Cruising Day 6 - Swimming with the Dolphins

Our last adventure in Cozumel, Mexico - the Royal Dolphin Swim at the Chankanaab park.

The dolphins are only one area in the park - there's a sandy beach, botanical forest and snorkeling available, making this park a popular destination for vacationers.

But we were there for the dolphins.

This was our second time interacting with dolphins - our first time was a dolphin encounter in the Bahamas, where we petted the dolphin and gave them a kiss while standing in waist deep water. It was an excellent program, but left us wanting more. So, if you ever have the opportunity to interact with dolphins, I highly recommend paying the extra money for deep water swim program - you really feel how strong and magnificent these mammals are.

We started out with the tamer dolphin interactions - like dancing with them:


And the cheek kiss:


Holding them in your arms - and they are really long!


Then we moved on to the more exciting portion - going for a swim while holding on to their dorsal fin:

Wow, they can swim really fast and you feel all that power when you are hanging on.

The foot push. Truly, I had no idea what this would feel like. We were instructed to float in a prone position, with our feet flexed, toes down, legs locked straight and arms reaching forward. The dolphins come from behind and place their noses in your feet and propel you forward. Sounded really tame until we watched...

The dolphins approach....

As they propel you forward, they end up pushing you up out of the water:

Scott starts to emerge out of the water....

Here's a picture of Erica coming out of the water:


Brian out of the water before crashing back in:


Me, coming up out of the water:


A totally amazing encounter with amazing animals.

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Cozumel Artist

Our last port of call on our cruise - touristy Cozumel. This was a perfect last stop because of all the shops - it's the final opportunity to snag some nice souvenirs.

I really enjoy watching artists creating beautiful things, which drew me to this street vendor, who was working down one of the alleyways off the main strip.


He was nice enough to personalize a magnet we purchased.

He want me to take this picture of him and his other work.

I really appreciate the unique pieces created by hand, especially since I don't have the talent to paint or draw. It's truly a gift.

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Jet Skis, Golf Carts and Bingo

Three seemingly unrelated items, and somehow, we managed to incorporate all three on day three of our vacation.

First, the sunrise on July 5th, as we approached Costa Maya, Mexico:

I'm the early riser in my family. And when you have four of us crammed into 10'x 12' of sleeping space, there's only one place to go when you wake up - out to the public areas of the cruise ship.

With no pre-planned activities for our first port of call, we decided to find a beach to relax on, away from the crowds of people on the ship. We found that beach, Majahual, several miles south of the cruise ship dock.



We hadn't planned on anything really adventurous. Instead, it found us in the shape of these jet skis.

I had visions of me sinking these beasts (the last time I maneuvered a large, unfamiliar, motorized vehicle, aka a scooter, I managed to crash it), so I planned to ride along in the back, with my daughter driving (apparently at 14, she's old enough to drive). But she decided she didn't want to sink the jet ski, either, so I was in the driver's seat. Looking back at things, I don't know why I would think being driven by my 14 year old daughter would be less risky, I guess that's what happens when you are on vacation - you don't think straight.

I shouldn't have worried. Driving a jet ski is much easier than driving a scooter / motor bike. The open water makes crashing into things almost impossible. And driving a jet ski is downright fun. The next thing I knew, we were heading out into open water, and then speeding towards the cruise ship.


Brian was doing a great job driving the jet ski himself:


And we posed for a quick shot before racing back to shore:


We held down a table here at the Coco Corona and enjoyed a nice lunch of fish tacos, cheese quesadillas and salsa.


Brian's new favorite drink:


So where's the golf cart? We drove over in one and Erica drove it part of the way back to dock. Maybe Brian wanted to drive, too.


Back at the ship, after dinner and a show, we were sucked into another round of Bingo. Because Brian loves Bingo and thinks he's going to win. I know, I know, Bingo is really a form of gambling in sheep's clothing, but we only play when we are cruising (not a common occurrence by any means).

During the Bingo game, the emcee intersperses raffle giveaways. This makes the game longer and gives more people to win (you receive a raffle ticket or two when buying your Bingo card). Imagine our surprise when we won the second raffle of the night - a scalp massage spa treatment!

Winners are expected to dance or do something silly up on stage when redeeming their prize. Fortunately, we have a natural ham in our family, who bounded up on stage and started dancing the funky chicken.

Hey, if he wants to act all silly up on stage, more power to him.

The last raffle of the night was another spa treatment - a mini facial. Guess what? We won that one too! The emcee couldn't believe it. He challenged Brian to dance something other than the "sprinkler" (I guess that's what he looked like the last go around) and he called me up so I could capture things with my camera. Brian ran around on stage, a sort of victory dance.



And so we had a great day - starting with a lovely sunrise and finishing with some unexpected treats.

The next stop - Roatan, Honduras.

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Scenes from Majahual Beach

Majahual Beach - just south of the port at Costa Maya, Mexico:


The area's services are basic, as electricity became available less than ten years ago, and recent hurricanes wiped out much of what was developed. We viewed many abandoned, crumbling structures during our short visit.
Still, the beaches were sandy and the waters clear - a cool respite from the tropical air.


Linked to Sweet Shot Tuesday

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