My Writings. My Thoughts.
“Por la Libre 2010″ a Huge Success
// June 2nd, 2010 // View Comments // Cancun / Isla Mujeres, Locations, News
Por la Libre- The Race Begins
Saturday May 29th, 6:30 am and it is already hot in Cancun. There is excitement and tension in the air as more than 500 anxious athletes await the start of the 10 km open water race from Cancun to Isla Mujeres. This is the fifth annual “Por la Libre” and it’s a gorgeous day for it, sunshine, no wind, no waves, just crystal clear turquoise waters and blue skies. The swimmers hit the water at Punta Cancun and the race begins, with a flotilla of boats, kayaks and jet skis following along to ensure the safety of the athletes and to cheer them on to the finish at Garrafon Park on Isla Mujeres.
Por la Libre 2010 Finish Line at Garrafon Park
As the swimmers make their crossing, supporters head to Garrafon and the organizational teams take their places at the finish line. The recovery area is set up with refreshments, the massage tables are in place and the offical time keepers are ready to receive the finishers. The radios start to buzz as the first swimmer is seen approaching the island, the excitement mounts and the cameras start clicking! First out of the water with an incredible time of 1 hour and 33 minutes is 17 year old Fernando Betanzos, a proud moment for this incredible young athlete. Finishing first overall for the women’s category is Alejandra Merizalde with a great time of 1 hour and 43 minutes, another young swimmer from the 15-19 year old group.
Fernando Betanzos first to the finish line
It was an exciting day to be at Garrafon, the swimmers were greeted with rounds of applause as they exited the water and crossed the mat. Racers and their fans enjoyed the shady hammock garden, lounged in the pool and sated their appetites with icy cold drinks and a tasty lunch. Many took advantage of the calm waters to snorkel the reef and go for a spin in the kayaks on this beautiful day.
Televisa Verde presenting mangrove plants
“Por la Libre 2010″ is pleased to announce that for the first time the race was done to benefit a great cause. Televisa Verde donated 6000 mangrove plants in the names of the first 200 registered swimmers, with the goal of revitalizing the Nichupte Lagoon which suffered serious damage during Hurricane Wilma in 2005. Dolphin Discovery and Garrafon Park are proud to be sponsors and we would like to congratulate all the athletes and give thanks to Televisa Verde for their contribution to the ecology of Cancun. Thanks and special congratulations to Rafa and Carmen from Starc Producciones for organizing this great event, let’s do it again soon!
Interview with a Dolphin Trainer
// May 31st, 2010 // View Comments // About Dolphins, Cancun / Isla Mujeres, News, Riviera Maya
Dolphin Discovery’s trainers are used to hearing “You’ve got the best job in the world!” from guests and this week I had the pleasure of sitting down with one of our trainers to find out if indeed that is the case. Alex Mata invited me to experience life as a trainer for a morning and was gracious enough to sit down with me and tell me about himself and his life as a marine animal trainer.
Alex Mata is the Corporate Educative Trainer for Dolphin Discovery. He’s originally from Spain and began his career in Europe before coming to Dolphin Discovery in Mexico six years ago. He chose Dolphin Discovery for its outstanding corporate training department with over 100 educational courses, an ideal place to develop and grow in his career. He now works alongside expert veterinarians and biologists who push everyone to be better trainers and better people, something that sets Dolphin Discovery apart from other organizations in the world. With his expertise, knowledge and true passion for the animals and the organization, he is now in a position to train the trainers and realize his dream of devoting his life to marine animals.
We asked our fans and followers on Facebook and Twitter to post their questions for Alex, here’s what we discovered.
1. How do you become a dolphin trainer? What makes a good dolphin trainer?
First and foremost, being a dolphin trainer is not a job, it is a career and a calling. It is not necessary to have a degree, though it is beneficial to have studied marine biology, veterinary medicine or psychology. Trainers must have excellent swimming skills, a love for dolphins, the ability to speak English, a great personality for customer service and most importantly, passion. It takes about three years to obtain the title of “Trainer”, with hours spent in educational courses, 1 1/2 years as an apprentice and 1 1/2 years as an assistant. Dolphin Discovery has approximately 100 different educational courses and trainers are required to constantly be expanding their knowledge and improving their skills. Long days, hard work, sleepless nights, hot sun and pouring rain, the work isn’t always easy but for those who truly love what they do, it’s always a pleasure.
2. Do you love the dolphins? What’s the best experience you’ve had at Dolphin Discovery?
Alex smiled when I asked these questions and replied quickly to the first with an “Of course, absolutely!”. For the second question he pondered for a moment and then replied “Swimming with ten baby dolphins at the same time in Puerto Aventuras”. He described the ten babies as super playful, swimming circles around him, vocalizing loudly and teasing him into joining in their games.
