Day 102. Monkey Mia

Farmer wants a wife...

It was a very early wake up this morning, as we had to get down to the foreshore to participate in the feeding of the dolphins. We had Scarlett out of bed, and were down there by 7:15am waiting eagerly with about 100 other people. We waited, and waited, and waited some more, and at about 8am one individual dolphin finally showed up. We watched him play in the shallows for about half an hour, and then finally the rest of the pod turned up at about 8:30am.

There were about 6 x dolphins in total now, but they didn't start feeding them till about 9am, and by this stage Scarlett was well and truly over it. Unfortunately only 4 of the 100 people got to feed them; so there were a lot of very disappointed kids. I know everyone can't feed them, but the two hour wait was a killer for the little ones to then not even come close to getting a feed.

We had planned to do a wildlife cruise  before leaving here and as we were expecting rain in the next day or two, we decided to go today - just to be safe. Jace, Jo and the kids joined us; as we all embarked the 'Aristocrat II' for a 2.5hr cruise through Shark Bay. There was a boom net lowered into the water for people to play in, and Scarlett was really keen at first but got scared and jumped out before the boat even started it's engines. I think the little thing just wasn't quite sure what was going to happen, not ever seeing one before.

Scarlett skippering the Aristocat II

The seas were calm and the sun shining. First on the cruise schedule was a stop at the 'Blue Lagoon Pearl Farm', which just happens to be home to the season before lasts, 'Farmer Wants a Wife'; farmer "Jamie". We were treated to a great tour and demonstration of the pearling industry, which had the kids enthralled. Shane got to taste some black pearl meat that retails in Asia for about $700 a kg. Apparently it is a very strong aphrodisiac, and I think it worked as he then bought me a lovely Pearl ring as a memento of our trip.

Jamie from 'Farmer wants a wife'

We searched the grassy feeding grounds for the elusive dugong, but unfortunately they have moved out of the area early destined for warmer waters. We were however lucky enough to see heaps of dolphins, and a couple of loggerhead sea turtles. It was a great day on the water and one we will remember for a long time.

After we disembarked we came back to the van to finish off the washing, and take it easy after a very busy morning. The rest of the afternoon was then spent relaxing, with Scarlett playing with some kids next door, mum reading her book, and Shane surfed the Internet, while I had a little kip.

This evening at the 'Monkey Bar', here at the Monkey Mia Dolphin Resort,  there was a performance by a comedian/acrobat; he was so funny the kids were in stitches. Scarlett was part of the act at one stage helping him pick up his juggling balls - each time she handed one to him, he dropped another. Tonight, she was re-telling the whole experience to us enthusiastically over dinner like we weren't even there.

Small stingray in the shallows

By the time the show finished it was 7pm and way too late for cooking, so we grabbed a couple of pizzas at the bar and took them back to the van for dinner. We had the best weather today, and are desperately hoping it stays the same for the next few days. Turns out there is much more to do here than we first realised.