filinvest as its land developer. A tropical paradise, it is equipped with the essentials for a peaceful, relaxing and ultimate luxury island living, Balinese style. Along its palm-fringed 1.8 kilometer stretch of white sand shoreline, developments are still taking place for more first class amenities facing a panoramic view of Talikud Island and tranquil waters great for aqua sport activities.

Hatchlings being released into sea © Jojie Alcantara

Kembali is an Indonesian word that means both “welcome and come back with love.” In Bahasa Malaysia, kembali has a deeper meaning with varied interpretations. One of those is “re-emerging, or returning back to where it was first held for the first time.” The other meaning is “symbolizing the nature of the event in bringing back man to the natural environment.”

These turtle hatchlings were released towards the sea. While many of them will face uncertain obstacles in the wide ocean, there is no doubt a number will come back to where they have emerged for the first time. It is, after all, “kembali“, by nature.