Hot as hell - another dolphin day

Taken from below

Weekend - beach. There is no wind and the water surface is absolutely flat. It is incredibly hot. 

Just by sitting there, under the umbrella, one disintegrates into a piece of sweaty meat. There is the urge to throw yourself into the sea for some refreshment, but that water is nearly as hot. Only once one dives down and stirs up some deeper water does it get fresher.

Tiny is there and Lorenzo. It´s a nice afternoon, we talk and drink and eat all day - no dolphins in sight.

Lorenzo talks about taking the car to Port Said and stay there overnight. By 4 p.m. he has nearly convinced himself that it is time to leave when the dolphins appear. Having decided to leave he takes an eternity to convince himself back to stay a little longer and get on the kayak. Yallah ! I scream and he slowly gets going.

The water is so flat we fly towards the dolphins. The kayak just glides on the surface and cuts through like butter.

While we approach I explain to Lorenzo we should swop, one goes in and the other accompanies the swimmer, so when the dolphins continue you get back on the kayak, catch up and then the other one goes in. I suggest he goes in first. No, Daniel, you may go... no, you, please,... no you... after a few rounds he goes in. The pod comes and swims around him. He is right in the middle. Then the pod splits, the group with the small ones moves away and a few adults stay. I see a giant bubble rise from the first group.

A bit later Lorenzo is back on the kayak - delighted. We catch up with the group and I go in.

Here they come. Mouth open, whistling and clicking sound all around (see the picture below).

Mouth wide open - communicating with his friends

The group again moves on but two dolphins, the distractors, stay. And they are incredibly interactive. The invite to follow them, the return again and again, we do circles, I dive down, take pictures from below.
When I stick my head out of the water to get back on the kayak, Lorenzo is far away, head in the water.  The dolphins are relaxed today, the surface flat and we catch up with the group again anyway.
Lorenzo goes in, and then it is me again.

The second time I meet again the two friends from before. And suddenly the rest of the pod comes, with kids and everybody. There is the finless dolphin.We swim together for a while. A dolphin swims upside down. He cuddles against his friends.

Eventually they accelerate and I look for Lorenzo. He is in the water somewhere else.
When we are back on the kayak he prefers to go instead of following the pod. He leaves me on the kayak and swims back to the shore.

Lorenzo is a truly independent person, and that is what is so precious about him.

While I follow the pod, that has advanced considerably I´m surprised to see one jump straight out of the water. And then another one and another....eventually the whole pod, about 15 dolphins, is hoping and racing down the coast. They are hunting ! What a sight !

Impossible to follow them I turn around and row back.

Back on the beach we reflect on the session we just had. Lorenzo is as high as I am.

These two stayed with us

Follow me

Dolphin world - upside down

Cuddling with his mate - head against fin

Moving on

Evening, 7 p.m.
A little breeze is making live more acceptable. It is about to get dark.
The dolphins return from the north. They travel slowly. We move down the coast together for 2 km, me in the kayak, them below. I don´t go in.