OBX Bliss--Our Family Vacation--Part II

Continued--Sand Stuff!

Do not be alarmed!  Tanya thoroughly enjoyed being buried in the sand!  She said it was warm and 'comfy'.

Swimming! (Or Wading or Something)

Needless to say, William was really enjoying himself here!

Abby looks (and was) so relaxed!  And she didn't have the skin issues I did, since she remembered to put on sunscreen!

Dolphin-Watching!

This was the highlight of the trip for me, I think.  I'd suggested early on in the trip that we should go on one of the 'dolphin tours' advertised in all the brochures, and on May 15 Dad took me up on it!  The only bad thing was that it was arranged in about ten minutes over the phone, and we almost literally flew out the door to get to the marina in time; in consequence, I forgot to put on sunscreen again, and got doubly burned!  But it was so worth it. 

I know, I know--my hair is simply horrendous!  There was quite a bit of wind going on.

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the many dolphins we saw. :(  The sea was rough, and we were jounced and bounced over every wave in it.  I got thoroughly drenched within the first ten minutes, so, in the interests of my new camera, I had to forgo any photographic evidence of the actual animals we went to see.  But we did see them!  Probably about ten of them in all, I'm guessing.  None of them came very near the boat; Capt. Dave told us that they're shy this time of year, since they have their new offspring with them.

Since we were all fairly wet after chasing dolphins for an hour, Capt. Dave took us down an estuary nearby to dry off in the stiff south-easterly wind.  Even though I got baked, it was a wonderful, relaxing part of the ride.

Abby sports a very 'aqua' look here--appropriate because she had just been deluged with ocean spray (and not the kind that comes in bottles and tastes like cran-apple!).  Though she claimed later that the jolting of the boat had permanently injured her vertebral column (that's for anyone reading who was in my anatomy class!), she also had a blast.  Happy 18th Birthday, Abs!

Touristing! (I don't think that's a word, but it fits)

Our family loves history, whether natural or...well, historical.  The Perkins ladies also love shopping, and we managed to fit a smorgasbord of the two activities into our schedule.

William loves fish, so we made sure to visit an aquarium while we were near the ocean (for some reason, fish seem to love it there).

The aquarium had a neat touch-tank with various aquatic invertebrates therein.  I think Abby and I were trying to help William get the nerve to touch a crab here (although I don't think he did).

Abby, Mom, and I went to the small and charming town of Manteo to do some 'shoppe-ing' at the many cute, sea-themed stores sprinkled by the waterfront on Sir Walter Raleigh St. (love that address!).  The roses were so beautiful in front of this shopfront that a photo-shoot was in order.  Notice my cup of coffee....

...from this coffeehouse!  The coffee wasn't the best part, actually; they had some of the best scones I have ever had!  Chocolate-Walnut ones.  I even asked the owner for her recipe!

Well, that about wraps it up for the vacation.  It was a very relaxing time, and, having just finished up finals and gearing up to plunge into the maelstrom of packing for my Samoan trip, I needed all the relaxation I could get.

Of course, then we had a long car ride home and the stress of unpacking my stuff, finding new places to put souvenirs, and coaxing our three cats out of hiding, but that's another story....