Continuing our weekend in Montreal; visiting the Biodome and Botanical Garden.

We discovered the Biodome over ten years ago when we took a ski vacation to the Montreal region.  Our youngest son had a broken arm, so we needed to find things for him to do that didn't involve a pair of skiis!  The Biodome is located just outside of the city and it's very easy to get to.  It offers several different climates and until you get to the penguins, they are all relatively warm.  It's a wonderful place for children and adults alike.  This was a terrific weekend trip for us.  We stayed at the Bonaventure Hotel and although I could have spent the entire weekend in the rooftop (heated) outdoor pool, I'm glad we visited the Biodome and the Botanical Garden. 

The humidity in the rain forest affected the first photo, but the warmth felt so good!

Efforts have been made to create habitats for the animals that mimic a natural habitat.

It was nice to see green leaves and color cocooned inside of the outdoor snow!

The fish were oblivious to the cold outdoors.

We could hear the bats squeak but the flashless photos are black.  I think it's the way they like it.

Ahhh, the warm sand.

This little guy wouldn't sit still.

The displays are beautiful.

A cardinal; reminiscent of the ones at my bird feeder.

Flowers!  Dirt!  Things we haven't seen at home for months.

The sound of trickling water was peaceful.

Recognizable by the tail....

.....the racoon seems quite content.

The beaver dam is impressive, but where are the beavers?

A hidden camera allows us to see them in their home without intruding.

The lynx is a gorgeous creature.  Notice the tufts of fur on his ears.

He is keenly aware of the female next door.  This lynx was born at the Biodome.

Now we're at the shore.  There were many shore birds in this display.  Some were swooping over our heads.

We finish the tour in a colder region where penguins are right at home.

 We left the Biodome and returned to the Botanical Garden to experience the warmth and the color!

We don't often see signs like this around town.

 Stunning.

 Intriguing.

 We can imagine planting our flower boxes.

 Tempting!

 Charming.

 Splendid.

 When I was a child we had Lady Slippers growing in the woods behind our house!

 Pretty and petite.

 Cascading.

 I wish I could see the stepping stones in my garden!

 Gorgeous color.

 Delightful.

 Lovely.

 A fabulous diorama.

 Elegant.

Dazzling.

We took a drive through Old Montreal on our way back to the hotel.

 

Plan your trip to Montreal.  You won't be disappointed.  
Bon Voyage!

Spring and Butterflies in Montreal

Spring officially begins today, however, with recent snow up to our windowsills, we found a need to go someplace warm.  I suppose you wouldn't normally think of Montreal as warm, but there are several places there that offer warmth, flowers and a bit of springtime; butterflies.  The Botanical Garden in Montreal is a must-see destination.  We had been there before so I didn't check to see what the exhibits were before going.  What a wonderful surprise!  The Butterflies Go Free exhibit was breath taking.  Walking among the butterflies of all shapes, sizes and colors was simply amazing.  If you can get to Montreal before April 26th, I strongly encourage you to do so.  

One of the smaller butterflies we saw.

This one seemed to "glow".

Very tempting but frowned upon.

The reverse of this butterflies wings is a beautiful blue. 

I love the intricate pattern shown here.  As if someone painted it.

The exhibit allows us to see the butterflies "hatch".

These were giant butterflies; from where we stood they looked to be six to seven inches wide.

The turquoise on these wings is incredible.

The grapefruit and oranges seem to be a favorite butterfly food.

Look closely at these "see through" wings.

The butterflies seem to be agreeable to each other.

These wings look like a waterfall.  Gorgeous.

More fruit including mellon and kiwi.  Scrumptious.

The touch of yellow on the wings compliments the flower.  Is that why the butterfly sits here?

Lovely.

A touch of color is all that's needed.

Camouflage.

She couldn't help it!

Some of the butterflies seemed to hover closer to the ground.

A fabulous exhibit!  Visit if you can.

A View from the Kitchen Window 3/14

"March is a month of considerable frustration - it is so near spring and yet across a great deal of the country the weather is still so violent and changeable that outdoor activity in our yards seems light years away."
  Thalassa Cruso 

More Snow and More Seed Catalogues

While Southern New England just received several more inches of snow, we were untouched yesterday.  It felt like a heatwave; twenty-eight degrees.  Nothing to plow and nothing to shovel.  A dream.  On top of that, there were three new seed catagogs waiting for us at the post office.  I'd like to suggest that whether you have a large garden, small garden, container garden or no garden at all....sign up for these free catalogs.  They are good for the soul!  Full of glorious photos of flowers and vegetables, I could sit for hours and peruse the catalogs.  We can only dream of sunny days and dirt!

This particular Breck catalog is full of sale prices.

If you haven't tried to grow dahlias, this is the year!

Coneflowers come in many colors and are one of my favorites.  Easy to grow.

There are also some cute garden adornments in this catalog.

I love the Territorial Seed catalog.  It typically has colorful artwork gracing the cover.

They offer loads of information about each product they sell.

Can't wait to see the orange colors in the garden again!

Wood Prairie Farm from Maine puts out a small but mighty catalog.

Offers some specialty seeds as well.

There's a large tool section as it's very important to the gardener.

I love the artwork in this catalog.

Just a little more melting required 

and we'll be gardening again!