I have a confession to make. I am completely enamored of a big ugly fish. I am fascinated by all things in the ocean world, but I absolutely adore the giant sunfish at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. It has a face that both repels and attracts me, with those gigantic eyes and that puckered mouth. Admittedly, my fascination with the giant sunfish is odd, but just the same, my trip to the aquarium wouldn’t be complete without seeing him.
He didn’t disappoint me. As I approached the glass to look for him, I pushed aside the slight queasy feeling I got from pressing my nose against the transparent barrier and looking down into the vast field of blue. And I waited. Eventually, the giant sunfish glided slowly into my field of vision. He turned his big eye toward the glass, seeming to look me straight in the eye. Then he swam away just as slowly as he approached. After that, I was sure my trip to Monterey Bay would go, well, swimmingly.
And mostly it did. Mostly. I took the family, and I dragged my folks along for a little bonding time in one of the most beautiful little cities on the coast. At my insistence, the aquarium was the first stop. I dragged everyone immediately to the big tanks. It’s amazing to imagine being suspended in the middle of the ocean, nothing above or below you—just water as far as you can see. That 1.2 million gallon tank holds the sunfish, a few sharks, sardines, rays, and 300-pound blue fin tuna, all somehow living in harmony.
After the sunfish stop, we vowed to take in as much as we could, knowing we wouldn’t be able to see as many exhibits as we wanted. My kids got a kick out of touching every starfish, crab, and piece of kelp they could in the Splash Zone Touch Pool. In fact, the aquarium offers plenty of programs to keep kids entertained and informed, including interactive games, a kelp forest canopy they can walk through, and a water play area. A special section just for infants and toddlers features safe places where babies crawling on their knees or lying on their backs can explore and touch colorful objects. Unfortunately, our baby was outnumbered as we bigger folk voted to take in more exhibits.
Making one’s way through the aquarium isn’t as easy as it seems. There’s a bit of information overload, and I wished I had mapped out a plan of action online before we embarked on our trip. My husband was determined to see all he could, the kids wanted to touch as much as possible, Dad was getting frustrated because we were moving along too fast for him to read about the animals, and Mom was just beside herself making sure our boys didn’t wander off.
We decided to take a break and see some of the bay itself. The views inside into the tanks are spectacular, but the views from the decks out over the bay are just as grand. So we took some time to watch the sea otters playing in the water and the waves lapping against the rocky shore. The air carried with it just a hint of fish and smoke from a nearby grill. The weekend we went was unseasonably warm—it’s usually a little cool, but it’s always worth the chill. We marveled at the views, took a few photos—including one where everyone was smiling and actually looking at the camera—and took in a few more exhibits.
We kept a good pace until hunger got the better of us and we knew we’d have to eat before one of us broke out a fishing pole.
For the sake of my parents, we decided to walk a few blocks over to Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Of all the fabulous seafood restaurants on Cannery Row, we chose that one because we thought everyone would have fun there. We were wrong. We knew the restaurant usually has a long, long wait. But this time the wait was extraordinary. After close to two hours—15 minutes waiting in line inside the restaurant and being told “any minute now”—we were tired of not being seated. Note to self: When planning to go to a popular franchise restaurant, try to go before you’re ready to bite the head off of a sunfish.
Hunger and frustration made us opt to simply end our trip and head home. After two cranky hours on the road, we found ourselves at the Quarter Deck in Arroyo Grande, a welcoming bastion of food and hospitality. The atmosphere was lively and the servers upbeat and accommodating. We were quickly seated, quickly fed, and treated with the utmost graciousness, despite looking a bit disheveled and weary from our travels.
It was one of the best meals we have had in a long time. We realized we didn’t give a flying fish about missing out on a dining experience in a tourist town—it was great to be back home. Then again, it could’ve just been the hunger. m
Arts Editor Shelly Cone thinks it’s better to be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a big pond. Contact her at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jan 22-29, 2009.
