Waikiki Aquarium

Noel and a co-worker were installing ceiling molding on the first floor of the house one Sunday afternoon in late June, so I headed out to Waikiki with Robbie. I called Grandma and Grandpa Tipon to see if they wanted to join us at the Waikiki Aquarium and they were game. We end up arriving around 3:30 in the afternoon. I knew they closed at 5, so I was really hoping that would allow us enough time to see the highlights. Ha! We were actually “done” within a half-hour, and then we killed a lot of time by resting around the lawn outside while Robbie ran around a bit. I browsed the small gift shop, picked up some pins for Robbie, and we were out the door no later than 4:45.
After entering, we all immediately headed into the adjacent indoor wing. I backed out and wandered toward the front again, looking for a map. Well, they don’t do maps at the Waikiki Aquarium! And they don’t do air conditioning. It was a humid afternoon and the indoor wing was stifling. The inner areas didn’t get a lot of cross-ventilation, so I stayed on the outer edge. Robbie liked it, though, and had fun viewing the fish, standing against the glass tank walls, and climbing what he could. The picture above is courtesy of Grandpa Tipon. I had forgotten the camera in the car parked a few miles away, so I bought a postcard and scanned the very cool colorful clams they had on display (see below). Even if I had my camera, you couldn’t really get a good angle on the clams because they were under the tighter security of an extra fence. Sadly, I remember reading a year or two ago that someone had stolen some of the clams from their outdoor exhibit. I believe all were ultimately recovered, but it is still upsetting to think about a few individuals ruining things for the rest of us – not to mention the clams.
As we were packing up the car, Noel’s Dad said something about the dolphins not being very active. Dolphins? Even in the small layout, I had completely missed them! I also nearly missed the Hawaiian Monk Seal. He looked absolutely wiped out, resting in the sun and in a deep sleep. I didn’t even realize he was a Monk Seal until later when I saw TV segment related to the Aquarium. The pictures of the others I have seen – plus one we saw on White Plains beach one day in 2006 – were grey and speckled. This one was all black. I'll head back one day a little more prepared and with camera in hand - not in the trunk.