Wednesday 8 March: Monkey Mia dolphins

 A half an hour drive takes us across to Monkey Mia where we pay 20 dollars to enter the marine reserve. Dolphin experiences are a popular tourist destination and we join a throng on the boardwalk at the beachfront awaiting the arrival of the dolphins. Allegedly they arrive at 7.45am every day and sure enough they do… or soon after anyway. A mother and young calf bottlenose dolphin are very happy to show off in the shallow waters in exchange for a few fish which we are told is just a snack / reward and only 10% of their daily intake and is not therefore interfering with nature. It is all part of marine research. Then an iced coffee and a day spent reading and relaxing mainly in the shade of a large umbrella by the resort’s swimming pool which we are surprised to find is included for our 20 dollars. A spot of lunch in the cafe and then back to base for tea waiting for the temperature to drop. It must have been in the high 30s today…