While the country has opened up, a trip to the Aquarium is a reminder of how much further we need to go.

David Schmalz here, thinking about crowds, Covid-19 and wondering if we’ll ever be able to put this pandemic behind us, especially now that the highly contagious delta variant is running rampant among Americans who remain unvaccinated. It’s just a matter of time, it seems, before a deadlier and even more contagious variant emerges, and one can’t help but wonder if some Covid protocols—like masking in certain places—are here to stay.

Before I was vaccinated the only indoor settings I entered (besides my home) were grocery stores, and even then I knew what I wanted, where to find it, and I didn’t linger long.

Since getting the shot I’ve gotten out a bit more and have even enjoyed dining and drinking inside on occasion, but not with nearly the devil-may-care attitude that I did in the Before Times. Whether rationally or not, Covid still has me a bit spooked. 

So it was a bit of a shock to the system when, on Sunday Aug. 8, I joined a friend from out of town and his wife and 10-year-old daughter for a trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The aquarium reopened May 15 this year after closing in March 2020. 

We had to make reservations, as do all visitors to the Aquarium right now, so I figured the crowds might be on the lighter side. But, as it turns out, not so much. I haven’t been to the Aquarium during normal visiting hours for years, so perhaps I’ve grown out of touch with what normal crowds look like, but I was stunned by the size of the throngs jostling to get a better look at the otters, the jellies and all the other magnificent creatures on display. 

The good news is that masks are still required for all visitors, and with the exception of one woman I saw with her mask around her chin, everyone I saw was compliant. 

But the whole experience just had a different vibe, and served as yet another reminder that, with respect to Covid, we’re nowhere near out of the woods yet, especially for kids who aren’t yet eligible for the vaccine (like my friend’s daughter). So I was curious how the Aquarium plans to carry on operating in the coming months, and how long the current protocols are envisioned to remain.

David Rosenberg, the Aquarium’s vice president of guest experience, writes via email that the Aquarium is operating at 75 percent of its regular capacity for this time of year, which was almost 9,000 visitors a day in the Before Times, adding that, after the summer season ends, “we anticipate our attendance to significantly decrease well below our capacity for the next several months.” (The Aquarium could be operating at full capacity; the current limits are self-imposed.) Per Rosenberg, reservations will continue to be required “for the foreseeable future,” as will the masks: “We plan to maintain our mask requirement for the time being. This is especially important to protect children, who are not yet eligible to be vaccinated, and many others that may still benefit from the safety offered by face coverings.” And if a guest refuses to comply, “they are asked to leave.” 

And there are other things that are different, things visitors can’t see: Per Rosenberg, the Aquarium is still in process of filling empty positions after it was forced to lay off 40 percent of its staff last year, which amounted to 243 employees. 

So yes, there is still a way to go, and things might not go back to normal anytime soon. But I wasn’t thinking too much about all those things when I was watching my friend’s daughter marvel at the otters swimming gracefully through the tank, or the schools of sardines darting in unison. And although I couldn’t see her smile through her mask, it was enough for me to see her eyes sparkle. I know the last year was tough for her, just as it was tough for everybody. Seeing her joy gave me hope for a better year ahead.

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