Friday, February 5, 2010

Dolphin Cove gets an unheard score of 6 PIES!


That's out of the full point score of 5 pies. Yes, it rates better than perfect.

It was absolutely, unbelievably wonderful!

The attention to detail was unsurpassed by anything I've experienced before...
  • A specific chef was assigned to Scott to help him eat successfully during the day (in avoiding food allergy issues).
  • All the employees were incredibly friendly and ready to help.
  • The entire place was impeccably clean.
  • The food was delicious.
  • Every detail had been attended to.
I could go on and on and on and on!

But I want to share specifics, especially photos! Oh my gracious, the photos are phenomenal. I knew I'd end up buying the insanely expensive photo package, but ya know what? It's worth every single one of the hours I had to work to pay for it.

See for yourself, Delicious Readers...

I'm petting a sting ray (sans stinger). Did you know that rays' stingers grow like nails or claws? The caretakers just clip off the growth every few days.


Scott and Emma leaning in for a stroke...

And my brave Hayley-Girl...


A family of wet-suits...


The ray pool was filled with probably 35 sting rays (no mantas). They glide by so beautifully, often brushing right up against your legs. A little disconcerting at first, but really, so cool!

And now... for the photos you've all been waiting for...

Swimming with Dolphins!!!!

Hayley and C.J the dolphin
sharing a moment...

I absolutely adore this photo of Scott....


Emma, in between yawns and shivers thanks to the frigid water, fell in love with C.J.

Swim Time!



Maybe I should PhotoShop myself in this one.


Alas, all in the effort to cut down on those vicious vacation costs, I chose to video and vicariously enjoy the experience. *sigh* Maybe next time. (I honestly don't mind. I might have but for the fact that we can put the money we saved towards our credit card. That *always* makes me happy!)

Discovery Cove has this awesome, fantastical, totally wicked coral reef. You don your mask and snorkel and flipper your way out among the fishies. Holy Cow, Batman. It was spectacular! All the colors and life and sizes and shapes and beauty! As we finally got too cold to continue peeking in on the life of a coral reef, I said to the others, "God is surely one creative being." They all agreed wholeheartedly.

I did actually attempt to use our waterproof camera to photograph the gorgeousness. Being that I was wearing goggles and couldn't really see through the itty-bitty view finder, I'm not sure they'll come out. If they do, I'll definitely post them for your vicarious enjoyment!

There was one other seriously fun part of the park: the lazy river. It was so awesome that we swam/floated through it three times! The first time we snorkled. There weren't any fish to see, but we loved the decorative touches (think Atlantis/Aztec themed) both above and under the water. And as an extra creative touch, the river wound through an aviary. We love, love, loved looking at the birds. Not that we could name any of them except the peacock, but it didn't matter.

The second and third times we floated through on noodles. And it was pouring!! That just added to the fun. We were already wet, so it was just more adventure.

Our noses and cheeks are all tinged pink tonight even though the sun never actually peeked through the clouds. I had been hoping to relax on a lounge chair on the beach and soak up some vitamin D (doctor ordered, you know) while the kids played in the toasty warm water of the lagoon. Not to be, but that's okay. There were too many other amazing things to do! I can soak up the sun at home. (Oh, wait a minute. Who am I kidding? I live in the Pacific Northwest. There is no sun.)

I know, I know. This blog post got exceedingly lengthy and if you're still reading, thank you! But here's what I want you to do now. Go find an empty jar and start a Discovery Cove savings fund. You must to the third power come here!!

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