WARNING THIS TURNED OUT LONGER THAT I EXPECTED.....
The day I have been waiting for nearly a year has finally arrived. Our day at discovery cove to swim with dolphins. This is something I have wanted to do for a long time. When I booked this, Dave was very unsure about going into the water with the dolphins but as you will read he soon changed his mind.
TUESDAY 12TH NOVEMBER 2002 PART 8
Got up at 6.40 to make the tea and have some cereal as we wouldnt have time to stop and have breakfast this morning. Bit of a come down eating cornflakes after all those lovely buffet breakfasts. We were on the road by 7.40 as we wanted to get to DC in good time. We arrived at DC at 8.15 and quickly parked up. There was already about 20 cars in the car park. Walked up to the front of DC and there was a handler with some sort of furry creature who name has escaped me, she told us all about it and we were allowed to stroke it. On into the reception area, wow was first impression, very smart and upmarket. We were ushered over to a reception desk, no queues because we were the only ones checking in at this point. Had our photograph taken for our id cards and had them activated to charge anything purchased onto them. This I think is a really good idea, saves carrying cash or having to go back to the locker every time you want to buy something. We were allocated a 9.40 dolphin swim, this suited us fine as it gave us time to get our bearings and as it turned out we were the first swim of the day. A very nice man then asked us to follow him into the park, just outside the reception doors we had our photograph taken and were offered refreshments. Strolling through the park the guide pointed out the different ways to all the attractions around the park. He showed us where to pick up our snorkel bag and then took us to the wetsuit station and said his goodbyes. Two very friendly and efficient ladies were manning the wetsuit station. Without even asking our sizes which I thought was very discreet they picked out two shortie wetsuits for us. We had asked for shorties as although it was warm we had been warned about the cold water. Now I am not a small person nor is Dave but when she picked out our suits she saw the look of I dont think that is going to fit expression on my face and quick as a flash said, I bet you dont return for a bigger size. Off to the changing rooms which were very spacious and clean and changed without any trouble at all, if anything it was a little loose around the legs, but hey it fitted. As regards to large people out there worrying if they will have a suit big enough for them I am a good size 22 and they picked my suit off the rail about a third of the way down all the ones they had so I should imagine that the sizes go quite a way up from what I had.
We then went and found a locker and put all our stuff inside for later. We had about 40mins to spare so went to find out where the cabana was that we were to meet at then went for a walk around the lagoon and then bagged ourselves a couple of loungers right in front of the lagoon and made ourselves comfy and watched the trainers and dolphins play for a while. The time then came for us to make our way to the cabana where we had a short talk by the trainers, a informative film and then the chance to ask any questions. We were then split into small groups, we were teamed up with a lovely couple from England and then walked down to the waters edge. We were warned that although the first part of water was shallow there is a sudden drop just beyond the shelf you could feel with your feet. Boy was that water cold. We all walked into the shallow water and asked to kneel down with our arms outstretched, a few commands from the trainer and up popped a huge dolphine, meet Thelma everyone, awestruck is the word that comes to mind. She swam slowly up and down the line many times so everyone could feel and stroke her. To my horror! I was asked first to swim into the deeper water, be warned when they say it drops away they are not joking, into the deeper water alone I was asked to tread water Thelma then came up and allowed me to pet her, stroke her belly, do some hand signals. Then Dave was asked to swim out and join me, he too ducked under the water again not realising how deep it really was, we played some more games, more petting and swimming around with Thelma then we got towed back to the shallow water one by one, hang on tight here because when that dolphin goes boy is it fast and you can feel the power as you get pulled along in the water.
Back in the shallow we were asked again the kneel down and did the classic kiss on the nose pose, Thelma must have take a liking to Dave because she came back for a second kiss and the trainer Paul said she had done this on her own accord only a handful of times. Proud David moment. Whilst the others had there time in the deep water with Thelma I hadnt noticed whilst we were out there but every now and again she would come back to see the people waiting, which I thought was a nice touch. After everybody had had there personal time we all stood in a line and played some splashing games, teach dolphin to spin and sing games and some more petting time. We were then all asked to swim out into the deep water and form a circle holding each others shoulders and yell out shark!, as this point Thelma swan really fast around and around us protecting us. Back to the shallow for a farewell pat, a tail wave good bye, a couple of somersaults with the other dolphins and it was all over. Looking at the clock when we walked back into the cabana we had been in the water for 40 mins. We were all totally awestruck at this point and everyone was agreeing how excellent it had been. Now for the man who wasnt sure if he wanted to do this he insisted on buying 6 photographs and the video. This was done very easily on the computer screens and some very helpful staff on hand. We did not feel under any pressure at any time to purchase anything other than what we wanted. We then left the cabana pratically walking on air.
