The most popular guy in Baltimore?s Inner Harbor Tuesday was a seahorse.
The 3.5-foot horse was completely edible, made of white cake with marshmallow-like fondant and gum paste seashells that creator Duff Goldman said taste like Necco wafers.
As kids clamored for a piece and adults snapped photos with their cell phones, Goldman of Charm City Cakes put the finishing touches on the horse at a kickoff to the National Aquarium?s 25-day celebration of its 25 years in the Baltimore Harbor. Baltimore City Mayor Martin O?Malley and son William proclaimed Tuesday as National Aquarium Day and dedicated the new Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Waterfront Park on Pier 3, which links the aquarium and Pratt Street.
O?Malley called the aquarium “more than just a fish tank.”
“The work that is done at the aquarium is never really done,” O?Malley said. “The last 25 years have been great, but think of the next 25 years.”
Aquarium officials recalled opening day and the line of 8,400 customers snaking down Pratt Street, around Light Street and almost to the Science Center. Since then, 37 million have visited the aquarium, including 8 million students, officials said.
“We still believe Baltimore is the best place to watch a ball game or eat a crab cake,” said Bill Roberts, vice chairman of the aquarium?s board of directors and president of Verizon Maryland. “It?s an even better place because of the National Aquarium.”
Tuesday?s all-day celebration also included free tours aboard a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration?s survey vessel and the aquarium?s marine animal rescue boat, live music and the first of the now-weekly free outdoor film screening on the aquarium?s pier. Other events are planned through Sept. 1.
The urban park, which was completed in December, features plants that represent ecosystems across the state?s mountainous, piedmont and coastal regions.
