Day 6

After collecting our map, we stood by the Flamingo's whilst we studied the layout of the park. These are 'another' of Beth's favourites because they are pink.

We then headed straight for Journey to Atlantis, but as we were passing the Dolphin Stadium, there were crowds of people going in. We were just in time to see the first dolphin show of the day at 10 O'clock. We had to stand at the back of the stadium because there were no seats left. San really fell for the trainers' trick and thought that the trainer acting as the kids' mother was a member of the public who had fallen in the dolphin tank. She was so relieved when the woman came out of the water being pulled along by Dolly the dolphin. San was also very jealous, as it is one of her lifetime ambitions to swim with a dolphin. Also after seeing the show, Beth wants to be the child who gets to pet the dolphin next time we go to Florida. (After watching some of the SeaWorld shows on Channel 5 recently she has also decided that she wants to work in SeaWorld when she is older.)

We all loved the dolphin show and meant to go back for a closer look, but again never got round to it. Beth still remembers where Dolly Dolphin's tickle spot is.

We continued on our way to Journey to Atlantis in spite of being previously warned not to ride it first thing because we would probably get really soaked. We weren't going to miss out on the fun though, so we went prepared, with our swimming shorts and costumes on, along with our pool shoes. Peter and I sat in the front seats of the eight-seater boat, where we had been reliably informed we would get the wettest. We were not expecting the whole of the front end of the boat to disappear under a huge wave, however, and the dry clothes that we had in our bags between our legs, were in danger of being drenched, but for some quick thinking on my part. My big tip for journey to Atlantis is 'Lift your feet up off the floor when you hit the water, or you'll end up with squelchy shoes". As we hit the water both Peter and I ducked, just enough to let San, Beth and Rachel get the benefit of the splash - much to our amusement! We enjoyed the ride so much that we shelled out $16.00 on a snow shaker with our ride photo inside. (I must have bumped my head on one of the many bumps).

We then squelched our way over to the toilets opposite JTA to get changed before following our map to Clyde and Seamore take Pirate Island. We managed to get on the second row for the 11.30 show and were kept entertained by Jack, the hilarious mime act, until the show started. The laughter continued throughout the corny show, as this is a very clever and witty piece of animal/human acting. The story is centered around a sea lion named Seamore and his Captain who stumble upon a deserted island whilst searching for treasure, and the exploits of a shipwrecked duo, one of whom is a walrus named Mr Clyde, as they try their hardest to steal the treasure map.

Packed full of slippery action and awful jokes, this was one of my favourite shows at SeaWorld, even though we were sat in the one place in the audience that got splashed when Seamore leaped off the ship, into the water tank. Just as we were starting to dry out!

After the show, we visited the seals and sea lions at Pacific Point Preserve, and unexpectedly Beth decided that she wanted to feed them. I thought that as soon as I bought the fish, she would say "EEE, I'm not touching those smelly things," but again she surprised us all and actually threw them to the sea lions. (She did say that they stunk, though). The big white birds at Pacific Point Preserve seemed to catch more of the fish being thrown than the sea lions did, but Hey, this is survival of the fittest.

Next stop was the Penguin Encounter, as penguins are San's favourites. I even sponsored some penguins at our local Zoo in Chester, as a wedding present when we got married. San said they reminded her of me, I'm assuming it's not the smell of fish! (No Ron, it's their waddle as they walk!!!) Unfortunately, when we visited the Penguin Encounter it was very dark inside and they were not very active, indeed Beth thought they were all asleep. As we were standing on a conveyor belt, (Cuddly Toy), that kept us moving we didn't see much.

We then went to Dolphin Cove at Key West, visiting the underwater viewing area first, and then the feeding area above. This was a real highlight for San as she got to stroke a real dolphin that even smiled at her. San says that even though there were hundreds of other people there, she felt as though she was alone with the dolphin, at one with nature. A very personal moment, even if it was a bit smelly, that ranks second in her most memorable moments of the trip, only to be beaten by the day Beth danced in the Magical Moments Parade.

Peter also spent a good few minutes chatting up a dolphin, but it said he smelt too much. He cheated, as he wouldn't let go of the fishtail that he was holding. We were hoping that he would be instantly cleverer for this experience, but sadly it didn't seem to work, (Ha Ha).

Beth and I agreed that the dolphins felt like rubber and were quite smelly, but they do seem to have a calming effect. Unfortunately, I was straining to hold her up with one hand, whilst trying to stroke the underside of the dolphins mouth, as the trainer had shown us, with the other hand, simultaneously reminding Beth not to poke it's blowhole. When my back couldn't take any more we went to get something to eat at the café by Stingray Lagoon.

