SeaWorld

What a disappointment SeaWorld was. Back in '04 it was one of my favorite places to visit. In fact, we have talked about how awesome SeaWorld was for years. You were able to feed and pet the dolphins. There was a baby sanctuary where you could see baby dolphins. I participated in the Shamu show (I sure hope that wasn't Tilikum) and was able to feed a killer whale (see the picture below). It gave me a kiss through the glass. 

I mean, doesn't all this sound awesome? Then tragedy struck several years ago. One of the whales, Tilikum, killed a trainer during the dinner with Shamu show. We didn't learn about this until we were at the Shamu show on our trip, wondering why there were only 25 people at the Shamu Show. When we went on our honeymoon there were no seats available it was so packed. We were puzzled why SeaWorld seemed so barren and you weren't able to do any of the fun things without paying a lot of extra money for it. I wanted to pet Dolphins and feed them fish! Then we figured out why. The movie Blackfish. While we haven't seen the movie yet, it is about the killer whale from SeaWorld, Tilikum, and how he had killed several people. I'm sure he didn't mean to. He just didn't know people aren't play toys. I had no idea there was so much controversy with SeaWorld. People want SeaWorld to stop capturing whales (which they say they have) and release the ones they have to a sanctuary that can provide a better home for them. SeaWorld has lost a lot of money with the release of this movie. We also learned that whales were stressed if their dorsal fins we laying over, which all the whales at the Shamu show had depressed dorsal fins. After reading this I was sad. Then Paul had to go and pull up an aerial view of SeaWorld that showed exactly how small their tank was. When you stood beside it, especially at my height, it seemed huge! I was outraged and heartbroken we had given Paul's hard earned money to SeaWorld. I spent the remainder of the evening, while the kids were in the pool, googling everything I could about the injustice that is SeaWorld. I was planning my signs: Friends don't let friends go to SeaWorld! Thanks but no TANKS!

Here are some pictures we took at the show. I'm only posting the pictures of us. Poor whales!

Us smiling before our SeaWorld resentment set in. See how empty it was. Everyone else got the boycot SeaWorld memo, except us.

I'm not usually a voice for animals, but I really do feel like we should FREE THE ORCAS!!! We didn't buy any souvenirs, and I really wanted a magnet. Poor marine animals. I will be surprised if SeaWorld makes it. I hope those whales do find a happier home with lots of water and fish to eat. Tilikum, the whale the movie Blackfish was about, died at SeaWorld this past January. May he rest in peace knowing there are people fighting to free orcas from captivity.

So, now that you know my stance on that, I'll get back to our trip. Like I said, we were puzzled why there seemed to be no one at SeaWorld. Not that we were complaining. I had people overload after spending three days at Disney. After I got over my disappointment that you could no longer feed the dolphins...or pet them...or get near them. We decided to go see turtles. Woohoo...turtles!

There was a 3D turtle dome where you could watch the life of a turtle. It was pretty interesting. Not as interesting as feeding dolphins, but we did see a manatee. 

Mainly the only thing to do as SaeWorld, since my kids didn't want anything to do with riding a rollercoaster, was to watch shows. We did go on a penguin ride that took you through the life of a penguin. It was really cold, which was welcome, since we picked the hottest day of our trip to go to SeaWorld. At the end of the ride you got off where the penguins were. We were so close to them. They were adorable and a few were a bit crazy. 

Since I didn't get my up close encounter with the dolphins that I was hoping for; I was really excited about the show.

This show didn't disappoint! Dolphins are such great creatures. They are like the dogs of the ocean. Friendly, kind, and always smiling. Everyone loves dolphins! This show was pretty packed with people because, well, everyone loves dolphins!

We did get to see some other birds. They were extremely smelly. 

And some flamingos. These flamingos must have had a better diet than the ones at Animal Kingdom. They were very pink.

