Imagine yourself surrounded by the pulsating current of the wide-open Atlantic Ocean as you float belly-down for a full-frontal view of its sandy bottoms (panoramic view courtesy of the Gihery Full Face Snorkel Mask you can purchase on Amazon). The Hawaiian sun’s rays seem to be falling perpendicular to Earth, veiling your back as you peruse the ocean floor. Now add to that mental illustration a graceful torrent of incoming spinner dolphins majestically gliding towards you as they playfully surround you from a safe, but personable distance. Are they smiling at you? Yes. These creatures are fantastically social, taking just as much curiosity in you as you in them – and they in each other, especially when you encounter hundreds of them in a “superpod” – multiple dolphin pods meeting up for a little happy hour. Ever wonder what dolphins look like having sex? Wonder no more, as these sea-faring mammals are quite promiscuous and bare no shame as they bare it all erotically. While swimming with dolphins in their natural habitat, you may witness them belly-to-belly… quite literally “attached at the hip” (if dolphins had hips). You haven’t seen an expression of true joy until you’ve seen two dolphins smiling at you in the midst of procreating to the rhythm of the waves. As an elementary teacher, you would think I’d be privy to this fun fact of dolphin lovemaking. However, it was completely unbeknownst to me and my husband until we were informed by our tour guides from Wild Side Hawaii Speciality Tours (https://sailhawaii.com/) based out of Oahu, Hawaii. This little snippet of dolphin promiscuity was but a cherry atop the entire life-affirming experience Wild Wide offered. There are a few reasons why we chose this particular company in order to fulfill our bucket list item of swimming with dolphins. Firstly, we knew we wanted to swim with a dolphin in the most natural setting possible. We refused to pay an arm and a leg for 30 minutes in a restrictive, man-made environment used primarily for the sake of economic gain with little respect for the encaged creature. Wild Side went above and beyond meeting our expectations in this regard. Not only do the guides educate their passengers about efforts underway to protect Hawaii’s oceanic and coral reef ecosystems, but they are steadfast in their mission to introduce as little disturbance as possible to the dolphin’s environment with our human presence – no touching, no littering, zinc-based sunscreen only, and keep noise to a minimum. Remember, after all, we are guests in their home. Environmental activism aside, Wild Side had a lot more to offer than just snorkeling. The slightly higher price as compared to larger, overcrowded tours is small sacrifice considering how much “bang” (pun intended) your get for your buck. Their Best of West tour accommodates a maximum of 6 passengers for $195 a person, with a minimum age set at 12 years. Have children? No problem, you can instead opt for their Deluxe Wildlife Charter at $175 per adult/$145 per child 10 and under. You’ll have ample opportunity to swim with wild dolphins; multiple stops are made based on the tour guides’ scientific observation of dolphin behavioral patterns, promising you guaranteed time with these majestic animals. For those of us who get hangry after two hours, Wild Side also boasts a provided lunch of chicken salad sandwiches, freshly cut pineapple, and chips paired with Hawaiian style mango salsa. I was also pleasantly surprised to find they also kept stock of cookies, granola bars and ample beverages. Yes, all of this is included in the price. Want to know what else was included in the price? All of the snorkel gear and flotation devices. So, if you don’t want to invest in those really sweet full-face snorkel masks I mentioned earlier – no need to fret! Of course, if that’s the case, you’ll have to settle for the traditional snorkel mask. However, chances are if you’re vacationing in Hawaii, you’ll be snorkeling whenever you get the chance anyway; it’s addicting! You might as well just splurge a little and get the most out of your dolphin adventure. Just get ready to see more than you bargained for (wink face).