Birthday Breakfast! We started Saturday morning off right with an early breakfast at the little French pastry shop in the center of town.
Now I'm not a French food expert, but I do, however, consider myself a breakfast connosieur. And as a specialist in this department (I've eaten quite enough pastries, pancakes, and muffins in my lifetime to call myself a specialist), I'd say it doesn't get much better than this.
Davíd went for a mountainous pastry stuffed to the brim with a sinfully delicious amount of cheese and a steaming cup of hot chocolate; Sydney set her sights on the creamy tomato quiche accompanied by a sweet peach tart.
I ordered a croissant stuffed with cheese and bechamel sauce (akin to Davíd´s order), which I finished embarrassingly quickly (hence no picture).
Now there was probably enough cheese in that croissant to fill up a normal girl for two meals, but apparently I am not a normal girl. And since it was my birthday, I decided to treat myself to a warm apple pastry to round out the meal. Happy Birthday to me. :D
Now there was probably enough cheese in that croissant to fill up a normal girl for two meals, but apparently I am not a normal girl. And since it was my birthday, I decided to treat myself to a warm apple pastry to round out the meal. Happy Birthday to me. :D
Next it was off to Punto Popy, a nearby beach, to pick up our registration packet for the race.
We snapped a few pics and wandered around a bit, but we couldn´t find anybody who looked like they worked for the race. Finally Sydney checked her email and we realized the registration pick-up didn´t start until 10:00 a.m. That meant we had a half hour to wait around.
Sounded like the perfect opportunity to squeeze in some morning yoga to us!
Sounded like the perfect opportunity to squeeze in some morning yoga to us!
At last, with registration completed and our brand new race t-shirts in hand, it was time to find a guagua for our trip to Samaná. The agenda for the day: whale watching!
I´ve said it before, but I´ll say it again, I love truck bed guaguas.
Isn´t she beautiful? And that dress is just perfect.
Forty minutes later, we arrived in the colorful little port city of Samaná. There we met up with our friend Amy, who had kindly organized a whale watching expedition for us with the Whale´s Samaná company. In no time at all we were out on the open sea.
Now for a little background info on whale watching:
Now for a little background info on whale watching:
Samaná Bay has the rare distinction of being one of the best locations internationally to observe the well known and popular whale species, the Humpback (Megaptera novaengliae) .
Each winter Humpbacks migrate anywhere from 2000 to 4000 miles, from distant northern feeding grounds in the Gulf of Maine, the east coast of Canada, Greenland and Iceland, to the warm Caribbean water of the Dominican Republic to reproduce.
Almost the entire North Western Atlantic Humpback whale population spends the months of January, February and March utilizing several offshore areas: Silver Bank and Navidad Bank as well as Samaná Bay.
Humpback whales are a whale watchers delight, they are coastal whales, easily found very close to shore and are considered one of the most active species of whale in the world with an amazing repertoire of behaviors some of which are unique to the reproductive end of their annual migration.
(http://www.samana.org.do/whales.htm)
We left the dock in high spirits, quite sure that Free Willy would be flipping his fins hello and dramatically leaping over our boat in no time.
Well at least that´s the vision I had in my head (yes I realize Killer Whales and Humpback Whales are not the same species, but this is my daydream so don´t ruin it for me!).
Turns out that was not to be. But we were blissfully oblivious to this at the start and went on dreaming our Free Willy dreams while huming the Gilligan´s Island theme song as the boat left the dock:
Turns out that was not to be. But we were blissfully oblivious to this at the start and went on dreaming our Free Willy dreams while huming the Gilligan´s Island theme song as the boat left the dock:
Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale,
A tale of a fateful trip
That started from this tropic port
Aboard this tiny ship.
The mate was a mighty sailing man,
The skipper brave and sure.
Five passengers set sail that day
For a three hour tour, a three hour tour.
source: http://www.lyricsondemand.com/tvthemes/gilligansislandlyrics.html
Ha! Now try getting that song out of your head.
Also, I bought a hat. Just $2.50 for that little beauty.
So I may also have been experiencing what I like to call, "bargainer´s high."
So I may also have been experiencing what I like to call, "bargainer´s high."
I just love this pic of the Samaná coast! So colorful! It could almost be a painting.
The whole gang
We passed Cayó Levantado (an island off the coast boasting a whole army of reclining chairs and a 5 star luxury hotel--looks like the perfect place to take your honey for a trip away from it all) and continued merrily out to sea.
The whole time our tour guide was pumping us up with facts and stats, regaling us with whale tales, and even passing around pictures of leaping whales and a mini replica!
Too bad that replica was as close as we´d get to a whale for the next 3 hours.
Apparently the whales were being shy today so we headed out quite a distance in order to find them. Our guides kept mentioning that they were seeing "spouts" in the distance, so we would turn the boat this way or that and travel another couple miles towards the so-called "spout." We would arrive in the spot and sit and wait. With no sign of the whales after 15 or 20 minutes, we would move on. After a while I was beginning to think that the scouts were merely "saying" that they were seeing "spouts" in order to keep us passengers from getting too restless.
It wasn´t working overly well.
The worst however, was when our guides insisted they saw two whales in the distance. We dropped anchor in the aforementioned location and waited, eyes glued to the water. Apparently most whales will resurface every 10-15 minutes for air. Well the 15 minutes passed and no whales popped up. The guide told us to be patient and to keep scanning, these whales were just "long divers," meaning they could hold their breaths for 20 or 30 minutes.
