Tokyo Days 37 - Osaka Aquarium

Day 2 of my trip to Osaka and the skies still have not let up, with a continuous drizzle and dark clouds blocking out the entire sky.

The best thing to do then was to visit someplace indoors and which place better than the one-of-a-kind, Osaka Aquarium? Visitors could actually purchase a subway and aquarium entry pass together for a discounted price from the Station Master's office in the Subway hence, that was the first order of things to do.

 

Upon entering the aquarium, I was surprised to be greeted by not water but, trees. A recreation of the Japanese forest it would seem. As this was the initial exhibit, there were far too many people gathered around making it difficult to even view anything.

Just a short walk in though and you are quickly in the vicinity of the main tank which housed Osaka Aquarium's pride and joy, the whale shark.

Together with the whale shark, there were many other species of fish too.

But, the whale shark took the cake. There is only one now though as, the previous two had passed away.

The large tank housing the whale shark was meant to represent the aquatic creatures of the Pacific Rim.

I found it pretty difficult to wrap those numbers around my head.

All sorts of fishes could be seen, from the common ones which stood out in the tank's blue water.

To those which remained well hidden on the ground.

Although, I am not too sure this one understands the concept of camouflage.

Surrounding the main tank were several periphery tanks which were made to recreate different ocean ecosystems around the world.

But, the blue tinge present throughout did make it a little tricky to take photos.

30 cm thick!

Visitors could view the main tank from almost all angles as acrylic panels surrounded the perimeter of the tank.

The first otter born in Osaka Aquarium. There is a hold room full of pictures just about this little guy.

This seal does not seem to happy about me taking photos of it, it seems.

A great white shark was also supposed to be one of the fishes in the tanks but, I missed taking a photo of it. I guess this will just have to do. All in all, the Osaka Aquarium sure lives up to its reputation. While it may be more than a little difficult to take photos and the walkways rather narrow, it is still a highly recommended place to visit if you ever find yourself in Osaka with half a day to spare. On that positive note, comes and end to today's coverage. Until next time, thanks so much for reading and have yourself a wonderful day ahead!