3. How do you communicate with the dolphins? Can you tell if a dolphin is happy/sad/angry?
Since humans have yet to be able to translate the language of dolphins, the trainers communicate with them through body language, hand gestures and whistles. The dolphins regard the whistle as a “reward”, for them it means “Good job!” and they love to hear it. Dolphins express their emotions through their own body language and vocalizations, each in their own way. Once a trainer gets to know a particular dolphin, they can see when they are feeling excited or are getting frustrated, if they are eager to play or if they prefer to be left alone.
4. What’s the worst part of the job?
Being in Cancun during hurricane season adds extra pressure to the staff to work together, think quickly and stay calm as they move the animals to a safe environment. The dolphins come first, as a dolphin trainer at Dolphin Discovery you are commited to the animals and in an emergency they are the number one priority.
5. After feeding fish to the dolphins all day, do you still enjoy eating fish?
“Ummmm, no, I don’t eat fish anymore.”
6. What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
It seems Alex’s home life is not that much different from his work life. He lives in Cancun with his girlfriend (also an animal trainer, specializing in birds) and their 2 dogs, a chameleon, an iguana, a cockatoo, a macaw and 3 toucans and spends his days off hanging at home with the animals.
So, is it the best job in the world? It sure seems that way! Alex spoke enthusiastically about his “family” at Dolphin Discovery, he eagerly answered even my most basic questions and he patiently walked me through the routines of the day. It was an honor for me to spend time with someone so knowledgeable and so obviously in love with dolphins (and manatees and sea lions and stingrays and sharks and animals in general!) I learned so much and am inspired by his passion, thank you so very much Alex, can we do it again soon?
Happy Anniversary Puerto Vallarta!
// May 25th, 2010 // View Comments // Locations, News, Vallarta
photo courtesy NYDailyNews.com
The city of Puerto Vallarta will be more festive than usual this week as it celebrates 42 years as a city and 92 years as a municipality. The May Cultural Festival is an annual event bringing nightly concerts, singing, dancing, art exhibits, fireworks and parades, a fantastic time to visit this Pacific coast paradise! The heart of the city will be filled with color, joyous sounds and of course, the tantalizing aromas of a Mexican feast!
For many years Puerto Vallarta was a quiet fishing and pearl-diving village called “Las Peñas¨. As early as the mid 19th century it became a place for people from surrounding villages to take a relaxing vacation. In 1918, the village was renamed after the former governor, Ignacio Vallarta and was given the status of municipality. The first airplane service began in 1932 and by the 1950’s Puerto Vallarta had begun attracting Americans, mostly artists seeking retreat on the shores of Banderas Bay. Puerto Vallarta changed forever after director John Huston brought production of his 1963 movie “Night of the Iguana” to a nearby small town. With the publicity of the film (and the scandalous behaviour of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor), Puerto Vallarta became both famous and infamous and the tide of tourists began to increase. In 1968 Puerto Vallarta was elevated to “city” status and the state and federal government contributed to the development of the region as an international resort destination. Today Puerto Vallarta is one of the most popular vacation spots in the world, treating millions of visitors each year to a taste of its Mexican charm.
Here’s a look at the cultural events being celebrated this week in Puerto Vallarta:
May 25th 8:00 pm- The Arcos de Malecon come alive with the sounds of mariachi with local favourites “Los Tios” performing the traditional music made famous in the region
May 27th 8:00 pm- The restaurant “La Leche” hosts an evening with sommelier Agustin Rodriguez and chef Nacho Cadena with wine tastings and a lecture entitled “Food and Wine, a Beautiful Tradition” (Spanish only)
May 28 8:00 pm- The Arcos de Malecon is again the site of a fabulous musical presentation with famed local jazz ensemble “Proyecto Tacos”, a popular band which fuses pre-Hispanic influences with jazz and DJ music
May 29 8:00 pm- The Xiutla Municipal Folkloric ballet presents a Gala Performance at the Arcos de Malecon
May 31 6:00 pm- The big fiesta! The whole city will be out to celebrate the anniversary at City Hall, with awards presentations, musical performances and a fireworks display. This is the party of the year!
Dolphin Discovery would like to extend a very happy birthday, happy anniversary, felicidades to the city of Puerto Vallarta. We are thrilled to be a part of the community and we wish Puerto Vallarta, its citizens and visitors a safe and joyous celebration!
