A young schoolgirl recently won the chance of a lifetime to spend the last week of her summer vacation in "paradise''.

And Monica Wooden, 11, from Baltimore said: "I am having so much fun. I can't wait to tell my friends.'' Monica was the overall winner of the American Association of Zoos and Aquariums International Year of the Reef poster competition.

The contest drew 5,000 entries from all over the US, Hawaii and Bermuda with all posters on the theme of Save the Reefs.

The grand prize, a trip to Bermuda in order to experience first-hand the natural coral reefs and underwater world, was more than Monica could have ever wished for.

Monica, along with her mother and grandmother, left their home early last Wednesday morning to fly to the Island.

And soon after arriving, she was given an "up close and personal'' tour of the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum & Zoo.

"I got to feed the Galapagos tortoises bananas for breakfast,'' she told The Royal Gazette during lunch at Tom Moore's Tavern. "They were chasing me, they thought my orange shoes were carrots. It was funny.'' Monica also went snorkelling with BAMZ staff in areas around Fort St.

Catherine and Flatts Inlet.

"It was the first time she had ever been snorkelling,'' said BAMZ marketing director Judie Clee, "and she took to it like a champ.'' "It was fun, but I was scared at first,'' Monica added. "When you're on the boat the water looks so shallow, but when you jump in you find out it's pretty deep.

"I saw a lot of fish and all different types of coral,'' she added. "I learned their names too -- parrot fish, sergeant majors, angel fish, brain coral, sea fans.'' Monica even managed to spot a lobster.

"Dylan (a junior BAMZ member) went down and caught it,'' she said. "It (snorkelling) was different, but I liked it.'' An outing to Dolphin Quest, a beach barbecue, and general sightseeing were some of the other activities planned for Monica's four-day visit.

"I'm definitely excited about swimming with the dolphins,'' she said.

"This is a great experience of a lifetime for her,'' her mother Edith added.

"She's already saying she wants to move here.''