Added: 12/30/2005 |
Where is the largest aquarium in the world?Osaka, a vibrant and spectacular city, offers its visitors much to see and experience. A huge entertainment area of Minami impresses with a variety of facilities for joy and fun, including the Dotonbori Bridge with its famous giant motorized crab, the Triangle Park and Amerikamura ("America Village"). If you like the ancient architecture, the Osaka Castle will seduce your imagination with its glamorous sights. However, these attractions can never overshadow the unique-to-world specialty of Osaka, Kaiyukan Aquarium.
The tours of Kaiyukan Aquarium start from the Japan Forest, where you will enjoy some fresh forest air and warm sunshine. The Aquarium contains thirty five thousand aquatic animals in fifteen tanks, the largest of which is the world's largest aquarium tank, holding five point four hundred tons of water and housing various specious of sea animals, fish, plants, invertebrate animals, batrachians, reptiles, birds and mammals.
The theme of Kaiyukan Aquarium is based on two major concepts: Ring of Fire and Ring of Life. What does it mean? The Ring of Fire is the Circum-Pacific Volcanic Belt and the red ring indicates an active earthquake and volcanic areas that encircle the Pacific Ocean. The Ring of Life: the green areas indicate the concentration of ocean life. The Aquarium realizes these concepts, centering on the Pan Pacific Life Zone.
It is worth mentioning at least several sea species that you can observe here. A whale shark "Yu-chan" is 4.3m in length and its estimated weight is 850 kg. It is interesting to observe its graceful swimming in the aquarium tank. It is also much fun to look at ocean sunfish. At the time of feeding, it rushes to the feeder, keeping its mouth small and round eyes wide open and when its feeding is over, it looks disappointed.
You can see sea otters that are amazing creatures, covered with billions of hair. King penguins, Gentoo penguins and Rockhopper penguins, famous for their monogamous relations (sometimes they get married and sometimes divorce), are also displayed in Osaka Aquarium.
The Pacific Whitesided Dolphins make a special exhibition of the Aquarium, since they play around and show their talents. Generally, Pacific Whitesided Dolphins have outstanding abilities to recognize quickly directions and measure distances by sounds. These special abilities allow them to swim at a super high speed under the water.
A family of sea lions, Mi, a mother, Luke, a husband, and their two babies, Miki and Ku, entertain visitors with their playing and showing funny expressions on their faces.
Along with the Aquarium there are numerous attractions nearby: the Tempozan Harbor Village, the area, revolving around Kaiyukan houses an Ocean-vessel terminal on the north side, the Giant Ferris Wheel and the Marketplace, including Naniwa Kuishinbo Yokocho on the east side, and the Suntory Museum and the Hotel Seagull on the west side. The Market Place in the Tempozan Harbor Village, based on the theme "Sea and Port", is the first "Festival Market Place" in Japan with the combination of market and joyful events. There are dozens of shops, food booths, restaurants and entertainment facilities. It is a center of street performances and the World Performance Festival is held here every summer, attracting thousands of people.
Osaka Kaiyukan Aquarium is located in a very convenient place and is easily accessible from Kyoto and Osaka by any transport type. It takes about forty-five minutes to Kyoto and about thirty minutes to Nara or the Kansai International Airport by car.
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