It was nearly time to cruise and learn! The event I had been waiting for – way back in those long, dark days…. it was like a beacon of light in the tunnel that I was in…. During my daily trips to the hospital – and then the nursing home – it had seemed like an unattainable dream – now it was about to happen!
First though, I had several days in Orlando – and then Miami. I met up with Jennifer Wilcox – a dog trainer from Melbourne who was also doing the cruise! Here is a link to her website.
We visited Sea World and then the Kennedy Space Center. Oh I loved the Space Center! I could have spent more time there! Here are some photos – first Sea World.
and Kennedy Space Center
We had ‘lunch with an astronaut’ at the Space Center – here I am with Jack Lousma – what an inspiring and humble man! Click on the link here to read about his career.
After the excitement of Orlando it was off to South Beach, Miami – now that was an experience! The buildings are amazing!! All Art Deco style! We did a tour of the Miami area – which included the Holocaust Memorial. This was so moving – and I could have spent longer there. Of course on a bus tour it’s a quick stop and then it’s on to the next site. The Venetian Pool was also interesting. Here is a link. And we stopped in at Little Havana and the Everglades!
Here are some photos:
Finally it was cruise time! Jen and I excitedly packed our bags and headed to the cruise terminal. We were on the Celebrity Reflection – what a magnificent cruise ship!
That evening we met up with the rest of the group. I would say the group was a mix of dog and horse trainers – most from USA, but some from further afield. I was surprised at the number of Aussies! Here we are with Kay Laurence – photo – Jennifer Wilcox.
Before I went on this trip, I had people tell me I was ‘brave’ to head off on my own. I said that the lure of learning all I could about positive reinforcement training from these ‘giants in their field’ outweighed any feelings of being not only new to clicker training, but travelling on my own!
My advice would be to never fear doing something because you may be on your own. There is a world of opportunity out there. If I had thought that way I would never have met all the wonderful people in the clicker community!
The following day was to be our first full day seminar. My head was already spinning from all the excitement. It was certainly going to spin some more! I went to sleep smiling in wonder that I was on a cruise ship in the Caribbean, attending an animal training seminar!!!
COMING UP – MEETING THE GIANTS!!!
IF YOU ARE NEW TO THIS STORY, PLEASE START AT THE BEGINNING HERE – Part 1 – An Introduction
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