Florida Fauna

Cormorant right off shore

As I mentioned before, we saw a lot of art museums in Florida. My family visited two places regularly whenever we went to a new place: an art museum and a zoo. As a family we appreciate animals and birds. Both my parents and I are birders and we are all fans of getting to see animals and wildlife whenever we get the chance. I did a lot of birding in Florida. We saw Anhingas, cormorants, ibises, pelicans, and tons of gulls and sanderlings. The favorites were the tiny sanderlings that fed at the shore, running in and out of the waves. Birds were everywhere. It was wonderful.

Great Egret just hanging out near the Ringling Art Museum

Birding was done on the beach and in the car, but we spent plenty of our time looking at other things. Our first full day in Florida, we headed out to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, to see both their star (Winter, the dolphin from the movie Dolphin Tale) and the rest of the aquatic residents. Clearwater's Aquarium is a rescue and rehabilitation center for marine creatures. Winter, the big attraction, is a dolphin who lost its tail in the lines of crab trap. The aquarium has taught Winter to swim with a prosthetic tail. We watched one of the training sessions as they explained how the dolphin got around regularly with and without the tail. Winter was interesting but I was more captivated by some of the other less famous residents.

Winter with her prosthetic tail

There were injured turtles who couldn't submerge after collisions with boats or fisherman which was heart-wrenching. I was so happy to see that these beautiful but damaged creatures had a place to go where they would be taken care of. There were otters, one of which had been hit by a car and the other that had been orphaned at too young an age for rerelease. But my favorite was a dolphin named Nicholas whose mother had beached herself (because of an illness) when Nicholas was very young. Both dolphins had been horribly sunburned and Nicholas' mother had died. The dolphin was now 11 and was quite the flirt. He'd swim by and check us out and pose for the camera. The white on his topside is where he was sunburnt. But my favorite part of the aquarium was talking with the volunteers and trainers. Everyone was so passionate about helping injured animals. It was incredible to see these beautiful animals being rescued and cared for.

Nicholas flirting with us

On Thursday my parents and I ended up in downtown Tampa to see the well recommended Florida Aquarium. After touring I can see why it was recommended. I don't remember the last time I visited an aquarium that I enjoyed so much. This had fish and birds I'd never seen in zoos or aquariums before. There was whole section on seahorses and other similar style fish, most of which were new to me. There were local Florida birds in vast open areas of the exhibition (one poor man even got pooped on by a Roseate Spoonbill). The main tank had a wall sized glass and benches set up, to just sit and watch the schools of fish swim by. As we were heading out a woman with a penguin in a cart stopped to tell us about them. The aquarium was both educational and beautiful. The fish and birds were well kept. Everything was sparkling and clean. It was lovely to see so many creatures well cared for at both aquariums.

Roseate Spoonbill with great aim

Seeing animals in aquariums is one thing, but seeing them in the wild is always a huge thrill for me. On Wednesday we drove north to Crystal, Florida to swim with manatees. Sadly I have no pictures of the day. I didn't bring my camera on the boat and I don't have anything that would work underwater. We had hoped to get the chance to swim with these incredible creatures and I'd found a number of companies that offered excursions. We chose Manatee Tour and Dive, because it didn't have pictures of people touching or hugging manatees on their website. I wanted something that respected the space that creatures need in the wild. They were a fantastic organization. We went for a two and a half hour tour with Captain Casey who took us out snorkeling to see these incredible animals. I had no clue how big manatees really are. They are like small cars underwater. My favorite encounter happened by accident. As we were heading back to the dock, Casey turned the boat back around after spotting a lone manatee out by an underwater spring. It was incredibly clear water and there were hundreds of fish around. But it was the manatee that made me catch my breath. We watched it surface to breath twice, completely undisturbed by us. The second time it rose, it stopped to watch me for a second and then returned to the bottom to rest. It was huge and slow and covered in algae and I realized just how beautiful and old these creatures look when they aren't in a zoo and scrubbed clean. Gentle giants of the water. So beautiful. So peaceful. It was an amazing day and an amazing trip.

The curious Epaulette Shark that walked rather than swam

Sandy the Penguin in his rolling glass wagon

Juneau

Time to head back to the frozen North. And Juneau was not only cool but rainy. As we left the ship after breakfast, the rain started falling. And didn't let up until almost noon. Luckily, we just had to walk downtown. Juneau was our only day with a planned itinerary. I had been told that while Juneau was pretty, it helped to have something organized. I would agree that the city was pretty. Even with the cold rain, the flowers were beautiful and the city was clean and beautiful. But after walking down to the park by the dock, I was ready for our first tour, a historical boat ride.

We had signed up for a steamboat ride around the harbor combined with a history lesson of mining in Juneau. When we arrived at the dock the boat wasn't there yet. Right before our appointment time, we spotted a boat out in the harbor. It was tiny, way too small to be our boat. But it kept coming towards our dock. When it finally pulled up we were shocked, the boat was small, it hardly looked large enough for the eight of us. It reminded me of the boat out of Willie Wonka with its mix of red and brass. We boarded and not only did the boat have room for the eight of us but eight or so more. It was a beautiful teak boat from the turn of the century (2000 to be exact). The trip around the lake was rainy and hard to see out the windows but the history lesson was much more interesting. The amount of gold that was pulled out of the hills around Juneau is staggering. Hundreds of millions of dollars, all taken at a significant cost to life and the environment. At one point one of the mines was so dangerous that at least one person a day was killed. The companies got rich and Juneau developed because of the gold mining trade.

