Of Dolphins and Whales

This past weekend we made a trip to Sea World in San Antonio with friends. Thumki slept for the entire 2 hour drive, so dh and I chatted like a romantic couple with no kids! When we arrived, dh was very thoughtful and dropped the mamas and kiddos off while the men parked the cars and walked longer in the hot sun. I love him for things like this...

V and I literally ran the whole way through the park for the Shamu show that was starting 5 mins from our AT..we huffed and puffed our way there and just as we sat down, three big whales came swimming underwater..Thumki spotted them and squealed in delight. We had a few minutes to feed them(the kids not the whales!) some snacks and water before the music and jumping(the kids and the whales) started. Dh and A arrived right in time and Thumki leapt into his arms. She watched the show standing in his lap transfixed and dancing...it was such fun.





We went to a little restaurant called Mango Joes to feed the kiddos, which seemed to take forever, but the kids made a game of it, running around the place, under and over things tossing goldfish around...we built up quite an appetite chasing them around. Thumki ate 2 french fries and raisins...and drank a lot of iced water.

After that we went to a pool area that had flowing water that you could coast through on large tubes...this promised to be fun. Thumki had other ideas, she was very irritated coz she had to wear an oversized life jacket that she kept trying to chew off..she fussed and chewed the whole way..no fun. I decided there was no point torturing her any further, so we got out and went to a 'lil gators' pool for babies, there was a little slide and maybe 1/2 a foot of warm water...This was a huge hit! Before we got in she was kind of fussy so I nursed her standing up in the diaper change area! Why oh why doesn't the human race provide a place for nursing mother's to feed the young of their species in peace?? Why am I forced to stand in toilets to nourish my baby? Anyway more rants on that in another post. After tanking up, Thumki was ready to rock and roll..she really enjoyed the pool..She sat and splashed the water, walked and splashed, walked under the rain like spray...smiling and laughing for an hour..it was lovely to see her so happy.

Soon it was time to go. We dried off the kids, gave them a snack and took them to the hotel. At the hotel she got a second wind, she jumped up and down on the bed, investigated the whole place, turned on the radio and the tv don't ask how she knows how to do all this...!



Then we set out for the Riverwalk, a very beautiful, romantic walk by an artificial river about a couple miles long. Thumki was beside herself with excitement nearly walking right into the water while shouting 'wa wa-wa-wa!' While the others ate, I took her on the bridge and she ran up and down screaming wa wa the whole time. At one point she was feverishly excited because a boat passed below us..she pointed and shouted 'ba ba go go!' It was a perfect night, 75 degrees F or 22 degrees celcius, a light breeze was blowing, a Bolivian man played a haunting tune on a flute and my baby and I were soaking it all in...



The next morning, I tried in vain to feed her the free continental breakfast, but she would have none of it. She turned her face in every direction and pursed her lips shut! Did I mention the previous night she ate nothing either? Anyway, I gritted my teeth and we went back to the park.

The first thing we did was feed dolphins. It was really exciting to be in such close quarters with these beautiful, big animals. They have such a happy air about them. You buy a plate of fish and they swim right up to you and eat out of your hands. After a bite they swim away playfully. We tried to have Thumki feed them but she was a little scared, she was happy to watch and point.



Then we went to the aquarium, it was cool and dark..our eyes slowly adjusted to the beautiful aquatic world. There were huge displays with sharks, jellyfish, bright coloured coral, eels, little fish, penguins swimming around like torpedoes..It was beautiful..But I have to say it paled in comparison with the Monterey Bay Aquarium, one of the most stunning aquatic displays I have ever seen...that place is just amazing. I can't wait to take Thumki there again, when she is older.

We rounded it off with a show of dolphins and beluga whales, with pulsating music and flying tapeze artists..Thumki jigged wildly and clapped everytime thw dolphin jumped, it was as though she knew them well now after having fed them in the morning..=)



She fell asleep before we could even exit the park! When we reached home she first hugged the cats and chased them aroud for a few minutes then she started begging for food..by this I mean while i was at the stove she was hugging my legs and making pleading sounds alternated with threatening sounds! When I finally offered her a katoriful of vege pulao and dahi she wolfed it all down..=) That really made my day..another fun weekend full of memories goes by.