Whilst I queued for our fries, which took over twenty minutes to arrive, the rest of the family went to see the Stingrays. Apparently Peter was the only one brave enough to touch one, and I am reliably informed that Beth liked the baby ones in the Nursery Pool. After dinner we headed for Turtle Point, where it was very turtley, but not very pointy. Then we went to the Dolphin Nursery where there were two dolphin calves playing with their mother. She was trying to encourage them to push a basketball around the pool, which was funny to watch.

We then crossed the Lagoon, which seemed to take ages, as there was nowhere to hide from the scorching sun. We had to tell Beth that she couldn't go on the pink flamingo boats because it was too hot. When we finally arrived at Wild Arctic, there was hardly any line, but after only five minutes the queue behind us grew enormously as the Shamu show let out. Me, San, Peter and Beth took the shaky jet-copter ride over the Arctic scenery, whilst Rachel chose to walk through to Sea Base Alpha. It was nice to get inside the air-conditioned building after our hot trek across the lagoon. We saw beluga whales, walruses, seals and polar bears.

There is a great photo spot in Wild Arctic where the kids get to crawl under a white shelf and pop their heads up through a hole, like a walrus peeping out of the ice. We have a nice picture of Beth doing this. On the way out of Wild Arctic I collected my free SeaWorld bum-bag, courtesy of the voucher I was given at our hotel when I bought the day passes. This came in very handy for the rest of the trip.

We then decided to visit Shamu's Happy Harbour, expecting to find a few swings and the odd Rope Bridge. What we found was possibly the best children's playground in Orlando. Peter was again given the honour of accompanying Beth as she crawled, climbed and slid her way through the various tubes and slides, whilst getting soaked by the water cannons and the fountains. The great thing about this place is that it is partially covered and there is lots of water to keep the kids cool as they play. There were rope nets, a sandpit, and Beth spent about 15 minutes trying to haul herself up a rope on a climbing pyramid. As she triumphantly yelled "Take my picture Daddy" she slipped, but she was determined to climb up again to have her photo taken at the top.

Whilst Peter played with Beth, we took the opportunity to relax on a shaded bench with a lemon-ice drink ----Heaven! After at least an hour, we managed to convince Peter and Beth to get changed into dry clothes, in the nearby toilet. Just as Beth was putting on her dry shoes and socks, a Klondike the Polar Bear character appeared and pinched her shoes. This tickled Beth, as his feet were enormous.

We had been warned to arrive early for the Shamu show, so at about 4 O'clock we headed for Shamu Stadium. Peter and I sat on the front row, whilst San, Beth and Rachel sat in the upper tier, either sensibly or cowardly, you decide. We expected to get wet from the show, but at about half past four, the sky filled with big black clouds and then emptied itself on top of us. A lot of people moved from their seats to shelter under the stadium roof, but we sat tight expecting a short shower. Twenty minutes later when the show was about to start, the rain stopped and we were already soaked through to the skin.

The Shamu Adventure show was excellent. It is truly amazing what the trainers can get these huge creatures to do, and the trainers in those tight wet suits, (that isn't why I sat at the front), must be really light to be able to stand on the whales' fins. If I did that, the whale would sink. They must also be able to hold their breath for an awfully long time, (the trainers, not the whales).

Now, remember Peter had bought a groovy pair of spooky sunglasses in the Animal Kingdom, just the day before. He made the mistake of wearing them at the Shamu show. When the biggest whale started making it's way around the tank, splashing the audience with it's tail, I was so busy telling Peter to keep his mouth closed that I didn't see the splash of freezing cold, salty water coming, and must have swallowed about a gallon of the fishy water. This was not an altogether pleasant experience as the cold water was a big shock after the warm Florida rain, but that was what we were there for, wasn't it?

When we finally got over the shock, we realised that Peter's sunglasses had been swept away by the splash and were nowhere to be seen. As we squelched up the stairs, San thought we looked so funny, standing there dripping.

It was definitely time to return to the hotel as we had run out of dry clothes, so we slipped and slid our way out of the park. I had to sit on a towel as I drove the van on our short journey back to the hotel.

Needless to say, we didn't go for a swim that night, but instead went to the Pointe Orlando Shopping Complex, intending to grab a bite to eat. The restaurants were so busy that we spent the night playing in FAO Schwarz and the Barbie Shop. We took photos of Peter and Beth sitting in the big, pink Barbie shoes outside the shop, standing by the big FAO Schwarz bear and also some shots of Beth climbing on the huge rag-doll, before we spotted the sign saying "Please do not climb"… well, it was dark!

I think we ended up getting a pizza, from the Pizzahut next door to our hotel, on the way back to our room, but I don't remember eating it. (It was definitely there in the morning though because Peter and I finished it off for breakfast, Yukk!) Yet another satisfying, dreams come true sort of day in the Sunshine State.

Tomorrow:- Universal Studios Islands of Adventure