Apparently the whales were being shy today so we headed out quite a distance in order to find them. Our guides kept mentioning that they were seeing "spouts" in the distance, so we would turn the boat this way or that and travel another couple miles towards the so-called "spout." We would arrive in the spot and sit and wait. With no sign of the whales after 15 or 20 minutes, we would move on. After a while I was beginning to think that the scouts were merely "saying" that they were seeing "spouts" in order to keep us passengers from getting too restless.
It wasn´t working overly well.
The worst however, was when our guides insisted they saw two whales in the distance. We dropped anchor in the aforementioned location and waited, eyes glued to the water. Apparently most whales will resurface every 10-15 minutes for air. Well the 15 minutes passed and no whales popped up. The guide told us to be patient and to keep scanning, these whales were just "long divers," meaning they could hold their breaths for 20 or 30 minutes.
By this time we had already been wandering around in the open ocean for more than 2 hours and some of the passengers were not handling the rocking of the boat too well. Being anchored only made matters worse as each swell of the waves sent our tummies tumbling.
The poor woman sitting just down the isle from me had been throwing up for over an hour, and Sydney wasn´t in prime form either.
The 20 minute and 30 minute mark both slid by without hide nor hare of the whales, but our guide was adamant; keep waiting, she said, these whales are just "really long divers," a whale can hold its breath for up to 40 minutes if need be. Finally after 40 minutes we were informed that another spout had been spotted, but way away in the distance.
I was pretty sure the staff were inventing things by now. I had just had my eyes glued to the ocean for 40 minutes and hadn´t seen a thing.
The poor woman sitting just down the isle from me had been throwing up for over an hour, and Sydney wasn´t in prime form either.
The 20 minute and 30 minute mark both slid by without hide nor hare of the whales, but our guide was adamant; keep waiting, she said, these whales are just "really long divers," a whale can hold its breath for up to 40 minutes if need be. Finally after 40 minutes we were informed that another spout had been spotted, but way away in the distance.
I was pretty sure the staff were inventing things by now. I had just had my eyes glued to the ocean for 40 minutes and hadn´t seen a thing.
We sloshed our way over to the spout sight and began our waiting process once more. We had now been on the sea for 3 hours and the disappointment of the passengers was palpable. We were all ready to head home.
About that time a spout of water shot into the air followed by a giant grey tale sinking below the water. Our boat sped off for a closer look! 5 minutes later 2 impossibly large sea beasts were arcing gracefully threw the air. Finally! The whales!
And now, a series of missed whale shots. Turns out for such big animals, they are a bit tricky to capture on film.
About that time a spout of water shot into the air followed by a giant grey tale sinking below the water. Our boat sped off for a closer look! 5 minutes later 2 impossibly large sea beasts were arcing gracefully threw the air. Finally! The whales!
And now, a series of missed whale shots. Turns out for such big animals, they are a bit tricky to capture on film.
Oh there he is! If you look close you can just barely see him below the surface of the water. Ok so not super impressive, but checkout the whale samana facebook page if you want to see something a little more interesting.
In any case, we spent the next 20 minutes following a pair of whales around as they splashed and spouted along the surface, until our time was finally up. Thank goodness. The whales were lovely, but they would have been 10 times lovelier had they decided to make an appearance in the first 1-2 hours of the trip.
In any case, we spent the next 20 minutes following a pair of whales around as they splashed and spouted along the surface, until our time was finally up. Thank goodness. The whales were lovely, but they would have been 10 times lovelier had they decided to make an appearance in the first 1-2 hours of the trip.
4 whole hours after our departure, we were back on dry land once more. Overall, not the best experience. I can´t say it was Whale Samanás fault, obviously they can´t control where and when the whales will pop up, but I doubt I´d shell out the fairly handsome some of money they charged to do it again.
On the plus side, I did get to see two whales leap Free Willy style.
On the plus side, I did get to see two whales leap Free Willy style.
A quick snack purchase and we were back on the guagua to Las Terrenas.
We arrived at our hostal a little before 8. With a long day behind us and an early morning race in front of us, the girls and Davíd decided to hit the hay early.
I, on the other hand, went out in search of a nice dinner (I had skipped lunch in order to splurge on some good seafood for my birthday) and a wifi connection. I couldn´t end my birthday without a skype session with my twin sis after all.
I, on the other hand, went out in search of a nice dinner (I had skipped lunch in order to splurge on some good seafood for my birthday) and a wifi connection. I couldn´t end my birthday without a skype session with my twin sis after all.
Fresh fish in salsa verde and roasted potatoes
Welp, turns out eating dinner alone at night on your birthday is a bit depressing. Double that sentiment when you skype with your twin sister back home who is throwing a raucous party surrounded by all your dearest friends, who you suddenly realize you miss terribly. For the first time since I arrived on this island, I felt homesick.
My twin, Maggy (the beautiful blond in the middle), and the rest of my lovely ladies, getting ready to head out for some birthday karaoke.
But don´t cry for me, Argentina, all I had to do was remember where I was and how much I truly have to be thankful for to knock out the birthday blues. One look at at a 10 year-old shoe shine boy has a way of really putting things back into perspective. Besides, I didn´t have time to waste on wallowing, I had a race to focus on for tomorrow!
(But as a side note, I still really miss all of you back home!)
Stay tuned for Las Terrenas Day 3
(But as a side note, I still really miss all of you back home!)
Stay tuned for Las Terrenas Day 3
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