Houston Aquarium

On Monday afternoon, Willa had just woken up from her nap when I got a text from my friend Lisa. They had two tickets to the Houston Aquarium that were good just for today, did we want to use them?

I almost said no, since I teach Monday evenings and usually things are rushed in the afternoons, but then I counted up the hours and thought it would be a much needed break. I was having a few of the Mean Monday Blues so a fun adventure was the perfect antidote! 

The aquarium was pretty cool, a comparison to the Long Beach Aquarium would be unfavorable, but let's remember that this is Texas, and it was pretty darn good! Unfortunately, Willa caught sight of a fun water fountain just as we were entering, so she threw a tantrum and would hardly look at the fish once we got inside. Here she is taking a sip of water and not paying attention to the fish.

Lucky for us (and inexplicably), they had a white tiger exhibit inside the aquarium! What does a white tiger living in a raj's palace have to do with the ocean? I'm not sure, but it was definitely heart-stopping to walk past a fish tank and straight into this floor-to-ceiling plexiglass. Willa was running ahead of me and if it hadn't been for the glass, I'm sure she would have been eaten. Don't you like the evil glowing emerald eyes? Laser tiger. It was cool, but mostly freaky, to be this close and on the same level as the tiger - especially when he would jump up and put his front paws on the glass.

Here is one of the fishtanks, they really were cool. It was kind of sad that they were mostly filled with fish from the Gulf of Mexico. I don't mind seeing a six or ten foot shark. It is extremely unsettling to see a six foot Grubber fish or Carp. Bridget's dad is a deepwater welder and works offshore on the oil rigs. He says it's really disgusting because the Grubbers are attracted to light, so they'll come and swim right next to them while their diving. It's just kind gross to see a plain boring fish actually be that big with their big fat lips.

Outside they had a train, carousel, and other amusement park rides that were covered in the cost of our admission ticket. I couldn't get any better pictures because Willa was terrified of the train! I made her stay on because I thought she would like it once it started moving. Unfortunately, every time she dared to unclench her arms from around my neck and peep her head out of my should, the train would give a really loud whistle and frighten her all over again. It was so bizarre, she's usually not like that.

At the end, I let her strip off her clothes and play in the fountains. We were there just over an hour and it was the perfect escape!