**with thanks to BanderasNews for event information
Stingray Facts
// May 13th, 2010 // View Comments // Cancun / Isla Mujeres, Grand Cayman, Locations, Sea Life
Stingrays are fascinating creatures, as they float and fly through the oceans they appear almost bird-like in their motions. We at Dolphin Discovery love all marine animals and would like to share a few fun stingray facts with you…..
- Stingrays are found in shallow waters in warm climates
- There are about 70 species of stingrays in the world
- There is no evidence of evolution in stingrays, ancient fossilized remains appear to be identical to the stingray of today
- Stingrays can live in salt water or brackish waters (where salt water and fresh water meet)
- Stingrays are related to sharks (some folks call them “flattened sharks”), unfortunately while sharks may be family, they are also the biggest predators of stingrays
-Stingrays often take on the colour of their environment for defense
- Stingrays spend a lot of time motionless, partially buried under sand
- Stingrays are usually docile and harmless, though they will use their barbed tails in defense (usually if they are stepped on)
- Stingray venom was used as an anaesthetic in ancient Greece
- Stingrays may be as small as a few inches or up to 5 to 7 feet long
- Stingrays have no bones, they are primarily made of cartilage
- Stingrays are carnivores, hunting their prey (small fish, crabs, shrimp) at night
- Stingrays use their sense of smell and special electro-receptors to hunt their prey
- Stingray mamas give birth to two to ten stingray “pups” per year
- Stingrays have a lifespan of 15 to 25 years
Dolphin Discovery is thrilled to offer our guests the opportunity to interact with these beautiful marine creatures. Participants in the Grand Cayman Royal Swim receive a bonus swim with stingray experience, where you’ll be invited to stroke and hold the stingrays and our trainers will teach you everything you want to know about them. Guests in our Cancun-Isla Mujeres dolphinarium have the chance to snorkel in the sea with stingrays, a phenomenal experience! We hope you learn to love stingrays as much as we do, join us at Dolphin Discovery!
–Stingray photo courtesy Barry Peters
Dolphin Discovery- Mother’s Day Specials
// May 4th, 2010 // View Comments // Cancun / Isla Mujeres, Cozumel, Discounts, Grand Cayman, Locations, Riviera Maya, Tortola, Vallarta
Mexico is a country known for its devotion to the family, and no family member is more revered than “Mama”. Every year on May 10th the entire country pays homage to matriarchs with the annual “Dia de las Madres” or “Mother’s Day” celebrations. Young children create cards and gifts and adult children bring flowers and treat their mothers to very special dinners and parties. The traditional song “Las Mananitas” is sung, often as a serenade outside of mother’s house with mariachis for accompaniment. “Mama” is the center of attention and the whole family shows her their appreciation on this very special day. Mothers have been honoured throughout the ages around the world, but the first official “Dia de las Madres” in Mexico wasn’t celebrated until May 10th, 1922 as a result of the petitions by Rafael Alducin Bedolla, founder of the newspaper “Excelsior”. We thank him for bringing us such a special day and we thank moms everywhere for all that they do!
Dolphin Discovery would like to show moms just how special they are by offering a 20% discount to mothers on all our swim with dolphins programs in all our locations for the entire month of May! Guests swimming with their mom get an additional 10% off their own swims too! Treat your mom to an experience she’ll never forget, book now! Lots of love to moms everywhere from all our dolphins!
“Por la Libre”- 10 km Open Water Race from Cancun to Isla Mujeres
// April 26th, 2010 // View Comments // Cancun / Isla Mujeres, Locations, News
Dolphin Discovery is proud to be a sponsor of the 5th annual “Por la Libre” event, a 10 km open water swim race across the Bahia de Mujeres (Bay of Women). Saturday May 29th, 2010, athletes from Mexico and around the world will make the crossing from Punta Cancun to Garrafon Park on Isla Mujeres, swimming through turquoise waters and over the reefs, demonstrating incredible feats of strength and endurance.
This year the event is for for the benefit of a fantastic cause! Dolphin Discovery and co-sponsor Televisa Verde will be contributing thousands of trees and mangroves to be planted in the Nichupte Lagoon and the Sian Kaan biosphere. For each participant, 24 plants will be donated for each kilometer they swim, with the goal of reaching 60 000 new plants overall! As an environmentally conscious company, Dolphin Discovery is thrilled to not only participate directly in the “re-greening” but to assist in the continuuing education of the public about our precious natural resources.
