Right before I left Hong Kong, I went on a tour that took us searching for pink dolphins somewhere north of Lantau Island. Nobody is really sure why they’re pink, but they are undoubtedly so. When I first heard of them, I thought they’d be a mild pink or something like that, where the scientists who study them exclaim, “Look at how pink they are!” and the rest of us stare and wonder what in the world they’re talking about. Then, with just the right combination of sunlight and squinting, our eyes would play the right trick on us as the water made odd reflections and then – there! We’d see it.
That’s what I thought, anyway. Then I saw pictures and it was undeniable; these things are PINK. Like little girl playing hopscotch and blowing Bubble Yum gum pink. Like pink rose pink. Like how flamingos are neon pink, they are baby pink. Nothing like the “pink” tint of human skin or other such wannabes. So, I was really excited to go out to see some of these creatures for myself. I almost couldn’t get on a tour, but we managed to book me for a tour before I was due to leave (though I had to delay my intended departure time by a few hours).
photo credit: hkdolphinwatch.com
On the bus ride to the boat, one of our tour guides explained the sad state of affairs the dolphins and their natural habitat were in. They’re hoping to spread the word and make pink dolphins a national treasure, so the dwindling number of 150 or so can continue on strong. The future is not looking great for them, so they’re trying to raise awareness of the issue to be able to garner enough support to protect them. After all, where else do you get pink dolphins? As to why they’re pink, the main theory is that they live in murky waters and need less protection from UV rays. Babies are still born grey, then they go through a “spotty” period where they start to shed that for the pink until they finally become fully pink and indoctrinated into adulthood.
As we were told about the shoddy tagging and tracking efforts and about the whale that came to the Hong Kong Harbor awhile back, I thought that maybe I should have been a marine biologist. I would love to explore the things in the ocean and tag these pink wonders to track their population. I love being out on the ocean or near any body of water and I wouldn’t mind living on an island or in the mountains. However, I think that profession comes with the same type of down side that deterred me away from becoming a veterinarian – animal die frequently and in this case, much of it is because of human activity. So just as I couldn’t bear the thought of putting down someone’s pet, I don’t know if I’d be able to not get depressed at the conditions that some animals are living in now, or what their future holds. Oh well, I’ll just love them from afar and help out through volunteering and donations.
photo credit: sightseeingworld.com
The passion with which the tour guide spoke of the dolphins made me want to be a tour guide too. I would love to spend my days introducing travelers to that which I care about, whether it’s points of interest in a city, a unique experience, or a special animal. It’s also why I’d like to run a hostel – to welcome all the strangers who have come to my city to see what there is to offer. I think it’d be amazing to share what I love best with the myriad of tourists. I’d hope I’d be able to inspire them to enjoy it as much as I do too. I wonder if that type of job pays well. 😛
We arrived at the boat and were told that we could spot the dolphins’ fins bobbing in and out when they came up to breathe and that was how we’d find them. With a quick warning that some rubbish may look like it at first, so look for clear movement, we were off to search for them. For about three hours we were on the boat, enjoying the breeze and sun as they came and went, our eyes scanning the horizon, trying to pick out a fin emerging. All I saw was an expanse of white speckles that would come and go as mini waves would break in the choppy waters. I was so desperate to see one that I even thought I saw glimpses of pink that turned out to be a red warning flag, a shadow in the water, and other random things. My mind was happily playing tricks on me at every opportunity.
When we were first heading out, we were right around the area where the planes were coming in for landing at the airport. Distracted, I took pictures and videos of them as they roared overhead and came down for a smooth landing. By the time one plane landed, another was appearing from the clouds, making its descent. One by one the planes took turns coming in, like clockwork, as others left going in the other direction. I marveled at how many people and how much cargo I had just seen arriving in Hong Kong. It was the first time I’d ever spent some time watching the operations of an airport and it was pretty cool.
At one point when we were further out, I was sitting in front, staring down at the water when a little fish jumped out and quickly got overrun by the boat. I continued staring down and soon more came, jumping just ahead of the boat, then falling off to the sides to avoid being hit. Excited, I started to film and snap away, trying to get a good shot of these little flying fish. Maybe it was just my imagination, but they looked a lot like mini dolphins. I spent a long time observing them and noticed that when they are in groups, they all jump at more or less the same time in some sort of coordinated effort. They also really seemed to like jumping in front of the boat in the rushing water, but once they went off to the side, they seemed to resume swimming more. I guess they’re looking for the adrenaline rush!
Turns out I did manage one shot!
By and by the boat turned around and did what I dreaded most: headed back to shore. I sat there thinking to myself, “We better see them now and they better get freakin’ close!” Dismayed, I tried to enjoy the ride itself and the lull of relaxing on a boat. Suddenly I heard, “12 o’clock! 12 o’clock!!!” One of the tour guides had spotted something! Everyone rushed to the front and looked straight ahead at 12 o’clock and… there! A single pink dolphin emerged and went back down. This one came quite close to the boat, but unfortunately I missed a picture of her. Soon after, another was spotted at 9 o’clock and with her was an adolescent. I spent the most time with these two, getting some decent footage and cooing happily the whole time. More single ones were seen at 3 o’clock and back around 12 o’clock, but they were further away and disappeared much more quickly.
I so wanted to hop in the water, toxins and all, and go join them. I wondered if they’d come closer to explore if I had some body parts dangling in the water. Still, it was so rewarding to finally find them, after so many hours of searching. I had even begun to entertain the idea of how I could go on another trip (they offer a free retry if you don’t see any on your trip) – perhaps I could get an IOU that wouldn’t expire, so I could use it years down the line, or whenever I return. Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry about that in the end and we ended the trip on a happy note.
