Splashed By Shamu!
You could say we turned somewhat of a corner today. We managed to get Molly up and out of bed and we headed for SeaWorld and… no one is vomiting today! I’m not sure if it’s because there are 6 of us, but whenever we ask the concierge to book us a taxi, we end up getting a kind of chauffer-driven van! We had “Carlos” in Anaheim and today our driver was “Spanish George”. He was great! He told me all about his Spanish upbringing and how he learnt English at school and all about his life in San Diego. It was really interesting.
Once inside SeaWorld we were amazed at how few people were there. The day was fairly overcast but we practically had the place to ourselves! We kitted Molly out with a wheelchair so she didn’t have to walk around all day. It was so good to see her out in the fresh air and smiling again. We got preferential seating too because of the chair!
We couldn’t help but compare the place to SeaWorld on the Gold Coast and the shows really highlighted the differences. The shows here were very razzle dazzle, almost like a circus show, with the animals almost a prop for the actors and dancers. They were really impressive but just not as much about the animals as they are in Australia.
The killer whales were AMAZING! Shamu is the star of the show and he is just magnificent! Just seeing the size of the whales is awesome. The show was just so American! The movie trailer guy did the commentary and in his very deep dramatic voice he said things like: “the wondrous connection forged between man and these magnificent creatures is unparalleled…” They got a little boy up on stage whose dream it was to one day be a police officer and the host of the show said “now little buddy, is there someone you’d like to meet here today?” The little boy shouted in a very emphatic voice “Shamu!” to which the host replied “well buddy, I think Shamu would really like to meet you too!” They had some very moving music playing as he raised his arms triumphantly for Shamu to jump to. It was a little bit corny! The whales were so beautiful though!
We also saw flamingoes, sharks, turtles, stingrays, polar bears, seals and other sea creatures great and small. We called George, our chauffer, to pick us up at the end of what was a really enjoyable day!
It is our last night in San Diego and we are heading off to dinner in the Gas Lamp District with the Somervilles after a quick dip in the Embarrassing Suits’ pool and jacuzzi!
