Curacao: Willemstad, Family Vacations - Sea Aquarium Animal Encounters. Less than two feet from my mask was an ancient looking monster. Its black eyes gleamed and its vicious beak-like mouth made snapping noises audible through the water. Suddenly I realized that there was more than just this single creature in the water with me.            

The Animal Encounter at the Curacao Sea Aquarium started out in a slow, practical almost boring way. I did not really know what to expect even though I had read the descriptions more than once. With equipment selected and wearing a wetsuit, I waited. The tank strapped on my back seemed to weigh a ton. Our diving guide reviewed the equipment. Much of what she said I already knew because I had taken a SCUBA pool lesson at the Curacao Marriott. She smiled and helped each of us adjust the straps. Our diving guide showed me, the only inexperienced diver, how to adjust my buoyancy control on my vest. This is need-to-know information.

She described what to expect in the enclosed natural lagoon. Each of us was given a container filled with sardines and advice to keep the container close because the fish might to try and get the sardines out themselves. We were pronounced ready to go.

I followed after my mom and the other visiting diver, choosing the ladder route for entry, which proved a challenge in flippers and SCUBA gear. I adjusted my mask at the bottom of the stairwell, my legs in the seawater. Then I secured my mouthpiece and began breathing as I submerged. At this point was all about trust. Trust that that I would remember and that everything, the equipment I mean, would work.

Within seconds I was in the aquarium like lagoon and hanging free. At first I didn’t notice anything because I was thinking about breathing. It was like being in a dream. Then I realized the fish had found me and were waiting with curiosity. I couldn’t figure out how to go lower. Then I remembered to let the air out of my vest. I did so and as I sank I felt certain that the breathing part would be fine.

I quickly adjusted. After my mom and I posed for the first of several underwater photos I began to explore. It was an utterly fascinating experience. Hundreds of multi-colored fish of a variety of colors, shapes and sizes surrounded me. Initially I was amazed at how close they came to me, pecking at my mask and surrounding my container of sardines. It was a bonus for me to see beautiful stingrays of many sizes flying (no that would be gliding), through the water within a few feet of my location. Our guide showed me how to make them fly up after a fish, showing their pale underbellies to us. I watched in fascination, and then attempted to achieve the same “flight” with a smaller stingray. I was successful after several tries, then, kicking slowly I simply swam, watching everything around me, amazed that I could be a part of this world, even if only for a short time.

Looking for my mom, I swam around the hull of the observation boat and came to floating stop. Less than two feet from my mask was a monster out of some ancient horror story. Its black eyes gleamed and its vicious beak-like mouth made snapping noises audible through the water. Suddenly I realized that there was more than just this single creature. At my appearance five more swam from the murky gloom behind the wall of Plexiglass. I stared in amazement for a while, realizing in one part of my brain that these beasts were turtles, not some sort of mythical monster. Yet some part of me was worried that the Plexiglas wasn’t thick enough, and that if they wanted to they could come through it at any time. This encounter is about trust.

Eventually I realized that all they wanted was the sardines in the pouch tied to my suit. Fumbling I reached inside and withdrew one, guarding it from the other hungry fish and pushing it through a small round hole. Immediately it was snapped up by a huge Loggerhead. Literally snapped, I could hear the sound. As I reached for more sardines I felt, for just a minute, the pounding of my heart in my throat. Was I breathing too fast? I grew more comfortable with the feeding ritual.

About ten feet to my left I saw my mom next to different enclosure wall, the one for the sharks. As I swam to her location I watched the water. I saw an indistinct gray and white shape coming closer. It was my first shark. A source of one of my childhood fears, begun by an accidental viewing of Jaws, sharks had always invoked a primitive fear in me. Luckily, the Sea Aquarium doesn’t keep Great Whites. The sharks in the enclosure were large, but didn’t resemble Jaws, so I found the courage to feed them. Unlike the turtles, each shark took its turn and while slightly intimidating they were not as frightening as the Loggerheads with their enormous jaws.

All too soon our guide motioned that it was time to surface. As I re-entered the world of air, I looked below at the shadowy water whose surface concealed an amazing view of this planet. Too cool for words, I knew that I would have to return. I was hooked on diving.

Author's note: Thinking about doing the Animal Encounter? For anyone wanting to do the Animal Encounter Curacao Sea Aquarium a word of caution, it is a SCUBA experience, complete with breathing underwater from a mouthpiece. If you’re claustrophobic, afraid of animals or not sure you want to be that close to anything that large, then the view from the observation boat is an excellent alternative. They also offer a number of terrific dolphin encounters that do not require water submersion. No matter what, this is a place not to be missed. Just the best, no matter the activity choice.

Editor's note: The island of Curacao has an abundance of activities for families that want to vacation "out-of-the-box" in the Caribbean. In the next few weeks we will feature the fine points of the island in a series of features geared to families.

At the top of the list is the Curacao Sea Aquarium. The opportunities for fun and learning at this facility are unending. For us the most exciting was The Animal Encounters. It is an ideal activity to do with teens because it is a way to share a unique experience in a safe controlled environment. It is not essential to be a certified diver, swimming skills and the desire to follow instructions will do just fine.

The actual submerged swim occurs in a lagoon like aquarium that is continuously refreshed with unfiltered water from the sea. As we submerged with our sardine boxes tethered to our belts the reef residents, hundreds of gregarious fish, swarmed. Obviously they knew the drill and those impatient for the food nipped at my legs. It is an odd feeling, fish nips. The tank is filled with blue tang, stingrays, groupers, eels, and scurrying schools not on my fish card. They were all friendly and all hungry. This controlled water space seemed very remote from the activities on the platforms above. It is a nice way to see if a child relates to diving as a sport.

The thrilling moments involved encounters inches from the beaks of sea turtles that weigh maybe 400 pounds. The idea is to stick a sardine snack through one of several two-inch holes in the Plexiglas wall. Doing this I found myself only about four inches or eyeball to eyeball with prehistoric faces. Survivors from the Age of Dinosaurs, they are amazing and just a little threatening. The turtles are greedy creatures and hug the space near the hole waiting for sardines. At the shark feeding wall the Nurse sharks smugly glide grabbing the offering but not staying for the eye contact.

I had the opportunity to speak with the director of educational services at this world class learning facility. In addition to the dolphin encounters for all age groups they also have programs for groups or schools. The three to ten day programs feature comparative explorations of coral reef, mangrove, sea grass and sandy beach ecosystems.  Designed to meet the unique needs of participants, activities include multiple in water experiences. Additional options include SCUBA certification, underwater photography and camping trips to Klein Curacao.

DETAILS

Curacao Sea Aquarium. PO Box 3102, Willemstad Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles 0599-9-461-6666 (general) 465-8900 Dolphin Academy or seaquarm@cura.net  (general), aquasearch@cura.net  (education), www.Curacao-Sea-Aquarium.com

Curacao, located just two and one half-hours from Miami, is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and is perfectly situated just outside of the hurricane belt. This tropical island boasts an eclectic mix of history and culture and is an ideal vacation destination for families. Toll-free 1-800-3-CURACAO (1-800-328- 7222) or visit www.curacao-tourism.com.

Feature and images/ezine by Amanda Nelson-Duac Copyright 2009. Updated 5/2009