From Arizona

- By Rashmi Menon

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• Labor Day
• The Community College
• Hiking the Grand Canyon - II
• Hiking the Grand Canyon - I
• The Niagara Falls
• Desert Dogs
• The Sears Tower
• The Navajo Code Talkers
• Driving Through McDonalds
• The Mighty Desert Warrior
• The Big Roundup
• Serving the Americans
• Martin Luther King Day
• Harvard University and Other Ivy League Schools
• Winter Wonders
• Las Vegas
• Let's Give Thanks!
• Fall Colours
• Halloween
• The Collared Peccary
• Hurricane Isabel
• Wonders of Yellowstone
• A Trip Under the Sea
• The Legend of the Kokopelli
• The Great Lakes of North America

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A Trip Under the Sea

For American children, Labor Day, which falls on the first Monday in September, is a significant holiday. Originally set up to honor the working classes, Labor Day now symbolizes the end of summer and the beginning of a new school year. Little boys and girls cherish this holiday because it is their last opportunity to have fun before the routine of the school year sets in. So, during this weekend many families pack up and take off for theme parks in search of excitement and adventure. The SeaWorld adventure park in San Diego, California is an excellent example of a theme park.
Founded in 1964, SeaWorld is the most popular marine zoological park in USA.
A trip to this park is a once-in-a-lifetime experience because visitors come face-to-face with magnificent deep-sea creatures including killer whales, sharks and sea horses. Shamu, a killer whale is a hot favorite among young and old alike. The whale show, titled The Shamu Adventure, features Shamu, a huge killer whale, Baby Shamu, who is a little younger and even Grandbaby Shamu, a veritable whale “toddler.” The trainers handle these mammals expertly, making them perform tricks that highlight their natural behavior. The whales are then rewarded with yummy buckets of goodies. The brave-hearted among the audience can request to become a part of the “trainer for a day” program, where they can interact with the whales under the supervision of senior trainers.

Dolphin Discovery is another popular show that features dolphins and whales. The energetic, friendly dolphins are a joy to watch. A word of caution for the chicken-hearted; the dolphins often get naughty and splash the audience with ice-cold water from the huge tank they swim in!

Visitors at the Wild Arctic show can take a virtual jet ride to the freezing North Pole. Temperatures and other geographical details have been replicated within this corner of the park. Visitors who disembark from the jet ride find polar bears, beluga whales, walruses and other creatures from the icy Arctic waiting to greet them. Other features of the park include special aquariums that showcase sharks, various species of fish, and other kinds of ocean life. Apart from this there is a 2-acre playpen for children that boasts of a double-story ship and a water-maze.

SeaWorld has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a privately owned park. It is now a huge corporation that employs hundreds of people with branches in different parts of the country including Ohio, Florida and Texas. Thousands of tourists visit these parks every day. The shows and exhibits are geared toward education, entertainment and environmental conservation. It is no wonder then that despite spending two or three days inside the sprawling premises of the park, the visitors always leave exhausted but happy

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