Made our way back to the loungers to dry off a bit and top up with the special sun lotion and walked down to the gift shop. We were quite disappointed in the selection available here a lot of ornaments not related to DC were available but in our opinion not a lot relating to DC itself. The one and only Tshirt we both wanted which had a simple but effective design saying I swan with dolphins at DC was only available on the rack in a xsmall or a gigantic 4XL. No more stock in back either. More on this at the end. We left the gift shop empty handed and disappointed. We then went back to the locker to pick up the camera and camcorder and took a stroll around the rest of the park. Past the lazy river and the ray pool and onto the aviary. Strolling around in here a very nice blue budgie perched himself on my shoulder, I put my finger up to stroke him and he promptly bit it and flew off. We were allowed to feed some parrots and some stunning toucans. Back to the locker to put camera away and went off for lunch.
This is well organised, they just scan your id card when you have picked up your food and you then go and sit outside to eat. We both had burgers and fries, salad, chocolate cake and a large drink each. Not the best food I have had but none the less very hot and fresh and of very good quality.
After letting lunch settle we went for a swim around the lazy river, so calm just floating along the currents, this is a must do. After coming out of the lazy river Dave went off to swim in the ray pool, this didnt appeal to me so I chilled out on a lounger. After about 45mins Dave returned after swimming with the tropical fish as well. He had also made good use of the disposable underwater cameras we had brought with us.
We then strolled back to our original loungers and took off our wetsuits and sat and watched other people enjoying their interactions in the lagoon. After having a few drinks from the soft drinks bar it was 3.00pm so we made a joint decision to leave. Back to the changing rooms, and the showering facilities were first class. Plenty of towels, soap,shampoo and conditioner all supplied in dispensers in the shower cubicle. On leaving you put your wetsuit and goggles in to large bins provided. On the way out through reception we were stopped and asked to fill out a questionnaire on our day. We rated it excellent except leaving some very strong comments about the gift shop.
We then drove up to beltz to pick up my ring, it was ready as promised and I left the shop a very happy bunny indeed. A perfect end to a perfect day
After taking a slow and frequent shop stops drive back to the hotel we thought we had better stop and report to the desk that the handrail on the wall above the bath was very loose and had almost given way that morning. As it was getting on for 9pm I said to the girl if it could be sorted in the morning that would be fine. Anyway literally 5 mins after getting back to the room there was a knock on the door, after peering through the spy hole and looking out the window there stood the maintenance man with his tool box. Let him in and he said he would have to remove the tiles and fix it back properly and it would take about an hour and the stuff used would smell. He offered to get us moved for the night while he got it done we very nicely said we had spoken to the desk staff and that the next morning would be fine. We had to sign some papers to say that we were happy for him not to fix it there and then and that it would be done then next day. True to his word the next day it had been fixed. Now thats what I call very good service.
We settled down to watch telly for a while which was interrupted by a major thunderstorm which lasted for about an hour. Lights out at 10pm exhausted but very happy.
Thoughts.
Temperature today hit 86 with lots of very hot sun and light breeze, cloudy in the afternoon.
Points for DC park.
Highly recommend wearing of water shoes around the park, a godsend in the lazy river as there are some quite sharp rocks in there. Take an underwater camera. Pick up your photographs and video before end of day, we were advised this and we picked ours up just after lunch no problem but noticed a large queue waiting when we left the park.
Regarding our lack of tsirts we wanted. We were told on the way out to phone for the next few days to see if they had come back in. After phoning several times and complaining to customer relations in the end, they gave me a phone number to ring in the states to order them by mail and they would post them on. Anyway I phoned and told the whole sorry tale to a very nice lady who said they had the sizes we wanted in mail order stock. She took my details, credit cards details and address and promised they would be sent to England straightway. Well true to her word they arrived about 10 days after we got home and they were NEVER billed to my credit card. More good customer service worth mentioning.
We thoroughly enjoyed our day and it is still a talking point now. We would recommend anyone to go to DC although it is not cheap. We have both said that we would probably not go again as the first time magic would not be the same a second time around.
Well thanks for reading, tomorrow lunch date with shamu ..
