Missouri Botantical Gardens

[Editor's Note: This post is, of course, dedicated to my mom, the finest photographer of flowers I know.]


Sorry if anyone found the pictures of the zoo boring. I know we have animals in Philadelphia. Anyway, here is something a lot more exciting! Flowers!

Missouri Botantical Gardens:






The Climatron!










A kind of pineapple!

Missouri Wine Country

Did you know that America's first officially recognized wine district was in Missouri?
Ok, the Augusta apellation was first approved in 1980, but it still beat Napa by at least eight months.

In actuality, Missouri has a long history of wine production and still has a number of beautiful country spots. The wine itself is a bit sweet, but the setting was perfect.

The Norton is the official grape of Missouri and they also have a lot of unusual varieties that I haven't seen before, namely the Cythiana and Vignoles.






Rob "San Diego" and I enjoy some tasting.

Zoo Station

This post is dedicated to Laurie who kept urging me to see the zoo. I imagined it was because she read how impressive the grounds are and how innovative the lay-out is. In actuality, I suspect it has something to do with the overwhelming numbers of babies in strollers.

In any case, the zoo was quite remarkable; you can really get quite close to some of the animals. A particular highlight was the penguin exhibit where one friendly Humboldt penguin came right up to me and posed for pictures.

http://www.stlzoo.org/yourvisit/thingstoseeanddo

















For more on my thoughts about giraffes in zoos, see: "The Communist Secrets of Animal Husbandry" on Roxborough Lyric Poetry Association.