Mall Adds Huge Aquarium

The Mall of America, the immense shopping and entertainment complex outside Minneapolis, now has a 70,000-square-foot aquarium, Underwater World, beneath its main level.

A walk through the aquarium follows a path that meanders by a trout stream, a beaver lodge and a waterfall. The gently sloping trail leads to an enclosed tunnel six feet below the surface of an exhibit depicting a coldwater Minnesota lake, which represents the headwaters of the Mississippi.

The journey continues to tanks representing habitats of the Mississippi, the Gulf of Mexico and a coral reef in the Caribbean.

Through submerged transparent tunnels visitors can observe more than 40 species of marine life.

A 35-minute taped narrative is offered through headphones and is accessible to the blind and to people in wheelchairs.

Underwater World is open daily. Admission is $8.95, $6.95 for seniors, $4.95 for children 3 to 12, with younger children free. More information: (888) 348-3846.