2025 Florida Keys: Day 2
Hi all,
First of all, you may have seen the fires in the Keys. We are safe, just a little inconvenienced by the immense traffic buildup. We also do not have internet at the hotel due to the fires, so please excuse any brevity or typos as I attempt to type this from my small phone. On the bright side, the kids love the extra bus time together!
Today's activities included education at the Dolphin Training Center, beach snorkeling, kayaking through the mangroves, watercolor painting at sunset, and bonding during beach time.
Here are the descriptions from the kids themselves:
Cayla G.
Wow, what an awesome day! I woke up and went to a tasty breakfast. After that, I hopped on a bus and learned all about the Florida Keys! We even went to the beach to try snorkeling, and I saw an old shipwreck. Then, we went to a dolphin center, where I got to ride with the dolphins! It was a little surprising when I went first and got a face full of saltwater, but it was still fun! We relaxed in the sun, learned about turtles, and even practiced being dolphin trainers. I volunteered for a dolphin game, but I forgot the rules and had to guess! We ended the day with ice cream, but then we got stuck in traffic for whole hours waiting to get our food. Also, at the end, we all went on the dock and did the Macarena.
Sophia L.
Today, we went for our practice snorkel, and swam with dolphins. First, we received our snorkel gear and sat down for a fun lesson on Snorkeling 101. We then went to the beach and spent the morning snorkeling in the toasty, serene waters. We observed fishes of all different sizes, with all different adaptations. We then sat out in the breezy afternoon air and ate our lunch. Next, we arrived at Dolphin Plus. We shopped around the gift shop and learned about the intriguing careers of Dolphin trainers. We listened to a fascinating presentation about the anatomy of dolphins before zipping up our wetsuits and sliding into the water. While in the water, we took magical, majestic rides on dolphins, helped train them, and watch them jump. We also saw many cool fishes in the water!
Ed B.
At first, we had a hard time steering, crashing into roots and getting stuck between tangled branches as we tried to paddle together. In our kayaks, one person in the back was supposed to steer while the person in the front paddled hard to move us forward, but it took us a while to figure out the rhythm. In the narrowest, trickiest parts, we'd grab onto thick, twisty branches to swing ourselves around sharp corners, almost like we were playing on a jungle gym in the water. When we finally broke through into open water, we paddled faster, zooming across the calm surface and racing each other, with the wind whipping past our faces. By the end, we had learned how to work together, turning the mangroves from a confusing maze into our own awesome adventure course.
