Get to know East London better (3)

When a city is located near the sea, it’s almost guaranteed that there will be an aquarium. And to our surprise we found a small (but interesting) aquarium here in East London too.

Bridge at aquarium from where you can watch whales (or just enjoy the sea views)

Sea views from aquarium

Sea view from aquarium

There is a plaque in the aquarium which states that as early as 1912 the East London City Council considered a proposal to build an aquarium. But it wasn’t until 1930 that they finally decided to build the aquarium. Dr. Jacob Nanni, a zoologist, designed the aquarium, which was officially opened on 2 December 1931.

Bust of the founder of the East London Aquarium, Dr Jacob Nanni

The aquarium is quite small, but it’s still fun to walk through the different sections to see colourful fish in the tanks, some seals enjoying themselves in the water, cute penguins and some pelicans. There is even a small pool with turtles and a large pool with sharks.

One of the pelicans

The penguins put on a show

Turtles

When we arrived at the aquarium, we were informed that the feeding times for the seals and penguins are at 11:30am and 3:30pm daily. Luckily, we were there in the morning and close to the first feeding time. We decided to first view the fish in the tanks before attending the feeding sessions.

Fish tanks

Fish up close

Fish tanks

Fish up close

Colourful fish

In one of the tanks was a brown shy shark. It was interesting to read that when this shark is threatened, it curls into a circle with its tail over its eyes, which is the origin of the name “shy shark”.

Brown shy shark

As we walked out of the fish tank venue, I looked up at the murals. There was also a group of children who joined me and they were trying to identify the different species of fish. It made me realise that an aquarium should be a wonderland for children to visit (probably also for adults, like myself).

Murals at the aquarium

The announcement that the feeding would start soon lured us outside. But first we quickly stood on the bridge to enjoy the beautiful view. It must be a great place to watch whales in the ocean.

Bridge for whale watching

The seals were the first to be fed. They were almost frolicking while the aquarium staff member threw raw fish into the water for them. There was a large seal that stood almost upright to receive its portion of raw fish.

Large seal receives its breakfast

Smaller seals catch and dive for their fish

Next up were the penguins. The staff member packed small piles of raw fish on a wall and then invited people (mostly children) to throw the fish to the penguins themselves. The children enjoyed it immensely (probably as much as the penguins enjoying their breakfast).

Penguins getting ready for their breakfast

Feeding time

Penguin enjoying breakfast

The staff member then walked over to the penguins who were not in the water and were breeding. They walked up to him, ate a few fish from his hand and then returned to their nests.

Staff member feeds breeding penguins

Nest with eggs

Penguin on her nest

Some penguins had quite interesting places for nests

We then moved on to the two elegant pelicans. It was amazing to see them swallow the fish whole while stretching their necks so long … their mothers clearly didn’t teach them to chew their food before swallowing!

Pelicans waiting for their food

Catching breakfast

Such a lovely bird

The last animals to be fed were the sharks. We had lovely views of the ocean on our way to their tide pool. Even the seagulls waited patiently for any fish that might come their way.

Lovely views over the Indian Ocean

Seagulls at the sharks’ tide pool

We only had a glimpse of the sharks. They quickly came to get their food and then disappeared again.

Sharks at the tide pool

On our way out of the aquarium we stopped one last time at the little pool where the sea turtles were. Earlier they were all out in the sun, but now, in the heat of the day, we only saw their heads sticking out of the water.

Sea turtle’s head above the water

I loved our visit to the East London Aquarium. Apparently, the aquarium was renovated in 2019 and although I think they have a small budget to keep their facility running, one could tell they were doing a good job of taking care of the animals. It’s definitely a great place for kids to enjoy – especially at feeding time. By visiting the aquarium, you not only support the animals, but also enjoy lovely views of the sea.

Table 58:

After an enjoyable morning we were ready for a light lunch (and refreshing drink). For a winter day it was quite warm and we read about a great place to find what we were looking for. Founded in 2017, Table 58 is a craft brewery, restaurant and pub.

Entrance to Table 58

We ordered a mixed beer and gin flight while enjoying stuffed jalapeño peppers and veggie spring rolls. The perfect end to another fun day in East London.

Beer and gin flight

Stuffed jalapeño peppers and veggie spring rolls