Moments D691: Birthday Cake on the Beach

Boo!  Today was our last day in Jamaica.  That's always a sad day, but I was determined to soak up all the last rays of Jamaica before heading home to a city that had just experienced a snow storm.  Yes.  A snow storm mid-March.  Oh my.  Yes, I was definitely determined to soak up as much sun as possible in the last moments in Jamaica.

And that's exactly what most of the family did.  We checked out of the resort, found ourselves some lounge chairs on the beach and watched the incoming flow of guests.  There were many new untanned bodies on the beach today.  We looked around knowingly at one another: if they weren't careful, they'd burn today.  It was a windy, sunny, cooler day.  A perfect day to burn!

One of the things that we needed to deal with, upon check out, was an entire birthday cake that arrived a day late.  Instead of letting it go to waste, EQ and I brought it down to the beach, with a knife, napkins (for impromptu plates) and forks for all.  And there, on the beach, we cut up the cake and shared it out with the family.  With a few pieces leftover, we offered some of the resort staff the remaining pieces of cake.  What a world of joy that the cake brought to those that saw walking through the resort with the cake, cutting up the cake and of course sharing it around!

A fun way to spend the last moments in the sun, eating birthday cake on the beach.

Moments being silly, eating cake on the beach,  in the sun!

Moments enjoying the last hours in Jamaica.

Moments D610: Dolphin love

Today was an incredible day.  Today I did something I swore I'd never do.  Not because I didn't want to. No.  In fact, I've dreamed of this moment many many times.  In fact, I've pretended and dreamt of being a dolphin many times over the years.  Today, finally I had an opportunity to swim and play with a dolphin named Aya.  An incredible experience, but I'll get back to sharing that moment after I explain why I've avoided this dream for so very long, because part of today's moment is about stretching beyond old belief systems.

Given my dream and love of dolphins, what exactly was holding me back from jumping into a pool (or cove) with a dolphin at the first chance given?  After all, most people dream of this opportunity.  They are beautiful, magical, intelligent creatures.  For me, I simply couldn't forgive myself for participating in caging up such a beautiful wild animal.

And then, I had a deep conversation with EQ about just that.  For me, the only way I'd be able to experience swimming with the dolphins was to be very comfortable that they were well cared for and that they were not overworked.  (i.e. that they were happy, not that you can really know that they are happy!)

EQ then asked how I felt about having an intelligent dog as a pet.  After some discussion, and comparing dolphins to dogs, I couldn't deny that with the right care and love, a dolphin centre could be okay to participate in.  We then tackled the subject of overworking the animals.  My worry is that in an organized setting such as this, that the dolphins may be overworked. I needed to be reassured that this wasn't the case.  EQ brought up the idea of working dogs and horses on a farm.  His point, we've been using animals to work for much harder labour than simply showing off for people.  His secondary point, not all these animals are abused and overworked.  Many times, their owners care for them well, possibly even better than those owning non-working animals.  And from personal experience, I know, just how proud some dogs can been when they've accomplished something.  So maybe, just maybe it would be okay!  I had a glimmer of hope at that point of booking in for the swim.

We finally dug in a little deeper into the subject and it came to my attention that most of the dolphins in these man-made coves are actually born in captivity.  They are more domesticated than wild.  And some organizations treat their dolphins with great respect and check in on their health frequently.

After that deep discussion, I was sold on the idea and once we watched the video from Dolphin Discovery about how their story and how they treat their dolphins, I was even more comfortable with the decision to participate in a dolphin swim.

And so, I signed up for an experience I've only dreamed of.

This is the cove for the dolphins in Anguilla.  When we arrived in Anguilla for our dolphin swim encounter, I was happy to find out that we had some beach time first and that we'd be having our swim after the first group did.  I don't know, I've always been one to save the best for last, so this timing seemed to be a perfect fit!

EQ and I had a couple hours of beach time to enjoy before slipping into the cove and meeting Aya, our female dolphin and playmate for 30-40 minutes.

I was the third person to get a dolphin kiss from Aya.  INCREDIBLE.  There really are no words to explain.  I think I could have kept her in the palm of my hand for long, long time and had a silly smile upon my face the entire time.

That was my first moment with Aya.  But, the best moment, by far with Aya, was the belly-to-belly swim. This is where she is on her back and I held onto her flippers on my front.  Is was easy to feel her powerful tail pushing us along, we went so very fast through the water.  I had a goofy-grin the entire time.  (The photos taken of the experience proves this!)

We had picked up quite a bit of speed on our belly-to-belly ride and I was surprised at how far into the group she swam.  As I splashed off the ride, the speed she had pulled with in vanished quickly as the water's drag caught me.  But the smile forged during our ride together stayed with me for the rest of the day and evening.

Moments exploring old understandings and beliefs.

Moments realizing you can fulfil a dream that you never thought you could fulfil!

Moments D546: Chasing the seagulls

Today was a near perfect day.  So many moments.  So many laughs.  So many opportunities to share a story, a spoonful of ice cream, or a gulp of watered down lemonade.

My favourite moment of the day wasn't touring the museum of Science and Industry (though it was a lot of fun and very interesting - I highly recommend visiting it!), it was walking along the beach with EQ.

Having spent the afternoon indoors watching the rains roll through, it was refreshing to be outside and soaking in the heat from the sun.  The sun was low in the sky (the golden hour) and we were both glowing  in the sun's light. After a few fun pictures in the sun we happened across a flock of seagulls.

And I just couldn't help myself - I had to go chasing through them!  Running through them waving my arms was a lot of fun and worth sharing.  The seagulls starting flying all around me.  See the picture!  How much fun is this?

It totally made me smile.  It made my boyfriend smile.  What more can a girl ask for?

Moments being present and being silly.

Moments enjoying the beach post rain storms.

Moments D286b: The video

I hope you enjoy the sounds of the waves!

Moments D286: Sun & real beach surf

Today was the last day of vacation, but we had a full day before we had to be at the airport.  So, we made off to the beach.  Cocoa Beach actually. It wasn’t a super hot day, but it was sunny with only a few clouds spotting the sky.

When we arrived in Cocoa Beach, we were at the day’s high - about 20 degrees Celsius.  Honestly, it was perfect to lay on the beach and soaking in the sun.

But it wasn’t about the sun today.  Today I celebrate the sound, sight and smell of the ocean.  I even took a video to capture the movement and sounds of the waves.  (And if I can figure out how to do so, I’ll post that video later on, for now, here’s a photograph of the spot.  Imagine yourself here!)

Laying on the beach, listening to the surf was deeply relaxing and calming.  By far, it was one of the best moments of the trip with my family.

Moments in the sun, on the sand, listening to the surf.