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| - Womp womp. This is a place I had very high hopes for once upon a time. Years ago I came to the Greater Cleveland Aquarium on opening day and had a great experience. The price point back then was incredibly high, but I went anyways because I was excited. Years later I finally decided to return and see how things were going and I was completely disappointed.
Where to begin. I'll just start by saying that I don't understand the Ohio Lakes & Rivers exhibit. I think in theory it is a cool idea to pay homage to the fish we have here, but the whole purpose of going to an aquarium is to see exotic things you wouldn't be able to see otherwise. It was nice I guess, but nothing special. Things picked up a bit in Lakes & Rivers of the World. My main gripe here is that there were so many exhibits that the fish had been taken out of and remained empty for "maintenance" but it looked like they had been sitting empty for awhile...
The worst section of this aquarium in my opinion is the Moonlight Jellyfish exhibit. I looked up to observe and there were three dead jellies laying deflated on the bottom of the tank. Not okay? I felt bad for the rest just swirling around in nothingness. This might be a bit harsh but this just felt sad..
The Pacific gallery was small, but I did like seeing the eels poke out from the rocks and watching the lion fish. Coastal was cool! I enjoyed the octopus, seahorses, and touching the swimming manta rays. This section had a lot of interactive components which looked fun for the families who were there with children. The animals here seemed well taken care of, and the exhibits were a bit more colorful and engaging.
Finally, the Shark Gallery! This was pretty cool, and the shark tube is fun to walk through. I just kept noticing that every single shark had a shredded up, wounded nose. I overheard someone else ask the aquarium staff about it, and they responded by saying these sharks were "erratic swimmers" and run in to things. Still, to me it looked pretty unpleasant.
Overall, the Greater Cleveland Aquarium seems a bit dingy and could be cleaner, including the tanks. I was really disappointed with what I got for my money, and the whole place took me only about an hour to walk through. Next time, I'll just keep my forty dollars.
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