Kids, More Kids, Penguins, Architecture

Today the baby and I were at the Steinhart Aquarium with a friend and her one-year-old son...what a scene for strollers, babies and toddlers, moms and dads. It seemed like every other group of people included a child or children under the age of four. Yet today it wasn't a complete madhouse (unlike the last time I was there) because the crowd had thinned by the time we arrived, at around three in the afternoon.

Walking through the much-touted three-story greenhouse was enjoyable without the crush of people, but I was underwhelmed. Somehow I find that the architecture of the place overwhelms the greenery, and in the end I don't feel like I've been in touch with nature at all, just a pretty display with butterflies. Too much metal, glass, and bright lights. The baby loved watching the lights, as well as one particular bush where several many-hued butterflies had alighted for a few moments, slowly fluttering their gauze-like wings in a flirtatious pose. And he loved the penguins, especially when his mom imitated the flapping motion they make with their wings and said "Flap-flap" out loud. He smiled at the stuffed gorilla and the lions in the Africa exhibit. But both moms agreed--this place will enchant their sons to an exponentially greater degree when they're a year or two older. The main excitement for these kids--the Explorer's Cove, a playroom for toddlers and young children--was closed today, as luck would have it.

My impression of the Rainforest--that the architecture overwhelms the place--could be applied to most of the rest of the Aquarium as well. If it's a place that could be called the "state of the art" in aquarium design, as many claim, why do I feel so cut off from the wildlife? Except, perhaps, for those huge fish tanks, I don't feel any ability to lose myself in what I'm seeing. The old Aquarium, for all its limitations, gave me the feeling that I was traveling to those distant regions where these animals lived. I can't quite explain why that is...from what I remember, the layout of the place was much more straightforward and the lighting was more simply done; yet it was, somehow, a more peaceful and mysterious place. I've heard nothing but raves for this new version of the Aquarium, so I wonder if there's anyone else out there who feels as I do.