The Botanical Gardens

There’s nothing that makes a person feel more alive than really taking in the simple beauty of nature.  I was finally able to make it to the Botanical Gardens outside of Novosibirsk last Sunday.  Like most things around here, you have to have a strong desire to go somewhere or do something since the idea of community outreach or advertisement is relatively new; so after a bus rid and marshrutka ride we found ourselves in the middle of nowhere.  Literally.  Happily, the ‘middle of nowhere’ is usually somewhere between your intended destination and a little village.  I spotted an ever present mini market so I wasn’t too annoyed about lack of signage, the weather was still beautiful and you could hear birds chirping.  It’s not possible to remain in a sour mood when the sun is shining, the temperature isn’t burning and you can hear friendly wildlife. 

The lush green trees were breathtaking.  I used to be really good at identifying trees, but over the years I’m afraid I have lost my touch.  Yes, most of Russia is covered in birch trees, but that’s not to say that there other forms of vegetation here.  For example, oaks and cotton and what I can only describe as lipa trees.  Like all cities it’s hard to appreciate how beautiful this world really is, and the only way is to drag yourself out of the city. 

Upon entering the Gardens and marveling at the sheer size of the massive trees and overgrown flower beds, we were met by an amazing lack of sound.  Yes, we weren’t even able to hear the noisy highway just a kilometer away, and that’s always nice.  I noticed again that none of the trees or flower beds had the name plates identifying what they were, which was distressing to me because I love information like that so I can sophisticated at parties and job interviews.  Despite the lack of education in a place that's supposed to be all about education, like I said, the Gardens were wild.  

What are you looking at?  I think it was a cactus, but I can't say for certain.  All of the flower beds and mini parks were in desperate need of some TLC and as is usually the case, when I asked why this amazing place was in such shambles it was 'because the government doesn't care and give money.'  

I'm not saying that people have to over manicure their land like the English and the Americans, but at least pretend to care a little.  You can blame the government all you want but you know who makes up the 'government'?  People.  

I'm not going to turn this into a political rant, this is about nature.  In case we forgot, and let's face it, we always forget how breathtaking and miraculous this small planet of ours is.  

This is a leaf.  A LEAF that is five times bigger than my hand.  The moment of Zen is realizing that this moment is beautiful.  The only thing or things which were missing from this mini paradise were squirrels, chipmunks and animals in general.  Since I'm from Colorado I've always taken animals for granted, because well, they are everywhere.  A squirrel is hard to come by around here, which is strange because this should the perfect place for them, and forget about seeing rabbits.  Or even a deer.  People tell me it's because people hunt them.  Really?  People hunted squirrels to extinction?  Extinction is a strong word, extreme hiding.  Is a squirrel even worth hunting?  A few wild animals every now and then would be nice, that's all I'm saying.    

Moving on from the wild beauty of nature...well wild beauty in a different light.  Rain.  Lots and lots of rain.  

Normally, weather doesn't bother me, but when it floods every day, well, I was pretty sure that this is what people in Brazil and Thailand deal with every day; and I'm sure they are fine with it.  The streets of Novosibirsk can't handle much, let alone torrential floods on a daily basis.  

   

These are all taken on different days, but you get the idea.  So that's it, on any given day a sudden downpour can occur or you can stumble into an almost tame wilderness.