PARIS, April 15 ― A Chinese couple spent a night in a room surrounded by sharks on Wednesday (April 13) after winning a contest organised by the Aquarium of Paris and holiday home rental website Airbnb.

A room with a very special view ― 35 of the much feared creatures ― was up for grabs for those looking for a night's sleep with a difference.

Submerged in a 33-foot deep (10-metre) aquarium with just a see-through wall separating guests from the sharks, the cylinder-shaped room for two, with a round bed occupying most of the space, was not for the faint-hearted.

But 27-year-old Chinese history student Di Tang from China, who studies in Paris, was curious and brave enough to spend a night being circled by sharks along with her partner.

Advertisement

Tang said the sharks looked friendly and the experience reminded her of the stories from the depths her mother used to tell her as a child.

“When I was little my parents used to tell me the story of Jules Verne, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea and they are some strange things under the sea but the world is very magical. But I had never imagined that someday I could sleep under the sea. Yes it's magical,” she said.

The underwater sleepover was available for three nights on April 11, 12 and 13 for three different winners and their guests. This event also aimed to teach the guests about the species, with host, Belgian freediver Fred Buyle, who introduced them to their overnight neighbors as he swam around the tank in harmony with his finned friends.

Advertisement

After three nights without any incident, the structure, which was tested for durability in the waters of the Mediterranean will now be a turned into a research hub for scientists to observe the aquarium's sharks like never before― Reuters