"Down by the sea, in an Octopus's garden..." While it's not exactly an Octopus garden, if you like watching fish, touching sharks or winking at alligators, the Ocean Aquarium Park is the next best thing to flying out to the tropical reefs or tip-toeing in the mangroves to find such water creatures. The Aquarium is one of Asia's biggest underwater worlds and makes a great day out for your kids - or if you're a big kid yourself. You can marvel at the fish with your mouth open, even if you find the faint smell of fish around you a little hard to digest. The aquarium is designed with a set course, so you're obliged to pass by all the species on display. Rather than being stressful, this makes the whole experience relaxing, as there's no fear of being lost at sea...

The start of the tour is maybe the best, with fish opening their mouths so wide you can actually see inside them. You might wonder how the fish don't drown if all that water comes in - but then you think back to your biology class and remember how fish work... The tour features alligators with red eyes and courageous ducks who come too close to them; big fish in a bigger tanks and the secrets of the Yangtze River, its fish and an even an albino turtle.

The aquarium has nine exhibits in all, which include fish and other sea creatures, like crabs and sea horses. The fun part is the second exhibition room's Amazon jungle noises: thunder, chirping birds and crashing waterfalls. Pulled along in the stream of snap-happy tourists, you're led to the North Pole, where you can say hello to some penguins. There are story boards and information signs for those wishing to learn more about the creatures in the tanks, but they are unfortunately designed for children, which proved too low for a tall European like myself ... to bend down all the time would cause backache.