I was going through my phone, trying to clear up some extra space when I found this photo from the last time I went to the aquarium, during Golden Week. After I found it, I sent it to a friend and he said that I should post it. I laughed it off, saying I probably already did, but after looking through the archives, it seems I didn’t. So, here you are.
Nagoya Aquarium is currently having a jellyfish exhibition, so I went with a friend. Unfortunately, I’m not sure what kind of jellyfish these are, but they sure look pretty!
Sometimes I wish I could actually swim, just so I could go swimming with some dolphins.
There is just something too cute about Beluga Whales. I’m not sure if it’s because of their derpy faces due those weird head-air-liver-things or the fact that they are so damn friendly, but they have become one of my favorite animals.
When I went to the Aquarium, I spent about an hour in front of the Beluga enclosure. They loved to brush up against the glass between us and them. They did tricks for us, like swimming upside down and blowing bubbles. The also seemed to love have pictures taken, since they would flock around people with cameras and phones.
Next time I visit, I will bring a better camera.
Are jellyfish really made out of jelly? If so, what kind? Mint? Apple?
When I was a kid, I did think that they really were. I thought that if you managed to catch one at the beach, you could just pick up one and eat it. While, I have heard that jellyfish are eaten in some places, I don’t think I want to eat one any time soon.
That doesn’t mean that I dislike watching them, because they are really frigging awesome. They are just too cool!
So, after almost 30 years of existence, I have finally been to an aquarium. A lot of my students have been badgering me to check out the local one, here by Nagoya Port. Equipped only with a day off, two thousand yen, and a comfy pair of walking shoes, I made the journey to what I was told would be a good time.
They were right.
After taking the Sakuradori (pink) line to the Meio (light purple) line, I walked about fifteen minutes to the aquarium. The weather was pretty good, especially since I was next to the water.
The entrance fee is two thousand yen for an adult, which seems more like the prices I’m used to back home. I am constantly amazed by how cheap museums and the like are here. Most places are only like $5 to $7 to get in, which is ridiculously cheap compared to New York.
I hate waiting for things. Over the years, I’ve gotten better at hiding my fidgeting and quelling my visual frustrations, but deep inside I hate to wait. For anything.
I think it has to do with not knowing how things will turn out. It gives me time to think– lots of time actually– and my mind is often times my own worse enemy. My mind has no problems coming up with the worse case scenario and trying to come up with responses for each and every situation. That causes me unbelievable amounts of stress, stress leads to not being able to sleep, and a lack of sleep makes me cranky.
Yet, the oddest things calm me down. Music has always been able to influence my emotions– from calming me when I’m too hyped to helping me rock my way through a nine page essay. Reading also helps me refocus my mind. Meditation in a silent room has also helped from time to time. My favorite, however is by spending time with or watching animals.
Yesterday, we had to take mom to the emergency room after she had a bit of a fall. She was in a lot of pain and I spent nearly 5 hours in the ER with her. While that’s pretty good time for an ER visit here in New York, it was still 5 hours of hearing my mother in pain and waiting for a doctor to grace us with his presence and give her some pills. Needless to say, at the end of our visit, I was a bit out of sorts.
It was while we were waiting for our ride that I noticed it: a huge aquarium. Before, I had been too busy trying to help my mom and flag down some staff to see her to have a good look at the tank that I had thought was void of anything but coral. On our way out, on the other hand, I had a few minutes to bask in the mellow movements of some fish. These fish had no concerns other than swimming around and occasionally looking at all the drippy, sagging, and/or loud humans. Watching them, and in turn being watched by them, lowered my blood pressure enough that I wasn’t a told wreck on the way home.
