One of the big attractions at the Neptune Festival every year is the Sandsculpting Championship. It’s amazing what people can do with sand and water!
Daily Archives: September 27, 2014
Virginia Aquarium
I’ve been to many, many aquariums. I’m pretty sure I’ve said it before, but I stop at every aquarium in every city that I visit. The VA Aquarium is one of the larger ones I’ve been to, but the exotic-ness of the exhibits are a little bit lacking. Nevertheless, I’ve been twice so far, once in 2010 and again this year.
2010
Yes, that’s me in the bubble.
The aquarium consists of two buildings and there is a nice trail through the marshes connecting them.
I have no idea what this is but I love his face!
The sea lion exhibit near the entrance is a big attraction.
2014
I have a better camera than I did the last time so I have more photos to share!
Still trying to get a good shot of an octopus.
Clownfish looking at its reflection.
The sharks were hard to shoot; reflections, not enough light, people getting in the way, etc. I usually wait for people to move so I can get a shot without them, but they actually added to the scene so I didn’t mind them this time.
The way this shot turned out reminded me of a scene in Jaws 2.
The sting ray tank was probably one of the best ones I’ve seen. The water was clear and the glass was clean enough to actually see them clearly.
So clear I actually got a shot of its mouth! I’ve never actually seen one open and close its mouth.
You could see part of the sea turtle tank from the sting ray exhibit.
The other viewing side was amazing! I probably sat and watched them swim for at least 15 minutes.
Like the shark tank, I purposefully took some shots with people in them. The father and son were fun to watch. I think the dad was just as mesmerized by the sea turtles as his son was.
There was an art exhibit on display called Washed Ashore where all of the pieces were made from trash found in the ocean. It was meant to educate and create awareness of ocean debris and plastic pollution and its effect on marine life.
Walkway through the marshes between the two buildings.
They added an adventure ropes course which looked extremely fun! I would have tried it if I had had more time. Maybe next time :)
I tried to get some shots of the otters swimming in the water, but they are fast!
Puffer fish, frogs and alligators
Sea lions
And finally, me!
Virginia Beach VA 2014
The hotel room I stayed in this time was AMAZING! The Hilton Garden Inn on 33rd was newly built and I was lucky enough to stay in a corner suite that had a 270 degree view!
Atlantic Ave
34th Street
Balcony with a beach view!
It was very rainy when I got there and overcast the next day, so there was no sunrise. But I nevertheless sat on the balcony in the morning with a cup of coffee and people-watched.
I watched a woman scour the sand with a metal detector (hope she eventually found something).
I also watched this guy set up every single volleyball net by himself (of which there were probably 20).
I also saw dolphins!! Their fins anyway. I love dolphins!
They were swimming fairly close to shore and some surfers. One surfer caught sight of them and looked concerned, as would anyone I’m sure if they saw a fin in the water!
The black dot on the left is the surfer and the black dot on the right is the dolphin.
The rest of the trip consisted of the aquarium and the Neptune Festival (art show and sand sculpting), which I will post separately.
Even though the sun didn’t come out until I was leaving, it was another glorious trip to the beach!
Virginia Beach VA 2011
Another quick trip to the beach, but any time spent at the beach is fun.
I was fortunate enough to see a beautiful sunrise one morning while I was there.
Ubiquitous feet-in-sand shot.
And a favorite of mine; seagull in the sand shots.
Horseshoe crab
There is a Naval Air Station nearby and jets are constantly flying over the beach.
There was a big storm that rolled in one of the nights I was there.
anyonecantakeapicture 