Botanic Garden

The U.S. Botanic Garden is one of my favorite places on the National Mall. Early in December I had heard about their holiday exhibit, so Mike and I decided to head down there the weekend before Christmas, and then go to the National Christmas Tree at the White House.

But that weekend, we were preoccupied with this.



Then there was Christmas travel.





Then post-Christmas/New Years illness.

(are you sad there are no pictures of that?)

So we finally made it today. The Garden Court is decked out with holiday decor is some non-traditional colors, which I really like.



They also have replicas of a lot of the buildings you'll find on the National Mall - all of which are made of plant materials. I was having a tough time with the pictures because the buildings were pretty monochromatic, and the lighting is spotty since we're in a giant greenhouse, but here are a few decent ones.

Smithsonian Castle


Jefferson Memorial


Then in the East Gallery they have a garden train display that is just spectacular. I found out that it's a friend of my friend Cathy who is the artistic force behind this exhibit. My pictures don't do it justice, but here you go.



This says, "Fairies sleep here"




Happy New Year!