I’ve written before about one of my happy places in my hometown, the Dallas Zoo. One of my other happy places is the Dallas World Aquarium. I’ve watched this fantastic, private animal experience grow from just a dozen beautifully curated fish tanks to two immersive rainforests and more.
When the aquarium first opened, a science teacher took me and three other students for a visit followed by lunch at Hard Rock Café. As a kid, the entrance tunnel was amazing. This was before I had been to any large aquariums, so even the large coral reef tanks were amazing. Oh, and the penguins were fun too.
Some years later, I visited again after the Orinoco Rainforest opened. At the time, the monkeys roamed freely through the trees and jaguars lived in the center enclosure. I followed the controversy when the aquarium tried to get river dolphins and were blocked, and then they brought river manatees.
I’ve watched as a Mexican rainforest grew up next to Orinoco with a cenote tunnel and the penguins moved outside. The original tanks are still there, but the DWA has grown so much.
On my recent visit to the States, I took my niece to the Dallas World Aquarium along with my sister, aunt, and uncle. I am still impressed and love visiting. I could spend hours sitting in various locations around the aquarium just watching the animals. I can’t wait to see what they do next.
