Last 27th of August was my girlfriend’s birthday. Previously, I had no idea of what kind of gift I was going to give to her beside the video that I had made. Particularly, in this town there are not many choices of goods that I perceived suitable to become a gift for the loved ones. So, instead of giving in form of goods, I decided to give an intangible one. I wanted to give another memories because it will last much longer than tangible goods. Goods can be broken or lost but memories cannot unless you’ve got brainwashed, have amnesia or short-term memory. I took her for another trip to Singapore for our date.
There are many tour destinations in Singapore. Even though I had been to Singapore several times (Do not blame me. The ticket is much cheaper than Batam - Jakarta trip), I had not got time to visit them all yet. In Sentosa Island itself, there are many attractions to visit. This time I want to take my lover to S.E.A. Aquarium because I think it might be fun and romantic for oceanic background to accompany our date. Fortunately, the S.E.A. Aquarium was having a bundle promo with the relatively new attraction : Trick Eye Museum Singapore.
I had known earlier that Singapore has one big aquarium attraction in Sentosa Island. It reminds me of my memory long time ago when visiting similar attraction in Jakarta which is located in Ancol, North Jakarta : SeaWorld Indonesia. The S.E.A. Aquarium consists of several aquariums with many kind of sea animals that were originated from various locations around Asia. Located near Universal Studio Singapore, there is a huge dome with the title “The Maritime Experiential Museum” and “S.E.A. Aquarium”.
Entering the gate, you will be welcomed by a giant lion head. Apparently, it was a head of a ship replica. The ship was belong to Zheng He (or some of us might know him as Cheng Ho), a great Chinese sea explorer in history. Beneath the Lion’s head, a video was played, telling us a story about Zheng He’s journey. After watching the video, we can go to the left side of the dome which is a museum about Asia’s maritime exploration in history. The museum displayed the information about how market trade and culture transfer was done through the sea, the marketed goods, and the artefacts that were founded under the sea route. There were several ports that played major role in ancient maritime silk route such as Vietnam, Palembang (Indonesia), Melaka (Malaysia), Calicut, and Muscat -- from South East of Asia until Middle East. There is also Typhoon Theatre where we can experience hurricane at sea simulation.
 |
| Catchingautumn.wordpress.com |
After finishing the museum tour, go downstairs and you will see a shark’s tank ! There is a tunnel under the sea where sharks swimming around us. The shark’s tank attracted many visitors and most of them are kids who were amazed by this ocean predator. Beside the shark’s tank, another most attractive part of S.E.A. aquarium is a giant aquarium which is located deep inside the building. There were various kind of sea creatures inside the tank from the giant to the small ones. This spot is an ideal place for taking a rest after a little tour while eating snacks with giant aquarium displayed in front of us. I was amazed by giant creatures (like sharks and giant manta rays) and unique creatures such as cowfish (fish that has cow-like face) and hammerhead shark. Me and my girlfriend spent a while at this spot for resting our feet.
 |
| Shark's Tank : Plenty of Sharks ! |
I did not remember the tank display order but there are attractive sea creatures worth to be seen. There is a creature called Moray Eel. It is actually an eel but not a regular eel we usually see (or eat). Its body is large and has an ugly face. Moray eel has a some sharp teeth which later I discovered from National Geographic Channel that the teeth could cut human’s fingers. There is a real story where a diver lost a part of his hand because it was got bitten by a Moray Eel.
There are also fishes which will remind us with “Finding Nemo” Movie. I think you know exactly which fishes that I’m referring to. You will see Nemo and Dory in multiple amount. There is also a water pool where we are allowed to touch the starfish. You can feel the texture of its skin.
There is a creature which I thought is a seahorse. However, after watching them closer, its form is more complicated than a seahorse. It was a seadragon. Seadragon has similar shape with seahorse but seadragon has many leaves on its body and swimming in lay down position.
I had ever seen jellyfish a few times. Me and my friends were also once surrounded by jellyfishes when we were taking a walk at a shallow sea. But this time, I saw jellyfishes in details inside the jellyfish tank at S.E.A. Aquarium. Their internal organs were clearly visible and there were a lot of them inside that tank ! The colored lights decoration was also made a more amazing scenery inside the tank.
 |
| Jellyfishes |
When we exit the aquarium, we thought it was the end of the tour. Luckily, there was an exhibition of historical giant sea creatures held at that place. We saw history and traces of those giant creatures such as Megalodon (ancient giant shark which had huge mouth and sharp teeth) and Ichthyosaurus (ancient carnivore fish).
 |
| Left : Plesiosaurus; Right : The Mouth of Megalodon |
At the end of the tour, there is one strange animal that looked like ancient species (but it is actually alive !). Its name is Axolotl. This animal looked like historical creature that has gone extinct. I did not even know such animal is still exist.
 |
| The strange-look creature : Axolotl |
In my conclusion, this place is worth to visit. There are many lessons that is suitable for both kids and adults. Just like any other museums, Maritime Experiential Museum contains historical lesson while in S.E.A. Aquarium, there are fish’s descriptions displayed next to each tank. This aquarium shows how rich the biodiversity under the sea.
Initially, I also want to talk about Trick Eye Museum but there are not much to describe about Trick Eye Museum. What matters are to bring your camera and make lots of pictures with the unique on-site 3-D arts. You will come out with a collection of photos from Trick Eye Museum.
