Yosemite Hike - 2011

Thursday, August 21, 2008

UNDERWATER DISCOVERIES

DAY 13 – THURSDAY AUGUST 21, 2008

Today was devoted to snorkeling. The girls have practiced, in the Brooks' pool, but I wasn't convinced this outing would be a winner so I was already managing expectations early in the day. I have never been happier to be wrong! The girls took to the water instantly and we followed their lead swimming around for the next few hours.

On our way to snorkel

We learned snorkeling is like skiing; invest in good equipment to keep things in working order for the kids (and parent's) sakes. We were at the mercy of what the snorkel boat had so needless to say, we all made do with quirky masks and fins that were too small. It was amazing to experience the underwater sea life with girls as they saw it for the first time. They were in awe of all the fish and coral and Sydney and Jana even saw two eels. Shelby kept saying the huge corals looked like brains!

This is so fun!

We stopped for lunch, steamed rice and milkshakes, at Jonas, a place that was recommended to us. The milkshakes did not disappoint. It’s unanimous; we will be going back on our way out of town tomorrow. Our entire afternoon was planned around watching Misty & Kerri play in the Gold Medal match for beach vball. You should have seen us all huddled on the bed cheering for the USA!


Nighttime swim for Scott & Sydney

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE DAY: Snorkeling, snorkeling & more snorkeling, Scott and Sydney’s nighttime swim in the ocean & Jana having sushi! A head massage for Jana for $8 with Coconut Oil – supposedly to repair my dry hair. Still not sure the oil was a good idea or not?

Sushi time!!!

FUNNY FORTUNE STUFF: Shelby so excited when she got in the water and saw all the fish, we could hear her in the water, face down talking into her snorkel saying, “Oh my goodness!”

SEEING THINGS DIFFERENTLY: When we were out snorkeling, a man paddled up in a boat and said something to our boat captain. Next thing I know, I was reaching for Scott’s wallet to pay some fee for all of us to snorkel there. We’ve found, there’s never just one price here. Case in point, all separate transactions….. Paid for the boat, snorkel & mask (did include hotel pick up & drop off) Paid to get on a private island with caves Paid fee for snorkeling in a cove Paid for fins rental Also for some reason, napkins seem to be at a premium here. We seem to be constantly asking for them and needing more b/c they are so small.

DAILY FAVORITES: Man paddling in a boat around the snorkeling area selling ice cream. Watching USA Beach Women win Gold in the rain and watching USA Indoor Women crush Cuba 3-0 live.

OLYMPIC UPDATE: Needless to say, I didn’t think things can get any better from a volleyball standpoint. The USA indoor women pulled off a huge upset by beating Cuba easily 3-0. The USA team lost to Cuba pretty badly 3-0 in pool play, but we prepared much better in the second match. The USA coach is former Gold Medalist from China, Lang Ping, and is considered the greatest volleyball player in Chinese history. She has come through big time for the USA and was featured on NBC nightly news last night. USA indoor women will play #1 Brazil for the gold medal now. USA is on a roll! Misty and Kerry came through in the rain to win 108 in a row and the gold medal match over China. Last time they lost a match was one year ago and clearly have been rolling all the way through the Olympics. Great to see them excited winning the Gold again. Tomorrow, Men’s Beach Gold Medal Match with Todd and Phil and Men’s indoor semi’s USA vs. Russia. Don’t want to jinx anything, but USA VB could sweep the whole Olympics!

TRAVELING INSIGHT: Have a waterproof camera on hand for all water adventures with kids. We failed at this and missed some great photo ops!

2 comments:

Keith and Karen said...

Still lovin' your daily blogs. Thought they might stop after the olympics but happy to see them continue to roll. Really sounds like a fantastic experience taking your family 1/2 way around the world to these exotic places. You are both the bomb. Truely a trip for the ages. It's Friday night and that means a tired Dad and PIZZA for all. You guys are pushing the envelope with school looming, but that is what life is all about. Travel safely and let us know if you need a ride from the airport. That is what friends are for!!

Carly F. said...

It has been great reading up on your daily travels. We found out that Syd and Aidan are in the same class again this year...yea! See you Monday at school!
The Flowers