"D" is for Dolphin

This is Day 4 for the

Blogging from A to Z Challenge

for 2013.

My topic for today is the dolphin, an aquatic mammal found all around the world. There are both common and bottlenose dolphins in the Mediterranean.


In communities around the sea it's a popular subject for statues and fountains. Depictions of the dolphin in art go back to the Minoans at the Palace of Knossos on Crete. The Fontana del Moro in Piazza Navona in Rome also features a Moor wrestling with a dolphin.

As we travelled to the south of France, the first place I noticed the dolphin was on a statue in the Camargue town of Aigues-Mortes. The fountain sits at the base of a statue of St. Louis, King Louis IX of France.

Dolphin on a Statue of St. Louis

Statue of St. Louis, Aigues-Mortes, France

In Aix-en-Provence, the Fountain of the Four Dolphins is in a tiny square on rue Septembre, which runs off the Cours Mirabeau.

Fountain of the Four Dolphins, Aix-en-Provence

The sleepy French Riviera town of Saint Jean Cap Ferrat had two sculptures featuring the dolphin.

Dolphin Sculpture, Saint Jean Cap Ferrat

Sculpture of Dolphins

If you'd like to see a live one during your visit to the French Riviera, Espace Marineland, located near Antibes, has a dolphin show. (There's a video of the show on Youtube.) You can also book entrance to the dolphin lagoon for an additional 69 Euros.

Another option is to take a half-day dolphin and whale watching tour out of Villefranche-sur-Mer. (More video on Youtube.) Tours can be booked through the local tourist office in the port.

It must be the dolphin's happy expression that makes him so popular. Have you had an opportunity to swim with the dolphins?

Next:  "E" is for Employment