Yeah, the red sand really was a shame - I thought it was very close to that red dirt they've got over there. I had planned to make a Lake Kanyaboli tank, but the papyrus I wanted turned out to be very expensive. So I ended up just sticking a bunch of generic plastic plants in there.
It looks a bit bare to me in that picture, too, now that you mention it, Holly. The tank was brand new when I took that. I've since added a stand of jungle Vals.
Thanks to all for the kind words!