A fishy kind of day

Up bright and early after little sleep - big power shower and pomegranates for breakfast! Joe and Ash arrived and we headed off towards the aquarium - a massive complex full of all kinds of marine life presented in different habitats. None of us are madly keen on captive animals but this was well done with large tanks and a dazzling array of different species. The piranhas were the only one that caused me concern as there seemed to be lot of them in a small tank just floating and when anyone went by they all turned and stared - but maybe this is what piranhas do. Out tickets included an IMAX presentation - also a of a fishy theme, as we plunged headlong into coral reefs. A bit too full-on for my liking!

Then we wandered around the quaysides and lunched in the Watershed - finally taking in a free film which was one of the unexpected highlights of the trip - a film about Essex wildlife (no, not white stillettoed types in Basildon)! Me and himself are both originally an Essex boy and girl - him Epping forest area, me rural coastal bit - but this film was stunningly photographed with a deep and philosophical presenter who just showed it as it was and didn't let his ego get in the way. The Essex marshes and all their teeming wildlife was beautifully captured.
In the evening we went to an jam-packed, loud and very Italian restaurant and ate massive pizzas and drank too much prosecco. No disco tonight and slept like a log.