The Dusky Dolphins

I didn't post last night because the internet was down here at Nikau Lodg. It seems to working perfectly now. We got an early start yesterday morning because we had what they call here a "booking" for the 8:30 AM dolphin encounter. We had about 40 people in our group at check-in, wetsuit distribution, and the safety briefing movie. We all boarded a single bus to the boats but half the bus went to the blue boat and the other half to the white boat. Once on board we met the crew and got another safety briefing. Our captain's introduction went a little something like this "hello my name is Id and I=will be going along with you today on our the vessel." I thought "Id" who names a kid Id? Turns out our guide's parents actually named him Ed or Edward but the Kiwi accent often makes "e" sound like "i." I was asked last night if I wanted breed..oh bread when I order a crayfish fritter. At first I said no to the breed because I wasn't sure what I was getting with the crayfish fritter. Turns out the fitter is similar to fried egg or igg with crayfish in this case. Signs were all over the place advertising the crayfish (similar to a lobster) but I wasn't prepared to spend $50 NZ for it and thought a little sample would give me an idea. Unfortunately, all that I was able to taste was egg on buttered white bread. Okay, so back to our dolphin encounter. When I left off the other day I told you that John had wanted to swim with the dolphins and was on a waiting list. When we checked-in he was taken off the waiting list and promoted to substitute swimmer. So he was able to dress in a wetsuit and look all cool on the boat but not put on the full gear unless someone got sick or tired. The boat ride to the dolphins took at least 35 minutes but the boat was warm and comfortable and everyone seemed pretty cool. We came to a stop because the crew had spotted not dolphins but at least two orcas aka killer whales but they are actually members of the dolphin family but kill and eat the dusky dolphins we were going to see. We took a long stop to observe the killer whales and even saw a sperm whale at that same stop. Once we took off again we saw an albatross on sitting on the water and flying. Finally we made it to the dusky dolphins and OMG (oh my goodness) I couldn't even count the number of dolphins surrounding the boat at least 100-150 all swimming, jumping, flipping, and inspecting the "vessel." The swimmers got into position and jumped in for their first swim with the dolphins which seemed to last about 5 minutes. John was the only one in a wetsuit not in the water. The swimmers returned to the boat and the boat headed out in search of another bunch of dolphins. Apparently the dusky dolphins are very curious creatures but they lose interest rather quickly so after inspecting the boat and the freaky humans they're on the hunt for something new. On our way to the next stop John was getting fully suited for his swim with the dolphins because one of the swimmers found the water too cold and miserable and didn't plan to go back in. John was able to swim with the dolphins for the next three stops! I took pictures of the dolphins but all the walking around on a rocking swaying boat was starting to make me sea sick. By the time the swimmers were changing out of their wetsuits and the crew was passing out the hot chocolate and ginger cookies as promised before we left shore I was feeling really sick. One of the crew made the following announcement "please feel free to enjoy hot chocolate and ginger cookies....but if you're feeling the least bit sick DO NOT have the hot chocolate because it will make it much worse but a ginger cookies might calm your stomach a bit." Dang it! I was really looking forward to that hot chocolate. The bus took us all back to town and John and I walked back to our B&B Nikau Lodge(there's a link to it right of this post). Sophie gave John permission to use her washer so he did a load of laundry while I tried to sleep off my sea sickness. I awoke feeling a little better but still groggy and not completely cured. We decided to go out an area where you're supposed to be able to see seals about 10 minutes away on the peninsula. I don't remember what the area is called but it reminds me of the desolate opening scene in Planet of the Apes. We walked around what looked a dried out ocean floor for several minutes before spotting a couple big jello like seals lounging on rocks. Eventually we were spotting seals every where we looked and seeming to get closer and better looks at them as the afternoon progressed. After 30 minutes or so of looking at seals we'd grown tied of them so we started up the hill on hike. We must have hiked for about an hour up and back stopping along the way to take in the scenery and talking with a few people we met on the trail. After we got back to Nikau we relaxed before going out to dinner. We had dinner at a road side BBQ (a partially covered stand with a grill and coolers full of fish) and folding tables an chairs nearby. After dinner we were still hungry so we went into town to a nice restaurant for dessert. John had been trying to reach Mary all day so while we were on the hike he called her mom and learned that Mary had been feeling awful. Once we got back to Nikau he finally reached Mary and learned that she had been taken by ambulance to the hospital and was in a private room on an iv drip. By the time they talked she was doing better and had her roommate and boyfriend by her side and reported that her room was very nice. He called her at 3:30 AM NZ time about 9:30 AM Boston today and they had a good talk and he was even able to chat with her physician. Today we're making a long drive at least 5 hours up to Abel Tasman National Park and plan to stop off at a winery or two along the way. Sorry no time to proof this entry so as always my apologies for grammar, spelling and typos:-)