Swimming with Sharks

I'm back at work now (sigh, tear, sob). I wanted to write about what was an intense experience for me. I swam with sharks and stingrays!
So we went to Typhoon Lagoon at Disneyworld. As I've said in other posts, I'm a big coward. I'll wait while others do Space Mountain and Tower of Terror. But I decided to take a risk when I saw Shark Reef.
I got in line and picked up my snorkel and scuba mask. Then came the lifeguard's talk, which went something like this;
'Before you go on shark reef, there are some things you need to know. In minutes, you will be swimming with adult sharks and stingrays. Whatever you do don't dive underwater. Breathe normally through the snorkel and pull yourself through the water with your arms. The water is really deep, you will not be able to touch the bottom. You also can't touch the sides of the tank. And the water is very cold. If you get in trouble, lifeguards are ready.'
Ok, great. A set of warnings tailor made for cowards. I can do this. I can do this. I put on my mask and snorkel and was amazed how clearly I could hear my hyperventilating and my heart beating out of my chest. I eased into the water, looked down and yep, sharks. They were right there. Not happy baby sharks but full on grown up sharks. I pulled myself through the water amazed that nothing was separating me from them when I saw something else come into view. Huge stingrays passed less than two feet under me.
Now I'm halfway through the pool, or gauntlet as I called it. Something weird happened. While checking out these sharks and stingrays I was swimming with, I started to enjoy it. My breathing and heart slowed and I started to enjoy this once-in-a-lifetime experience. And then I was at the end. That is when I decided to make it a twice-in-a-lifetime experience. I went to the end of the line and did it all over again. Life it turns out is good.

Springbreak 2009

As I type this, I'm in Chattanooga, TN. Today (when my friend finally gets up) we will be going home. For now, I wanted to post about the trip.
On day one, I drove for 10 hours down to Atlanta, GA. We got thoroughly lost in Atlanta, an experience I recommend for those of you that enjoy fear. So we went to the Georgia Aquarium. If you want to see what I saw, go to my youtube channel (DeBenson91) where I will post some videos soon. The best part of the Aquarium was plexiglass tunnel that went through the aquarium where you are surrounded by whale sharks, stingrays, and Finding Nemo-style fish. (I'm a hotel guy not a fishologist). There were lots of other fish, but I won't bore you with that.
We stayed at a scary motel just north of Atlanta. It had video cameras everywhere to attempt to discourage crime. I guess it worked because we weren't killed.
On day two, we went down to Orlando. Can I just say that if you were one of those annoying drivers on I-4, you should learn how to drive and then drive not the other way around. We saw two cars try to travel demolition-derby style. Another guy had a How's my driving? Please call 1-800... so I called and hopefully his boss took away his keys.
Anywho, at Orlando, we stayed at the Pop Century Resort and had Park Hopper Passes for three days. The hotel was intense (again see my youtube channel) with four story tall Rubiks Cubes, 5 Story Tall Big Wheel, etc. Everything was overpriced, ten bucks for chicken nuggets! But the parks were great.
One thing you should know about me... unlike my sleeping friend over there, I am pretty much a coward. He did Space Mountain, Tower of Terror, Rockin Roller Coaster, Big Thunder Mountain railroad, all of the stuff that would immediately cause me to have a heart attack. I stuck with all the tame stuff that I am sure I will talk about more in a future post.
For now, I have to decide what to do on this last day of our break. Until later, drive safely or don't be on any roads I am please =)