Sneak trip to the Georgia Aquarium

I blame my mother. Mmm, perhaps blame is the wrong word. But I think having a fish tank as a child has greatly contributed to my love for aquariums. There is something peaceful about walking through darkened room with blue walls of colored fish. The big tanks are my favorite part: the sunlight twinkling and sparkling through the clear water; large schools of fish darting ahead of lazy circling sharks; eels snaking their way along the sand, and rays winging by.

When I discovered that the Georgia Aquarium is the largest in the world, was only a few blocks from the hotel, and had 4, count them, 4 whale sharks, and a Manta ray, I dashed off to spend a few hours one morning. I had never seen a whale shark or a Manta ray.

With a quick perusal of the map, I headed straight to the Ocean Voyager exhibit. At 6.3 million gallons, this tank was amazing!! I followed the crowd through the clear acrylic tunnel.


I stepped off the people mover to scan the ocean depths looking for a Whale Shark. Someone behind me muttered about it being feeding time. As if on cue, the biggest fish in the seas, glided past.

I was there for the 10:30 feeding. Small rubber dingys were hand pulled across the surface and brightly colored scoops swirled the food in front of the shark. The whale shark sucked in the water and food like a giant vaccuum. Since their throats are only the size of a quarter any fish that gets sucked in can just swim back out.


It was amazing to watch.

The other exhibits are lovely too.

I was particularly struck by the garden eels. When a fish swims by they all slide back into their holes. Then when the cost is clear, out they pop.

And, of course, there were seahorses and jellies, which are always fun. If you want a lot of seahorses, though, you need to go to the Shedd in Chicago. It is another terrific place.



I have to been to loads of aquariums across the country. They all have something a little different. Next time you are traveling check to see if there is an aquarium nearby.

A Fish Story

Hazel and Leah were friends, neighbors, fisherwomen and my grandmothers.

My mother's parents, Omer and Hazel, bought a small resort in Michigan on Little Platt Lake in January 1948 and named it Buckeye Resort. There were 9 cabins and a small store. My granddad worked on the boats and would take people out fishing while my grandmother and mother would mind the store and cabins. My father's parents, Casey and Leah, lived next door.

On a chilly May morning during trout season, Hazel shouted across to Leah to see if she wanted to go out fishing. Leah, always eager for any reason not to be in the house, agreed. They gathered their gear and met at the resort’s boathouse. Hazel pulled the cord on the Johnson motor and the flat-bottomed rowboat puttered away from the dock. They were headed across the lake behind the point. My mother watched them go and then started her day’s work.

She happened to be standing on the dock several hours later when they pulled back in. She reached down for the anchor rope and hauled the boat up on the ground. Both women were excited, talking over each other; they had had a good day of fishing. In addition to the mess of perch and sunnies, Hazel had caught an enormous brown trout. They were giggling like schoolgirls. On the way back across the lake, they had made plans for a big fish fry for both families and they would invite the Lillys from across the road. Leah offered to have it at her house. While making their plans, they decided to take the fish over to the Benzie County Record to see if it was record-breaking. Both Hazel and Leah had their pictures taken with the trout. But the paper got mixed up and only printed Leah’s picture with the trout and she got the public credit for catching it. That is the picture you see. I, would have been hopping mad.

In the end, 3 families had a wonderful fish fry with fried potatoes, baked beans and salad and no doubt there was dessert of some kind, knowing my grandmothers.

Odd, how things work out. What are the interesting stories in your family?