The day I have been waiting for nearly a year has finally arrived. Our day at discovery cove to swim with dolphins. This is something I have wanted to do for a long time. When I booked this, Dave was very unsure about going into the water with the dolphins but as you will read he soon changed his mind.
TUESDAY 12TH NOVEMBER 2002 PART 8
Got up at 6.40 to make the tea and have some cereal as we wouldnt have time to stop and have breakfast this morning. Bit of a come down eating cornflakes after all those lovely buffet breakfasts. We were on the road by 7.40 as we wanted to get to DC in good time. We arrived at DC at 8.15 and quickly parked up. There was already about 20 cars in the car park. Walked up to the front of DC and there was a handler with some sort of furry creature who name has escaped me, she told us all about it and we were allowed to stroke it. On into the reception area, wow was first impression, very smart and upmarket. We were ushered over to a reception desk, no queues because we were the only ones checking in at this point. Had our photograph taken for our id cards and had them activated to charge anything purchased onto them. This I think is a really good idea, saves carrying cash or having to go back to the locker every time you want to buy something. We were allocated a 9.40 dolphin swim, this suited us fine as it gave us time to get our bearings and as it turned out we were the first swim of the day. A very nice man then asked us to follow him into the park, just outside the reception doors we had our photograph taken and were offered refreshments. Strolling through the park the guide pointed out the different ways to all the attractions around the park. He showed us where to pick up our snorkel bag and then took us to the wetsuit station and said his goodbyes. Two very friendly and efficient ladies were manning the wetsuit station. Without even asking our sizes which I thought was very discreet they picked out two shortie wetsuits for us. We had asked for shorties as although it was warm we had been warned about the cold water. Now I am not a small person nor is Dave but when she picked out our suits she saw the look of I dont think that is going to fit expression on my face and quick as a flash said, I bet you dont return for a bigger size. Off to the changing rooms which were very spacious and clean and changed without any trouble at all, if anything it was a little loose around the legs, but hey it fitted. As regards to large people out there worrying if they will have a suit big enough for them I am a good size 22 and they picked my suit off the rail about a third of the way down all the ones they had so I should imagine that the sizes go quite a way up from what I had.
We then went and found a locker and put all our stuff inside for later. We had about 40mins to spare so went to find out where the cabana was that we were to meet at then went for a walk around the lagoon and then bagged ourselves a couple of loungers right in front of the lagoon and made ourselves comfy and watched the trainers and dolphins play for a while. The time then came for us to make our way to the cabana where we had a short talk by the trainers, a informative film and then the chance to ask any questions. We were then split into small groups, we were teamed up with a lovely couple from England and then walked down to the waters edge. We were warned that although the first part of water was shallow there is a sudden drop just beyond the shelf you could feel with your feet. Boy was that water cold. We all walked into the shallow water and asked to kneel down with our arms outstretched, a few commands from the trainer and up popped a huge dolphine, meet Thelma everyone, awestruck is the word that comes to mind. She swam slowly up and down the line many times so everyone could feel and stroke her. To my horror! I was asked first to swim into the deeper water, be warned when they say it drops away they are not joking, into the deeper water alone I was asked to tread water Thelma then came up and allowed me to pet her, stroke her belly, do some hand signals. Then Dave was asked to swim out and join me, he too ducked under the water again not realising how deep it really was, we played some more games, more petting and swimming around with Thelma then we got towed back to the shallow water one by one, hang on tight here because when that dolphin goes boy is it fast and you can feel the power as you get pulled along in the water.
Back in the shallow we were asked again the kneel down and did the classic kiss on the nose pose, Thelma must have take a liking to Dave because she came back for a second kiss and the trainer Paul said she had done this on her own accord only a handful of times. Proud David moment. Whilst the others had there time in the deep water with Thelma I hadnt noticed whilst we were out there but every now and again she would come back to see the people waiting, which I thought was a nice touch. After everybody had had there personal time we all stood in a line and played some splashing games, teach dolphin to spin and sing games and some more petting time. We were then all asked to swim out into the deep water and form a circle holding each others shoulders and yell out shark!, as this point Thelma swan really fast around and around us protecting us. Back to the shallow for a farewell pat, a tail wave good bye, a couple of somersaults with the other dolphins and it was all over. Looking at the clock when we walked back into the cabana we had been in the water for 40 mins. We were all totally awestruck at this point and everyone was agreeing how excellent it had been. Now for the man who wasnt sure if he wanted to do this he insisted on buying 6 photographs and the video. This was done very easily on the computer screens and some very helpful staff on hand. We did not feel under any pressure at any time to purchase anything other than what we wanted. We then left the cabana pratically walking on air.
