Kayaking Kindness

June 1, 2013

 Welcome warm weather and sunny days! Since our arrival we have been itching to splash around in the Mediterranean Sea. We have looked into a number of ways to see Calp from the water; private boat excursion, jet ski, and kite surfing. Today we decided to be swept away with the current on a two person sea kayak.

Taking local advice we visited a nearby water sport rental facility and met some of the nicest Spaniards yet. We were greeting by a water sport pro, who inquired where we were from as soon as we said Hola! Even with our attempt to speak Spanish our foreign accent is detected immediately. American English is not often heard in this part of Spain so it is obvious to most everyone that hears us we are from the US.  They call us “Yanks;” which is rather funny to us because in the United States we would not be considered Yankee’s; we are from North Carolina, Charlotte, to be exact that would make us southerners by American standards.

Before embarking on our sea adventure, no paperwork was filled out, they did not ask for our credit card, nor did they ask us to sign any accident waiver. We simply loaded our snorkeling gear, put on our life vest, were asked if we needed anything kept dry in a locker-for free- and we were off to sea.  After marveling at the outstanding view of the Rock of Ifach we decided that was the direction we would head after getting geared up. Although we would be paddling against the current at first the way home would be a breeze.  The fasted way to any location is a straight line so we deviated away from the coast and headed through the deep sea straight for the coves at the bottom of the rock. 

 

The clear blue salty water sprayed our lips with each broken wave.  The clear sea acted as a mirror of the floor below; in the shallow parts we could see the white sun bleached sand, as be passed over patches of coral the water became mysterious with a dark blue hue.  In addition to the beautiful view of Calp we heard techno music blaring as a beach disco also welcomed the summer weather. 

 Our excitement rose as we saw large jellyfish with tentacles a few feet long before approaching a group of boats anchored near the cove at the bottom of the rock. From far away the rocky cove looked as if no one was there but as we neared our destination we were in for a surprise.

Mauve Stinger Jellyfish

 Nude dudes, blended in with the blanco colored boulders as they cuddled with their partners.  I am not sure if we should say sorry for interrupting their romantic afternoon, or if they should have apologized for their flopping genitals.

Ignoring the show, we found a nice spot to pull our kayak on shore. Sticking with our plan to snorkel we dove in and noticed a large coral reef which was home to a few schools of fish.  The water was still a little cold so after our dip we laid on the sun heated rocks until I stopped shivering before we headed back to across the sea. 

We only intended to stay gone one hour knowing it cost 20 euros per- but the time must have gotten away from us.  We did not have enough cash to pay for two hours; as I pulled out the debit card we were told they do not accept them until July- when their busy season begins.  Slightly embarrassed- with no ATM nearby- the kind trusting Spaniard told us to just come back and pay tomorrow.  We argued back and forth with him about paying him the 25 euro we had on us. He insisted that we needed to have some money on us and that he would not take our last bit of cash.  This scenario took us by surprise because in the states this never would occur. People do not have that much faith in others to do the right thing; his kindness would be taken advantage of but not by us.  First thing the next day we returned with cash in hand.  I thanked him for his generosity, explained how unlikely this situation would be back at home. He replied with, “no problem!  I got good vibes from you both.  Come back and see us again before you leave Spain.”  I assured him we would. 

Below is a video from our underwater camera of our snorkeling experience.

For those of you who have been loyal readers since we started the blog, we wanted to let you know that we will be changing the format of the posts as we move along our travels. We head to Barcelona on June 24th, to pick up our new temporary home- the car we leased and will be living out of for the next 6 months.   We will be posting our experiences throughout the week, rather than a week long post every friday.  Our ability to connect to the internet on a specific day for long enough for me to write at length is not a guarantee so we will be posting more often but the posts may be shorter.  Also my topics will start to jump around as we move through different cities and countries.  Our adventure will grow making our experiences change at a much more consistent pace.  Don't worry we will still  have loads of pictures for your viewing pleasure.  There will just be more posts to see each time you check in with us rather than simply looking for this weeks post.

As always we greatly appreciate all the kind supportive feedback we receive from our readers. We love travel suggestions as well so feel free to share your favorite destinations, dream vacations, or unique sightseeing experiences with us. I hope to engage current and new readers in discussion via reddit, comments on our blog or send us an email at gettingtwothepoint@gmail.com