My second month in Canadia-land

My fifth week in Canada is officially over, and it was really fun. This week I got to do my first ‘play’ sessions with the whales. This is where the trainers go out with toys/mirrors/etc. to just hang out and interact with the animals which builds a better relationship and is really enriching for the animals. We have absolutely no food, but the whales still come to you just for fun- which is amazing. I ‘played’ with Tiqa, the one year old whale who is adorable, with basically a floaty noodle people use in pools. She would bump it and chew on it etc, and also got tongue rubs and lots of ‘petting’ from me. Basically it was a fantastic experience. I got to do the same thing with her dad Imaq and another older whale, Kavna.

Playing was a pretty big deal because the animals are getting to the point where the recognize the interns and will actually ‘give us the eye’ when we walk past. It’s really cool- they’ll kind of peek at you from underwater and judge whether your worthy of their attention or not. I got quite a whale compliment because Kavna (the oldest and most finicky beluga) eyed me for about 5 minutes, but then popped up and stationed for me for tongue rubs even though I didn’t have any fish for her! It sounds very lame- but it is really cool for me to actually see how my relationship is progressing with all the animals.

I also got to be the test dummy for ‘beluga encounters’ that the aquarium offers to the public. This basically meant that I stood by the pool in a raincoat while the whales practiced splashing me. It was very wet, but a lot of fun, I learned how to ask a whale for a ‘spit’.
Other than that I can’t think of anything too exciting- I’m going to a Canada Day BBQ/party on Wednesday (July 1st) which should be pretty fun (although it is an incredibly lame holiday compared to the 4th), and maybe the other Americans and I will plan something for the real independence day on Saturday! I’ve already burnt an “America” CD to listen to while I work in Fish House next week- it features such great artists as the Boss, John cougar Mellencamp, and Lee Greenwood.

I miss you guys, but am still loving Vancouver- more later!