Bubblin’ ft. SeaLife

Before I take ye folks 20,000 leagues underwater, here’s a riddle for ya:

What is a fish’s favourite TV show?

-50 if you say Shark Tank.

-100 if you say Secrets of the Penguins.

+250 if you say Drown-ton Abbey

hehe….

Note: Feeding people to sharks is very middle class.

hehehehehe…..IYKYK

All right. So, one of my frames of mind, while visiting Australia, was simply my brain saying, “Finding Nemo! Finding Nemo! FINDING NEMO!”

So, while I did not exactly have Nemo’s itinerary of the Great Barrier Reef and Sydney on my travel plans, I visited the closest alternative, which was the SeaLife Aquarium in Melbourne.

The trip was one filled with discovery and wonder, along with a run-in with a celebrity. I will reveal the famous face at the end of the blog, so without further ado, let’s dive right in:)

Magic in the world,

Comes not from incantation.

It is everywhere.

In glowing coral,

In colour-changing bubbles,

In a pink tinted lobster.

hehe:)

The gravity defying Southern Rock Lobster was the first little diva who I saw at the Aquarium. I did not notice her at first, but when I did, I was awestruck because I have only seen animated lobsters before and this was like my childhood imagination coming to life!

A Bay for a Ray,

Is quite a display.

Perfectly apt, for starting your day.

Most brain farts cause people to spew bogus philosophy.

My brain farts cause me to spew random poetry.

I totally did not intend for that to nearly rhyme, hehe.

The SeaLife Aquarium had something called Bay of Rays and it was the coolest thing. Rays are so chic and flamboyant when they glide and so chilled out when they rest upon the sand. The Bay of Rays was not a tall tank, so, a lot of the wee babies who visited the aquarium had a field day at this tank, because everything was at their eye level. I heard one wee lass say to her mum that the gliding ray was a moving carpet like the one with Princess Jasmine and it got me thinking whether the flying carpet in Aladdin was actually inspired by a ray.

hehe.

The one where Ms Yours Truly found Nemo.

Clown fish literally look animated with their perfectly outlined stripes and the sharp, bright colours. Also, the Yellow Tang, in the first picture looks so magical, like an orb of sunshine in a starry night.

What fascinated me the most here, though, was the sea anemone. It looks like something straight out of science fiction, like an island that is alive, but it has a gentle touch to it. I love the beat-like manner in which its tentacles move and it puts everything around it in a sort of a trance-like motion.

This is literally how I first saw the Tasmanian Giant Crab, simply poised and nearly camouflaged. I was actually looking at the orb in the centre, when something moved from the side and the next thing I knew was this crab, that was bigger than my reflection, tottering over like a little dainty diva.

To say I was stunned would be an understatement because I had never seen anything like this before. This crab was so huge and its vibrant colour scheme of red and white made it look so powerful. Also, the pincers were brilliant. Menacing. But brilliant.

The crab’s called Cherry, by the way. Say hi!

hehe.

All right, here’s a bit of an intro to welcome the next set of pictures:
Phantom satellites,

The prettiest flower of doom.

Some jellies are desserts,

While some can electrify a room.

We are not talking about orange blancmange, we are talking jellyfish.

Phantom Satellites….

The prettiest flower of doom.

The one to ~~electrocute~~ electrify a room.

hehe.

When I entered the Shark Tunnel at the aquarium, I was fully prepared to have my bones tingled in a live-action simulation of Jaws but when I saw this Sawfish or Carpenter Shark float past me, I realised that sharks are such goofy little fishie-poos.

hehe:) I found this Sawfish so amusing. It looks like a regular fish, dressed as a unicorn and I love its nonchalant expression. He’s called Shawty, by the way.

This here, is live footage of how I look while pretending to be a mermaid in a swimming pool.

hehe,

This is Count Sharkula, King of Demons. Certified Cutiepie.

hehe:)

Here is Count Sharkula with Lucy Westen-Ray. They are the stars of Sharkula: The Musical directed by Alfred Fishcock.

Alfred Fishcock.

He loves breaking the shell of imagination.

hehe.

The turtle in the shark tunnel was a such a surprise. I did not expect to see such a big sea turtle and I literally gasped when it swam past me.

Finishing the shark tunnel with this baby, with a Dory beside it. I did not think that Blue Tangs were so flat and nearly 2-D, hehe.

Glow-in-the-dark corals were one of the most fascinating things that I saw on my visit to SeaLife. They remind me of the enchanted flower from Tangled. The oceans and seas hold so much mystery and fantastical element, and perhaps all the stories which our logic classifies as myth and fantasy is just the reality which we have not seen. I think it is always a good idea to believe in magic because the world isn’t as black and white as we often portray it to be. It is vibrant, pastel, neon and everything in between.

When I first saw this crocodile, I thought it is simply a long bit of rock. And then it moved.

Melbourne SeaLife is home to a huge Saltwater Crocodile called Pinjarra and its size is mind blowing. Pinjarra’s tank makes him look scary, with fake skeletons and a bit of a ship wreck design but he really is a gentle darling who was actually rescued from a flood.

I have always found crocodiles very cute and unique and I always get fascinated when I see a live croc:)

The SeaLife Aquarium has a very unique swamp section with a huge tank of turtles. It is really fun to spot the turtles, because they are quite well camouflaged.

This is a Southern Purple Spotted Gudgeon, also called a Zombie Fish, because it literally came back to life after being declared extinct.

Like, it just went, “Boo! I pulled a sneaky on ya!”

hehe. The aquarium is involved in preserving and breeding the Gudgeon and I think its wonderful when Nature actually gives us a second chance to look after our fellow Earthly inhabitants.

Sea horses are one of my favourite marine animals. They are so delicate, yet so hardy and I love how they move, like little gliding fairies. The seahorses at the aquarium were resting by hanging onto sea plants and it was so cute. Some of them were even upside down. They looked like little closed umbrellas, hehe.

The Cuttlefish was literally my favourite thing at the aquarium. I love its cartoon-like eyes and it had this gentle chaos in its very being and I loved that bit of silent energy. I could not get enough of the Cuttlefish and I have so many pictures of it. It was one of those times when I really wanted to take it home and have it as a pet because it looks like a pet fit for a Disney Princess.

hehe.

The Cuttlefish is called Toffee:)

All right, as we come to the end of the blog, ye wee folks must be wondering about the celebrity who I ran into at the aquarium.

Now, let me take ye back to 2024, when one of the biggest Instagram sensations was Pesto the Penguin.

Remember this baby?

Well, this is him now….

When I went to the Penguin section, I was on a mission to see Pesto but one glance at Emperor Penguins had me clicking pictures of all of them, from every angle.

Amidst my excited photographic frenzy, a single penguin waddled up to where I stood and posed for me for a good five minutes, looking straight into my camera. I couldn’t help but photograph this penguin thoroughly. Once I did that, I decided to look for Pesto, when an attendant simply pointed to the penguin posing for me and said, “Oh, there’s Pesto, in case you’re wondering.”

I had been photographing Pesto the whole time, without knowing it and I was so honoured to have him model for me, that I did a happy dance.

I mean, just look at him, he’s so elegant, yet so chonky. I love it:)

In case ye wee folks are at SeaLife, Melbourne, here’s how you identify Pesto: