Courage sinks into my shoes. Because there is a curse on me and everyone who comes near me. I decide to be honest right away. “If you ever want to see dolphins or other marine life, don’t be with me.”
She laughs it off, but not anymore.
That’s because: the curse started somewhere in 2018. In Portugal, where I was with a former lover, we booked an expensive day trip to the Algarve to spot dolphins, prompted by enthusiastic tour operators. With a bit of luck we might even see an orca, they said. When we arrived the captain smiled. He pointed to the sea. ,,With these waves it’s not fun for anyone.” The boat didn’t go.
Later it happened in dolphin walhalla Florida where I was with my best friend. It is one of the easiest places in the world to see dolphins. “All year round,” says Google. Another wave of disappointment: because of course that whole boat didn’t go. And neither do the eighty other tours. The sea was too rough again and would stay that way for a while. We could try it the following week, they said. We then had two days left in America.
So I warned my girlfriend again when we went diving in Thailand. You can see turtles in many places, but we had already missed them on Curaçao despite the extensive snorkeling safari we had done. As soon as I set foot in the water, sea creatures don’t know how fast to get away. I had long since given up until our Thai diving instructor said: “I saw a whale shark here yesterday!” These are friendly sharks that are huge. My girlfriend started to glow.
Five dives and three days later she hadn’t even seen a turtle.
But of course: when we were home for a week, a beautiful, gigantic whale shark swam right at our dive site and doesn’t seem to be planning to leave either. I think it’s pretty much a regular attraction now. I saw my girlfriend swallow when she saw all the videos of our diving instructor.
I think she’s reconsidering the engagement.