OMG if I thought that yesterday was an early start, today was worse! We were all packed and fed and ready to go at 7.50am at the hotel lobby, ready for our behind the scenes tour of the park, including Shark Bay, the Seal enclosure and feeding the dolphins.
This is a tour that is only available to people staying at the resort and is $45, but it's money well spent. The park is empty apart from your tour group and the workers getting the park ready for the day. It's peaceful and quiet and it was really great. Plenty of time to ask as many questions as you want to, and to just really appreciate everything in front of you (no screaming kids, no pushy tourists). We got to toss a fish to Malcolm (my new boyfriend) and pat him, having our photos taken, and then we went on to feed a dolphin. Splash turned up - she's the first dolphin Sea World had, she's 56 now and a little senile, so she goes where she wants to and does what she wants, and nobody worries. She's just there, hanging out in semi-retirement.
After the tour, we went to have a coffee (we'd had an early start, after all). The on to the Dolphin Show (I really HATE rude pricks who come late and then stand in front of you, and then when they finally sit down, stand up again to wave to their even later friends/family who want to join them) Rude people should just all be lined up against a wall and SHOT in the head....problem solved. That's scare their friends into being polite!!!!!
Though the BEST part of the day was much later when we were on our way to see the Dugong display. Marketa managed to walk RIGHT into a bollard (that we'd been walking past for a day and a half) - full smack on both knees and shin. Now, you might think these bollards must be hard to see, but not so much. They stand about 1 metre high, are painted bright white and are, well, just basically quite big. Apparently not big enough. Roman and I fell about laughing while Marketa hugged the pole, trying to regain composure and rouse on us, all while laughing herself - kind of took the grouchiness away, when she's laughing just as hard as us!
We finished up after the Dugong and Aquarium and I thought, since we were so close, we should duck down to New South Wales for a late lunch. We took the obligatory border shots, and I showed them where we often dive. Just around the breakwater is Coolangatta Beach, and Marketa and Roman had a play in the surf. I guess it's easy to forget it's pretty impressive when you see it all the time, but the Czech Republic is a land-locked country and sea and surf is not an every day thing for them. I must make sure to take them to more surf beaches.....
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