Friday, August 1, 2014

A "Must Do" in the Bahamas....Swimming With the Dolphins

So.
While the "big kids" went on a "play date" together (as in a speedboat excursion to the Exumas) yesterday, "W" aka "Bean" and I took the kiddos on our own little adventure.
We decided to hop on the ferry boat and head over to Nassau.  Now.  Ferry boats scare the living daylights out of me and I'm not lying.
and the ones here in the Bahamas are SO freaking old.  Still it is a fun adventure and the local guide was awesome.
 Here we go with another photo overload!!!



Bennett said "Gigi, I weally, weally want to go on dat boat."


Conversations between a 6 yr. old and a 4 yr. old are priceless.



When you go to Nassau, you have to visit the straw market.
....but get ready.  If you don't like to be asked by every vendor there to buy everything you see this may not be your gig.


This was the sweetest man, and so proud of his beautiful work!



he is like the coolest kid ever.

And Evers LOVED the fan we bought her.
So, after that we had a HUGE surprise.  Although the kiddos knew they were getting to do this.
Swimming with the dolphins....
y'all.  This truly was one of the most fun things I have done here in the Bahamas.  And the kids had a blast.  I want a dolphin of my own.  I really, really do.

we got there early because we really had no clue what we were doing.  So, I was able to catch a few shots of the dolphins in action.







 after donning our wet suits we gathered for our awkward family photo :)
just kidding, these will go in a frame :)


Our dolphin's name was Ickaroo, and was the strongest out of the group!



be still my Bennett loving heart.

he absolutely LOVED this!

and so did Evers!



and so did Gigi....

and Bean...



I think he liked her too!

Bean and I got to do the Shag with Ickaroo.




It was a pretty exhausting day....

so, here is the down low on the Dolphin Encounter at the Atlantis.
First of all, it's pricey.  But, there are a few ways around that.
An adult has to accompany a child.  Not sure what the age cut off is.  I think the price is around 150.00 per person.  You cannot take a camera with you.  You can, however, sit on the beach and take pics.  So, if you have someone who is not interested in interacting with the dolphin they can pay a minimal price and take pics from the beach.  We bought the photo pack (actually a flash drive), and were able to get about 45 shots.  I think that is the best way to go with the photos.  I read a bunch of reviews that said the photographers didn't know what they were doing but I thought they did a great job!
The trainers are very knowledgeable and treat the dolphins extremely well.  And those creatures seem very happy.
I'm giving the Dolphin Encounter at the Atlantis two thumbs up!!!

have a great day y'all!
kb

3 comments:

  1. Fantastic pics! I think the USB was a good choice-- the pics are great!

    It's been neat to go to the ocean here on the Pacific coast and see the pods of dolphins swimming in their natural habitat. I never saw them in the Gulf when I lived in AL (I'm one of Jordan's friends that used to live in Bham).

    What a fun trip! I'm hoping that since I'm in CA, my brother had moved to Maryland and my parents are still in AL that we can start to meet up on fun trips like this-- I'v just got to get my dad on a plane!

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  2. Looks like a great place to go on vacation

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  3. Looks like a great place to go on vacation

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