We also saw some very noisy sea lions. They were being fed and were barking in hopes of having a fish thrown at them. You could feed the sea lions, but once the kids found out it was raw fish, they said "No thanks." There were some really big ones.

We saw the Clyde and Seamore Sea Lion High show. It was a cute show. Clyde and Seamore are trying to graduate high school. They aren't very good students. It was a good laugh. I am amazed how the trainers are able to get these animals to "act" and do what they say, just by positive reinforcement. I need to walk around with M&M's in my pocket to see if my kids listen better. 

Here are a couple random pictures I stole from Paul's phone. It was hot and we were ready to leave. The kids really wanted to get in the pool.

The thing the kids were the most excited about was petting the sting rays again. They were pretty disappointed with SeaWorld too. SeaWorld...you are dead to me.

Clearwater Marine Aquarium and Clearwater Beach

Day four I needed a break from so much walking. My poor poor feet! The kids had watched both dolphin tail movies and loved them. We figured, since we were so close, we might as well visit and make it a day trip by visiting the beach too. 

This was probably my favorite day of our trip. It was very laid back. A day we were able to just enjoy each other and enjoy being together. 

Clearwater Marine Aquarium helps rescue, rehabilitate and release sick or injured marine animals back into the ocean. Most of the animals they help rehabilitate have to stay at the facility since they have permanent injuries that prevent their return back into the ocean. 

We were so excited to see Winter, a bottlenose dolphin who was rescued after having her tail caught in a crab trap. She lost her tail because of her injury. CMA fitted her with a prosthetic tail. That pretty much sums up the first movie. 

Hope, Winter's BFF, was found in shallow water with her mother who had died when she was 3 months old. She was dehydrated and CMA nursed her back to health. Hope couldn't be returned to the ocean because she lacked the necessary skills to survive. Skills she would have learned from being with her mother. So, since Winter needed a companion, they put them together. That kinda sums up the second movie.

Here is a picture of the house boat Reed, aka Kris Kristofferson, lived in. 

There were pictures up throughout the aquarium showing which scenes were filmed in that spot. It was pretty cool and I can't wait to watch the movies again. 

We also saw another dolphin, Nicholas. Nicholas and his mother had washed ashore on a beach in Florida. They were both severely sunburned. Nicholas' mother didn't make it. Nicholas is a permanent resident of CMA because of the sunburn and damage it has done to his skin. It was white, which you can't see in pictures. Lauren wanted to know if someone put sunscreen on him.

I enjoyed reading about each of the animals, what happen to bring them to CMA, and the progress they have made. They also listed what they liked and didn't like and what their personalities were. They have an ICU that was mostly filled with turtles. Most of which had swallowed plastic bags or other man made materials. It was so sad. We did learn that turtles can feel through their shell and most turtles like to be scratched on their shells. Pretty interesting. So, the next time you see a turtle, give him a good ole back scratchin. 

There were also sharks, fish and other things you would see at an aquarium. All who had to be rehabilitated. 

They had sting rays you could pet. I was very surprised Dallas stuck his hand in to pet one. He has inherited a lot of my OCD tendencies and having clean hands is one of them. He also doesn't like to be wet. Especially his clothes. In the end, all of them stuck their hand in to pet them. 

Kristen had asked if they would have any star fish. I told her I didn't think they would, but surprisingly they did. And they were able to hold some different kinds of snails. They even got to learn about them and ask questions. Kristen questions were mostly about the star fish.

After the aquarium we ate some lunch, then headed to Clearwater Beach. 

The kids wrote their names in the sand.

The sand on the part of the beach that we were at was so different than any of the beaches we have been to.

The girls tried to build something, but it just wasn't happening. 

Some parts of the beach that were really crowded had sand that looked very light and fluffy. There were also these piles of little shells on the beach too.

Here are some pictures I took while we were there. The water was very clear, which meant you could see all of the yucky things floating in it. 

By this time in the week the kids were going right to sleep without any complaints. We were all exhausted.