We had decided on a Thursday day trip to the John G. Shedd aquarium located at 1200 S. Lake Shore Drive, in Chicago, Illinois. The Aquarium was the vision and dream of John G. Shedd. It was opened in 1930. The building is a National Historical Landmark, that originally cost nearly 3 million dollars to build. The admission charge is a whopping $26.95 per person for basic admission for adults age 12 and over, and $19.95 for children ages 3 to 11. They also have different shows and experiences each of which adds to the admission. There are shows, dinners, behind the scene tours, and varied experiences available. The experience we chose included shows and was $41.95 per person. The aquarium's hours vary depending on the season, but roughly resemble bankers hours. Shedd has 3 different restaurants inside to choose from and stores to shop for adorable aquatic souvenirs.

The recommended parking available was at Soldier Field. We were stunned when we arrived and learned that the parking was $16 for the first 4 hours and $19 for up to 12 hours. Already feeling taken advantage of, we schlepped the trek involved and arrived at the aquarium's front doors at approximately 10A.M. We had to stand in line for over an hour before we were able to pay the admission fee and head on in.

We did not want to carry all our gear so we headed for the lockers the facility offers. The lockers are $1 in quarters to operate. The change machine they had was not operable. So, we had to randomly beg people for change. We were finally ready for our experience.

We had foolishly hoped that by planning a mid-week trip, that we might avoid the craziness of the weekend crowds. Silly us, we did not realize that the greater Chicago area did not have school on the day of our planned adventure. The aquarium was packed with rambunctious and often rude children. The shear number of people made any type of relaxing experience impossible.

The aquarium houses tons of fish. The building is shaped like a half moon. I enjoyed how they grouped the fish by regions of the world. Each different wing of the building houses all the individual regions, taking you through all the different water ways of the world. Over it is clean. Luckily we had been forewarned to bring our own food, which is allowed, because the food is pricey. For example, the dinner series they offer is $75 per person. There are outdoor balconies where you can eat which have gorgeous views and breath taking scenery.

I had never seen a living sea horse. This was an incredible experience for me. I can now unequivocally profess, that sea horses are my favorite sea creature. I was so taken with them, that i purchased a Christmas type ornament for $8 and a silver necklace for $14. On a side note, the necklace tarnished and became unwearable in less than one month. The gift shops have adorable and numerous items available at inflated prices.

The Aquarium has its very own aquatic show, which has performing sea animals. The theater that houses the show that we saw, called, "Fantasea," is very large. It seats slews of people, but due to the distance from the stage, viewing the animals and the living creatures naturally is difficult. The aquarium boasts that the amphitheater is, "Enhanced," and makes viewing, "a lot more magical."

We were seated in the top of the very farthest point, because of the jammed packed attendance. In my opinion, the shows giant screen makes the experience perfect for children. It is geared specifically to their level. It was definitely NOT an adult oriented show. During the show a child is chosen from the crowd and taken to participate as an assistant. I am not sure if the child chosen paid for the right to participate. The best parts of the show were the falcon, the beluga whale and the dolphins. During the show penguins are walked part way through the audience, but nowhere near as high as we were seated.

We spent nearly 6 hours touring the facility. By the end I was completely exhausted, and had walked nearly a marathon. Overall, I was fairly disappointed with the experience. This little aquatic adventure cost us a fortune. Our cost for this little wing ding: $19 for parking, $83.90 admission for two, souvenirs $22, grand total $124.90. That didn't include a soda or snack. We hope that our review has made you feel like you were with us, so you can save yourself the cost for this expensively mediocre experience.