tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4042296408233898422012-02-16T21:57:41.511-05:00Adventures in AmericaLaurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17216127852769295381noreply@blogger.comBlogger11100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-404229640823389842.post-40145052103156344002009-10-19T22:12:00.000-04:002009-11-03T18:04:42.040-05:00Whale watching is one of the hugest and most successful scams going on in America today. It seems like everyone traveling to New England puts this on their must-do list, and whale watching companies in Gloucester, MA make $45 a head, so everyone should be happy right? WRONG. The problem with whale watching is that it's a misnomer. Whale watching should really be called Boating With a Chance of Whale. In June of 2005, I went on a four-hour whale watch off Cape Ann that headed north toward Maine, which I am happy to report that I did not pay for. Three other 20-somethings, forty 9th graders, and I saw about six minutes worth of unidentifiable humpback whale parts breaching the surface, and spent the rest of the time taking pictures like this:<br /><br /><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_qp_EaEo6XJY/SevgN7BW9uI/AAAAAAAAAL4/xdjMfVtyR54/s1600-h/IMGP1914.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 221px; height: 165px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_qp_EaEo6XJY/SevgN7BW9uI/AAAAAAAAAL4/xdjMfVtyR54/s200/IMGP1914.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326597514082055906" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qp_EaEo6XJY/SevfvGpE1iI/AAAAAAAAALw/VZMxpS4KTfw/s1600-h/Glam+Shot.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 157px; height: 209px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qp_EaEo6XJY/SevfvGpE1iI/AAAAAAAAALw/VZMxpS4KTfw/s200/Glam+Shot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326596984625485346" border="0" /></a><div><br />We also enjoyed attempting to "call" the whales a la Dory in <span style="font-style: italic;">Finding Nemo</span> which turned out to be a source of great entertainment during the many minutes that the horizon was whale-less. Whale watching isn't always a success, but it can be fun as long as you have $50 and four hours to kill, a digital camera, and the reflexes of a mountain lion so you can snap pictures in the 13 nanoseconds of whale emergance. A strong stomach doesn't hurt either.</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/404229640823389842-4014505210315634400?l=dancinacrosstheusa.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17216127852769295381noreply@blogger.com0