I have no pictures from the boat. It wasn't until we headed to our next scheduled activity that the pictures started. And then I couldn't stop taking them. The second tour was a trip out to a fish hatchery and then a trip to the Mendenhall Glacier. When the bus that was scheduled to take us there was overbooked, we had to stand and wait for a while. But Princess found us our own personal bus and that was much better than being trapped on a bus with hundreds of strangers. The first stop was the salmon hatchery. I'm not sure what I feel about the hatcheries' work but it was certainly an interesting place. Fish return to the same stream they were born in to spawn. The hatchery catches the fish and extracts the eggs and sperm. The fertilized eggs are kept and nurtured until the fish hatch. Once the fish are old enough to set off on their own they are released into an imprint tank where they imprint themselves on the stream. Then they are released to the ocean and after a year or two return to the hatchery to complete the cycle. The hatchery was interesting but I was sad as well to see how humans were trying to improve on the natural process along with watching the fish try to finish their last swim.

The fish ladder that the salmon climb to return to the hatchery

The holding pen where the fish are kept before sorting and extraction

After the hatchery we headed into the wilderness to find a glacier. I don't even have words to describe my feelings the first time we turned a corner and saw Mendenhall Glacier. I didn't expect it to be so large, so accessible, and so beautiful. You can walk within 100 feet of Mendenhall.

The view from the parking lot

We trekked a bit down to the viewing platform and I took far more pictures than I should have. It was just so incredible looking. The blue ice is naturally occurring. If it had been sunny, the ice would have clouded quickly and the blue would have disappeared into white. We were fortunate to see it.

Blue Ice of the Glacier

There was a small trail that headed down from the main viewing area to a waterfall nearby. Even with my ankle I decided to try the hike. It was mostly flat and in twenty minutes I found out how worth it the trip was. The trail lead right to the base of the waterfall. I stood at the bottom watching the water rush over the rocks into the pool right at my feet. The water was cold and silty. I reached down to feel it and could feel the spray from the waterfall. It was one of the most amazing views. And it was an experience I won't forget for a long time.

A standard view from the bus

Brian Despain

I don't remember when I learned about Brian Despain's fun and poignant artwork but I have loved his paintings for quite a while. I've been meaning to share them but things kept getting in the way. But during this past month, both Drawn.ca and Lines and Colors have done profiles on Brian so I figured it was about time I did my own.

Brian's artwork is filled with fish and robots and gears and robots and birds and robots. And did I mention robots. Best known for his series of images portraying robots interacting with both the natural and the man-made world, his artwork has a wonderful mix of technology and emotion. These are not just mechanical creatures that respond to commands. Many of his robots are contemplating, reacting, and exploring. They are emotional and curious. And they are all incredibly rendered.

Using a muted palette of greys and browns, Brian creates a world that is recognizable but a bit surreal. Fish flow from robots' chests. Robots talk with pears and hummingbirds. One odd imaged offered a robot striding through town with a giant octopus for a hat. Each creature in Brian's paintings are detailed, down to the bolts on the robots and the scales on the fish. The images are sharp even if the backgrounds are a bit muted. But the real power of Brian's work for me is the emotion. His robots are surprised or amused or curious. It seems clear though both facial expressions and body language. Or perhaps that is me anthropomorphizing.

Each robot or creature is unique. His creations are each numbered to show their place in the series. These are not sequential though. One of the first images chronologically is robot number 29, seen below, in an image called Mr. Bubble's Birthday. This is a perfect example of the detail and emotion I was talking about. This has to be one of my favorites.


Brian's work has become incredibly popular recently and there are even cell phone skins with his images on them. I'm seriously thinking about picking up one of his laptop covers for my old laptop. And of course I need to pick up a print of his work one of these days. The hardest part will be choosing which incredible image to purchase. There are just too many I want. Fun, sad, poignant, and beautiful robots. What more could any girl want?

Give it to us raw and wriggling

Okay well maybe not wriggling. But definitely raw. (By the way, big points if you can identify the title quote). Over the last five years I have become a sushi fan. I realized when I started to become a vegetarian that eating out would be nearly impossible for me if I didn't eat at least fish. Most of the issue I have with meat is a taste and texture issue but fish doesn't pose that problem. So when people ask I say I'm not a vegetarian, I'm a pescatarian. 

Now texture is a big thing for me when eating. I have problems with some forms of eggs just because of the texture. My first attempt at an anchovy was comical and disgusting because of texture. So everyone assumed I'd have an issue with sushi. Then I tried it. No problem. In fact it's something I've started craving. Something about a thin slice of raw fish draped over rice simply makes my mouth water. Tonight I went to Taki, one of the local sushi places, for salmon nigiri, eel nigiri, and a spicy tuna roll. Mmmmm. 

This of course compares with Friday night's dinner. Jeff and I went out to celebrate Independence Day at BoneFish Grill. This place just opened near us and I've been meaning to try it. Everyone says it is good. I had the ahi tuna. The meal had a nice piece of fish, but it was the thickest cut I have ever seen on a tuna. It was more like chunks of tuna. The interior was pink and the outside was seared but the restaurant committed an unforgivable sin. I had to bring out my knife to cut my fish. That, for me, is simply not acceptable. The meal was still good. We drank wine and enjoyed the food, but I probably won't be back. If I want good fish, I'll make sure it isn't cooked.