less-domestic

Went yesterday to see the Botanical Gardens here in Basel; they're funded by the University, along with some local pharmaceutical companies (Novartis, etc), so walking around is free.  There are several greenhouses; one with cacti and succulents, one Victorian-style building with all the wet species (giant lily pads, rice, etc), one for nurturing the new plants before they get properly placed in the other themed spaces, and then the tropical greenhouse, pictured above.  It is several stories high, at points, and includes a spiral staircase so you can look down from above at, excitingly, several species of tropical birds, chasing each other through the giant leaves and spongy-barked trees.  It's like the CA Academy of Sciences but without the steep admission and the noisy crowds.  I think this place will save me during the unending winter months.

The humidity was too high to get a proper, un-fogged picture, but here you can see some kind of bird that was maybe a yard from where I stood.

new growth in the potting greenhouse

the Victorian greenhouse, and the University library in the background

awfully nice, it was.