Jellyfish are one of my favourite things to photograph, so Vancouver Aquarium’s multiple tanks were a definite highlight of my visit. I was also able to capture the Sea Monsters Revealed exhibition here – it seems to tour the world, and this was the first Canadian stop. The displays use the same plastination techniques as the Body Worlds exhibits, to preserve marine creatures in various states of dissection, from poses akin to ‘what’s inside’ illustrations through to fine slices. I guess the underwater world is weird enough that these were interesting rather than stomach-turning – no way I could handle the human version though!
A couple of other stops did disappoint, though: whilst belugas are much smaller than my mental image of ‘whale’, and they do valuable educational and conservation work by having them here, I couldn’t help but feel the tanks should be bigger. Plus their few penguins looked miserable in the summer heat, huddling in the only shaded corner of their rock patch. So I have mixed feelings about recommending it as a tourist sight, despite the jellies…
