Pam & Sara amuse the Caribbean (a.k.a. our trip to Curaçao, April 7-12 2005)
Sunday, April 10 - a slightly lazier day, with the dolphins, the fishies and Mambo Beach
We started off with a nice buffet breakfast at the Lions Dive resort -- but you have to get your beverages first, and set them down, then go get you food - otherwise, you'll not have as much left on your plate as you spooned up.
Just a glance into the other part of
Nemo's (where the breakfast was)
And the pretty yellow birds just added
to the array of colours there
We strolled into the Sea Aquarium and
caught the sea lion training demonstration before we headed over to our
Dolphin Encounter.
There were several people waiting --
some for the Encounter, some for the Swim, and some observers (if only
we'd known, we could've taken photos of each other's Encounters)
Karina gives instructions to the Dutch group before turning around and switching to English for us.
Rona gets Annie ready to meet us
They put each dolphin's "treats"
into their own coolers, so they can control the diet of each dolphin
Sara gets a lil' kiss from Annie...
...and then strikes a pose with her.
It's my turn!
It really was a great experience -- we
had a good 45 minutes quality time with Annie, and learned a ton about
dolphins.
We grabbed a quick bite at the grill
inthe Sea Aquarium before heading over to the dolphin show.
How they get the timing just-so, I don't
know.
And wow, is this a show of how very powerful
they are -- scooting along above the surface by the force of their flukes
alone.
Karina gets a ride back to the platform
We headed back to our room to get our
snorkel equipment, and I snapped this shot from our balcony. Not a bad
view to wake up to, huh?
So, back to the beach -- this is a look
across the lagoon. The trees there are onthe Lions Dive beach -- so it
really isn't too far.
Sara gave the fins a try (though she
decided pretty quickly that they wreen't wrth the discomfort)
I was too chicken to venture very far
out at first, so I stayed near shore, and watched little guys like this
crab in the lower left corner.
The water was a little murkier than we'd
have liked, but it was plenty clear enough to see lots of little fishes.
Sara snapped all these shots -- she was
braver than I was...
...though she did convince me to stay
on her toes and follow her around the bend.
I'm glad I did -- pretty fishies lived
over there.
Nothing too big -- just the way this
chicken of the sea likes it.
Back to Nemo's for another beverage.
I tried to capture the amazing colors of this place, but didn't quite
get it. The walls in side are a gorgeous bright purple.
This little guy was quite at home on
the bar -- and has convinced some of the locals to feed him sugar out
of their hands (that can't be good for him, though)
We headed down the road to Mambo Beach
for dinner. It was a pretty tasty meal, and a nice setting, as well.
Palm trees, strings of lights, a light
breeze.....all while our friends in Colorado were shoveling out from 19"
of snow (insert unsympathetic cackle here)
We need these in the States -- vending
machines full of salty snacks. Teeny cans -- you know I'd be drawn in...