Now for something completely different, we took a “field trip” for Secular Thursday, as my mother-in-law, sister-in-law, niece (5.5), and nephew (almost 2) are in town. We went to the Georgia Aquarium, with its largest salt water tanks and whale sharks and whatnot.
It sucked.
That place is the most poorly designed animal displaying facility I have ever visited. Yes, it’s huge. Yes, it’s flashy. Yes, it’s gorgeous. The flow and function, however, leave worlds to be desired. The various galleries are off a central lobby, so everyone mills about in the middle, taking pictures and staring and pointing. They park their giant strollers everywhere (this is why I babywear) and you can’t get by. They have absolutely no concern for other visitors. I’m pretty sure they’re all Yankee transplants or tourists, because surely no Southerner’s mama raised him to behave like this in public.
In the time it took for us to drive downtown, park the car, and finally get into the first area of the aquarium (which was just the play ground and “pet a shrimp*” section), we could have driven to Chattanooga and been halfway down the fresh water aquarium building. It has unidirectional flow, the Tennessee Aquarium. It may not be as big as the one in Atlanta, but even on the crowded day, you get in quickly and the traffic moves.
We only looked at half the exhibits and we drove home in the driving rain. I’m counting this as a full school day, because, frankly, the experience was so harrowing that I’m sure Captain Science must have learned something very important. I learned that I’d rather go to the TN Aquarium, Zoo Atlanta, and even the damn Gulfarium than spend one single cotton picking minute in the gorram GA Aquarium.
*No, I didn’t pet a shrimp. I don’t want to pet a freaking shrimp. I want to eat a freaking shrimp.
How does one pet a shrimp??
With two fingers. TWO FINGERS. As demonstrated here.
Never more than two fingers. LOL.
I totally understand! We go to the po-dunk Long Beach Aquarium rather than Sea World or Monterey for that very same reason. I can’t stand crowds & surely would have had a panic attack. I’m feeling for you.
Shiver, just reading that post freaks me out. Man, I really hate all that crap.
People were pressed against me everywhere and it was dark and hot and noisy. I was fighting a full-blown anxiety attack the whole time.
But the Gulfarium has history! They had a pregnant dolphin they didn’t know was pregnant. And it’s cheesy. Liam loved it.
I loved it, too, way more than the GA Aquarium!
I’m so glad you mentioned this. We are supposed to take a trip to the Atlanta Aquarium next month (it is a gift from my sister, so it’s already paid for). Maybe I’ll get a map and try to plan it out so we can flow a little better.
There is no way to plan a better flow. Best bet is to get there early and go on a school day in the middle of the week.
Ugh! Field trip from hell! We really enjoyed our trip to GA aquarium (they have freakin’ whale sharks!) but we went at 9:00 at night so most of the stroller wielders had gone home. It made all the difference.
We’ve been to the GA Aquarium lots as we used to have an annual pass. Elias has been at least once, if not twice. I agree with you; I hate the design and layout. It’s really difficult to actually LEARN anything there. It’s so dark you can’t read any of the informational plaques, what few there are. The only part I really like is the beluga whale exhibit. I’ve been to the aquarium in Chattanooga and Baltimore and have been to the Dallas World Aquarium and all of them are miles above what the Georgia Aquarium has to offer.
Next time, go to Chattanooga and you can ride the Lookout Mountain railway too! There’s tons of cool things to do and history in Chattanooga for a day field trip. I wish we’d gone there one last time before we left the state.
The one and only time I took my family to an aquarium was last summer. The worst part wasn’t the overpriced admission or the sweaty, rude crowds or the awful food. No. It was the fact that the warm, moist atmosphere was the perfect petri dish for the swine flu. We all got horribly sick and stayed that way for weeks. Never. Again.
You’ve been to the Gulfarium?! Wow – It is the very first aquarium I ever went to – first the Gulfarium, then Weeki Wachee Springs – the joys of growing up in Florida! I’d rather go cheesy than endure what you described. Reminds me that its time to make hubby take the girls to the aquarium again.
It doesn’t have whale sharks, but it will have to do.