Made our way back to the loungers to dry off a bit and top up with the special sun lotion and walked down to the gift shop. We were quite disappointed in the selection available here a lot of ornaments not related to DC were available but in our opinion not a lot relating to DC itself. The one and only Tshirt we both wanted which had a simple but effective design saying I swan with dolphins at DC was only available on the rack in a xsmall or a gigantic 4XL. No more stock in back either. More on this at the end. We left the gift shop empty handed and disappointed. We then went back to the locker to pick up the camera and camcorder and took a stroll around the rest of the park. Past the lazy river and the ray pool and onto the aviary. Strolling around in here a very nice blue budgie perched himself on my shoulder, I put my finger up to stroke him and he promptly bit it and flew off. We were allowed to feed some parrots and some stunning toucans. Back to the locker to put camera away and went off for lunch.
This is well organised, they just scan your id card when you have picked up your food and you then go and sit outside to eat. We both had burgers and fries, salad, chocolate cake and a large drink each. Not the best food I have had but none the less very hot and fresh and of very good quality.
After letting lunch settle we went for a swim around the lazy river, so calm just floating along the currents, this is a must do. After coming out of the lazy river Dave went off to swim in the ray pool, this didnt appeal to me so I chilled out on a lounger. After about 45mins Dave returned after swimming with the tropical fish as well. He had also made good use of the disposable underwater cameras we had brought with us.
We then strolled back to our original loungers and took off our wetsuits and sat and watched other people enjoying their interactions in the lagoon. After having a few drinks from the soft drinks bar it was 3.00pm so we made a joint decision to leave. Back to the changing rooms, and the showering facilities were first class. Plenty of towels, soap,shampoo and conditioner all supplied in dispensers in the shower cubicle. On leaving you put your wetsuit and goggles in to large bins provided. On the way out through reception we were stopped and asked to fill out a questionnaire on our day. We rated it excellent except leaving some very strong comments about the gift shop.
We then drove up to beltz to pick up my ring, it was ready as promised and I left the shop a very happy bunny indeed. A perfect end to a perfect day
After taking a slow and frequent shop stops drive back to the hotel we thought we had better stop and report to the desk that the handrail on the wall above the bath was very loose and had almost given way that morning. As it was getting on for 9pm I said to the girl if it could be sorted in the morning that would be fine. Anyway literally 5 mins after getting back to the room there was a knock on the door, after peering through the spy hole and looking out the window there stood the maintenance man with his tool box. Let him in and he said he would have to remove the tiles and fix it back properly and it would take about an hour and the stuff used would smell. He offered to get us moved for the night while he got it done we very nicely said we had spoken to the desk staff and that the next morning would be fine. We had to sign some papers to say that we were happy for him not to fix it there and then and that it would be done then next day. True to his word the next day it had been fixed. Now thats what I call very good service.
We settled down to watch telly for a while which was interrupted by a major thunderstorm which lasted for about an hour. Lights out at 10pm exhausted but very happy.
Thoughts.
Temperature today hit 86 with lots of very hot sun and light breeze, cloudy in the afternoon.
Points for DC park.
Highly recommend wearing of water shoes around the park, a godsend in the lazy river as there are some quite sharp rocks in there. Take an underwater camera. Pick up your photographs and video before end of day, we were advised this and we picked ours up just after lunch no problem but noticed a large queue waiting when we left the park.
Regarding our lack of tsirts we wanted. We were told on the way out to phone for the next few days to see if they had come back in. After phoning several times and complaining to customer relations in the end, they gave me a phone number to ring in the states to order them by mail and they would post them on. Anyway I phoned and told the whole sorry tale to a very nice lady who said they had the sizes we wanted in mail order stock. She took my details, credit cards details and address and promised they would be sent to England straightway. Well true to her word they arrived about 10 days after we got home and they were NEVER billed to my credit card. More good customer service worth mentioning.
We thoroughly enjoyed our day and it is still a talking point now. We would recommend anyone to go to DC although it is not cheap. We have both said that we would probably not go again as the first time magic would not be the same a second time around.
Well thanks for reading, tomorrow lunch date with shamu ..
I really must do this one day.
