Dolphin Boat Trip

I have just returned from enjoying our annual PIBC-Guam staff Christmas outing/party. This year we went on the dolphin boat ride at Guam Tropical Dive Station. Pretty much all the staff was there except for a few who were sick (we missed you Tim, Calvin and Sudas). This is the third time Joyce and I have gone on the dolphin trip (I think 4th for Joyce) and we have seen dolphins every time but one. This time as you can see from the picture we got pretty close to the dolphins and watched them frolic around for quite a while. You can also see the village of Agat in the background.

After the dolphins went away, we anchored a short distance away, in a relatively calm area and did some swimming and snorkeling. Several of the staff pulled off some incredible dives from the top of the boat. I stuck with cannonballs. The water was about 20-25 feet deep, so clear you could see the coral on the sea floor and nice and warm. Once some of the staff brought crackers and little hot dogs, it was also full of a wide variety of little fish. It was cool to just float in the middle of all those colorful fish.

After the snorkeling were the banana boat rides. They are a little more fun with a speedboat, but most of the kids, including Joyce and Jeff Johnson, had a great time on the ride. Most of the way back they were pulling someone on the banana boat.

It was a great day. The weather was perfect and I think everyone had a great time. We live on a beautiful island so it is nice to get out and see it once in a while. It is also great to have some relaxed time just to talk about stuff not related to work. On the left here is Joyce with our "roommate" Daisy Murdock. Daisy will be one of our housesitters while we are in California. On the right is Josephine Mendiola (PIBC science teacher) and I in one of our deep theological discussions. I will post the picture of our whole group on the boat when I get a copy.