Day 38 - 5 Feb - Puerta Vallarta

After suning ourselves and snoozing by the pool most of the day, we dressed and headed out to the marina to get on the Pirate ship for a 4-hr cruise, dinner, and show in Bandaras Bay. We'd done it last year and it is now a particular favourite for Graham. The crew is approx 25 and they put on a very high energy pirate show and it's lots of laughs for everyone. Mind you, it's an open bar for 3 of the 4 hours so there is probably more laughter later in the evening that in the beginning. Regardless, it was a great evening and by the time we got home at 10 pm, the old foggies were ready for bed. It's amazing how so much relaxation becomes so exhausing...we are getting more sleep here that at home and doing half as much. Go figure...!

There is a mother and baby Blue Whale in the bay this year that are remaining very close to shore. While we were sitting on our patio having lunch, a number of boats seemed to be hovering right off-shore and I commented that there must be whales. Sure enough, within seconds we could see two shots of mists and then this little head poked out of the water to have a look at the boats. The mother stayed close and and we didn't see much more than her back or tail as she came up and then dove down around the calf but neither seemed to feel threatened, although I though a couple of the boats moved much too close.

While we were out on the pirate ship, the same pair were just off the side of the boat...fortunately the show wasn't in full swing yet as most of the people ran to the side to watch the whales for about 30 minutes.

It's wonderful to see them this close...we have often seen them in the morning but much farther out in the bay. We are hoping that when we go out later in the week to the Rhythm of the Night production, we'll have a chance to see them again. Hopefully, I'll be a bit better prepared, photograhpically speaking, than I was this time.

Until later, love and hugs to everyone.