Part 5 Sea World

Monday March 14th - Written by Mark

Monday was Sea World day. We got a great set of directions from Grandpa Fred and headed out. We made it to the Dolphin show which was fun mix of dolphins, birds, whales, and Cirque de Sole dancers. We had forgotten that Sea World’s unofficial motto is “We will get you wet!” We were about five rows back, so we were definitely in the Soak Zone. We dodged the dolphins well enough, but when the whales swam around the edge of the tank, they flipped enough water up to reach three rows behind us. We survived with only minor splashing.

We moved next to the Arctic adventure ride where our helicopter “crashed” into ice and snow before taking us to see polar bears, beluga whales, and a walrus.

Our next stop was the “Pets Rule” show, where dogs, cats, and pigs entertained us with many tricks. Seriously, who knew cats could be trained to run between people’s legs? We mustered our courage and rode the Journey to Atlantis, where everyone walking away from the ride looked like a bucket of water had been thrown on them. The ride was fun and got everybody wet twice, including wetting everyone’s pants / shorts / dresses. Still, we were undaunted, so we continued to see the Penguins, the Sea Lions and Otters show, and then ran hard to make it in time for the Shamu show. The Shamu show was pretty amazing, even though it was tamed down from what they used to do.

We were mostly dried out by this time, so we plucked up our courage and rode Shipwreck Rapids which had warning signs everywhere “You will get wet and possibly soaked.” Between the rapids, the water cannons that people were firing at us, and the waterfall we had to go under, I think we all got soaked. TARA was able to wring water out of her dress for the next hour! After that we saw the “Sea Stars” Tidepool (I didn’t know we weren’t supposed to call them Starfish anymore), went to a few Aquariums, walked through the Shark exhibit (very cool as they swim over your head), pet some Sting Rays, and they found some gifts from the shop to take with us as souvenirs. As drenched as we were, I think the kids still had a fun time.