Athletes will start the race at Punta Cancun, swimming ten kilometers in open water to the finish line at Garrafon Park on Isla Mujeres. Families, friends and observers will be waiting and cheering them on from shore. If you would like to join the observers and offer support to the participants while enjoying a great day at Garrafon, purchase Por la Libre spectator tickets!. The price for the day is 390 pesos for adults and 250 pesos for kids 6-11, children 5 and under are free. Your ticket includes ferry transportation from Cancun to Isla Mujeres, entrance to Garrafon Park, breakfast, lunch buffet and open bar, the use of lockers, lounge chairs, hammocks, snorkeling gear, kayaks, the infinity pool, all the incredible installations available in the park are yours to enjoy while the atheletes make their crossing! Participating swimmers will be able to relax and enjoy Garrafon after the race, a great reward for their tremendous efforts.
Dolphin Discovery wishes all the participants good luck, have a safe race, we’ll see you at the finish line! We invited everyone to join the Cancun-Isla Mujeres “Por la Libre” 10kms Aguas Abiertas Facebook group, a great community of participants and supporters and of course, the Garrafon Park Facebook page which celebrates all things Isla Mujeres!
A Virtual Visit to Grand Cayman
// April 20th, 2010 // View Comments // Grand Cayman, Locations
The old expression states that a picture is worth a thousand words, so my question is, how much is a video worth?
These days there are very few people who haven’t used Youtube, for music videos, for a laugh, to keep up with the world. I personally use Youtube as means of taking a virtual vacation, finding videos of places I’ve loved in the past and places I dream of visiting in the future. Seeing destinations through the lens of a camera may not be quite as good as the real thing, but it sure can give you a good idea of what to expect. If you are heading into the “unknown” of a new experience or destination, watching a video can ease any anxieties and more often than not, build your expectations and excitement for the upcoming adventure!
I could write all day about Dolphin Discovery Grand Cayman Island, but I thought I would let the wonderful world of video take you on a little tour. Here’s a sample of what you will find on your Grand Cayman adventure, join me on my virtual vacation!
We’ll start with a tour of the island, including a helicopter fly-by, check out the amazing colours of the water! This is a great video, you’ll visit the Boatswain’s Turtle Farm and the famous Stingray City too (don’t forget that when you swim with dolphins at Dolphin Discovery Grand Cayman, your visit to the turtle farm is included in the price!)
Grand Cayman is full of excitement and adrenaline, but why not take a few moments to enjoy some peace on the famous Seven Mile Beach? Here’s a little virtual getaway for you, gently lapping waves, crystal clear waters and soft white sands, takes less than a minute to relax and enjoy this experience through video, but wouldn’t a few hours of this reality be divine?
Finally, no trip to Grand Cayman is complete without a visit to Dolphin Discovery. You’ll learn a little something about our marine animal friends, get a friendly, fishy kiss and feel the thrill and excitement of swimming with dolphins in paradise. There is no better way to spend the day in Grand Cayman, here’s a video peek of the experience of a lifetime, picture yourself in the water with our dolphin friends and let the worries of your working day fade away.
Thanks for virtually traveling with me to Grand Cayman, I hope you enjoyed the video journey. If you will be living the dream and visiting this beautiful island, we invite you to join us at Dolphin Discovery, a unique experience for memories that will last a lifetime! Whether you are spending a week on a Grand Cayman diving trip or making a Grand Cayman port call from your cruise ship, we’d love to have you, contact Dolphin Discovery reservations today!
New Programs! Swim with dolphins, manatees and sea lions in the Riviera Maya
// April 12th, 2010 // View Comments // Locations, Riviera Maya, Sea Life
At Dolphin Discovery we love all the creatures of the sea, not just dolphins! We are excited to be able to share these magical creatures with you, our guests, you’ll learn about marine animals and enjoy some special moments with some very different friends from the sea . For those of you looking for a new experience and to learn something new, we’ve created the Sea Life Circle programs in the Riviera Maya.
Sea Lion Hug Puerto Aventuras
Sea Life Circle Sea Lions brings you up close and personal with the fabulous, funny jokers of the sea. You’ll be able to touch and kiss the sea lions and they’ll make you laugh until your sides hurt with their crazy antics. Sea Life Circle also includes the most popular dolphin swim at Dolphin Discovery, the adrenaline-filled Dolphin Royal Swim. In addition, you’ll be able to visit the underwater world as you snorkel with stingrays, a complete package of marine animal fun!
Sea Life Circle Manatees includes the Dolphin Royal Swim, snorkeling with stingrays and the opportunity to swim with the gentle giants of the sea, the manatees. Manatees, often known as sea cows are huge herbivores and you’ll be invited to feed them, swim with them and stroke the animals that sailors often mistook for mermaids. Learn something new and make a new friend!
Dolphin Discovery is thrilled to be able to give you the chance not only to have an exciting adventure, but to learn something new and create awareness of our marine animal friends. Visit our location in Puerto Aventuras to meet the dolphins, sea lions, manatees and stingrays and have the experience of a lifetime!
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