In May, my wonderful husband took me to Mystic Aquarium and I was able to go into the water with a beautiful 31 year old beluga whale named Naku. It was an experience of a lifetime and I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to meet her. 

When we first got there, the trainer took us into the "beluga whale encounter room" so that we could put on our waders and pretend to be fisherman. My waders were super big for me (I can't help it that I am barely five feet tall) so I had to keep twisting them. But, as soon as I was in the water, the waders did their job and kept me super dry for the entire visit. 

To get into the water, there was a tiny little step into the tank and I was so afraid that I would fall. I didn't. Also, they tell you that if you step, the waders will make you fall face first into the water so you have to do this funny shuffle to get across the pool to where they want you to stand. I forgot once and almost face planted, but I played it off and I don't think anyone noticed. I hope.

So, the trainer finally gets all the whales from the aquarium to the right places and we had Naku all to ourselves. She is so beautiful! So, the first thing we did was feel her melon (it kind of feels like a wet squishy balloon) and then we put our hands in her mouth! I wasn't scared because her teeth aren't sharp and I knew she wasn't going to rip my arm off or something. Then, we felt her suction power. To get fish in her belly, she sucks the water around her so that she'll catch whatever animals are around her. I put my fist to her mouth and she demonstrated her suck ability and I was able to feel that power. It was awesome! Then, we felt her underbelly and her fin. Then, she splashed me. Well, she was supposed to splash the whole group, but I ended up getting most of that. (I kind of liked it, except I needed to go see Jeff Dunham that night and I wasn't looking forward to being soaked for that part. By the way, don't see Jeff Dunham live. He is foul mouthed and inappropriate and I am disappointed I went. Bad choice. Never doing that again. Ok, side tangent over.)

Then, I got the crown jewel of an experience. It was wonderful and sweet. Something that I'll talk about for the rest of my life:

I got a beluga whale kiss. 

I don't think I'll ever forget my time at Mystic. It was an experience of a lifetime and I really hope that I can do it again someday.