Sammy Innis

Today is the most important day of the trip. Sunday, May 14, 2017 is our co-leader Tommy Van Norman's 27th birthday. Knowing this is a crowning moment in history, we gave him half of a ripped Burger King paper crown found on the sidewalk in order to celebrate the occasion.

¡Feliz cumpleaños, Tomás!

Today we went to Modern Valencia and visited the City of the Arts and Sciences Museum (Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències) and went to the Oceanográfic. This place is the largest aquarium in Europe and something I have seen numerous pictures of online before. However, seeing these buildings in person is an entirely new experience. It has such a contrast to antique Valencia's large limestone churches and towers. The Modern City's buildings look futuristic with many windows and oblong shapes.

When we first arrived at the museum, we watched the IMAX movie "Jean-Michel Cousteau's Secret Ocean" about the creatures of the ocean. We wore headband speakers that narrated the production in your language of choice. You guessed it, I chose English.  My favorite part of the production was the soundtrack playing in the background of the documentary. The orchestra played intense music to represent the "characters" of each sea creature.

After the IMAX, our group went to explore the aquarium. We first went to see the dolphin show and although it was short, it was the most entertaining dolphin show I have ever seen. The trainers were in the water with the dolphins and they gracefully soared on the brims of the dolphins' noses. It looked like they were riding an underwater jet ski. After the dolphin show, we were free to explore the aquarium on our own. My group and I decided to go see a 4D movie. It was completely in Spanish and I have decided I am more of a 2D movie type of person (I jump way too easily for the full 4D experience). We spent the rest of our time at the aquarium exploring and I found out that there are some penguins that reside in South America.

Exploring the aquarium with Jenn and Michaela

After the aquarium, we went to the mall so Troy could buy an American football to give to his host dad, who dislikes fútbol Americano. Next, we went to walk along the beach's shoreline. After an hour of having our toes in the sand, we took the bus back to our homes and happily ate dinner with our families.