Aquarium's Annual Halloween Bash a Big Hit with Kids

This year's "Thrills, Gills, and Chills" at the south's largest freshwater aquarium was a huge hit with local residents. The evening began in the River Journey building with a stop to hear professional storytellers relating the perils of Penny the Penguin. Children were encouraged to search the facility's two buildings for "sea monsters", prehistoric ocean reptiles lurking around the exhibits that handed out prizes and candy to any child lucky enough to find them. The goal was to collect trading cards from each "monster" and deposit them into a make-believe "time portal" so that they could be returned to the cretaceous era at the end of the night.

In every exhibit, costumed "sea monsters" entertained children with games and educational facts about the exhibit's featured animals. The games had no real rules and every child who played was a winner, even a toddler in stroller who chose to eat the prizes rather than play with them. Guests were free to wander the exhibits, where Halloween mischief could be found around every corner. In the Delta Coast exhibit, live zydeco music serenaded guests while pirates posed for pictures against the backdrop of alligators and cypress trees. In the larger tank exhibits, groups of costumed divers clowned among the puffer fish and mackeral, much to the delight of the children with their faces pressed against the glass.

Before guests moved on to the Ocean Journey building, they were encouraged to stop in the lobby for free pizza prepared on site by Lupi's Italian Eatery and free Frosty's provided by Wendy's Restaurants. Guests could have their picture taken with Wendy herself while the Coca-Cola Company served soft drinks and bottled water.