Also on our vacation, we spent a few nights in Philadelphia. Ah, Philly — the site of one of our first dates back in 2008. We had such a good time then, I don’t know why we waited so long to go back. But the first night was awful — torrential rain, which made it a little tricky to walk around and find a good restaurant!
But we’d made arrangements in advance to visit two gardens, of very different kinds, and here are some images.
Longwood Gardens
About an hour from downtown, a large formal garden created by one of the DuPonts. It’s famous for its enormous greenhouse/conservatory, and for its fountain shows.
Polished floors and vistas.
An indoor stream and waterfall.
Are these related to the ones near Love Park?
The details are made with care.
E. at an indoor cascade.
Looking out.
For the evening fountain show you need a ticket. It brings in a lot of people!
This floor is actually wet from the previous day’s rain.
Looking upriver.
A nice place to hang out.
Exotics
Another view of the water features.
Yellow clivias.
E. at the meadow loop. Black-eyed Susans abound.
Wildflowers on the Meadow loop
Philadelphia’s Magic Garden
The brainchild of a local artist, this is carved out of a lot on South Street. The artist spent years collecting bottles, tiles, statuettes, bicycle parts, all for making mosaics, building walls, and more. And he hasn’t stopped. If you visit, walk around the area and look up every alleyway, into every lobby, over every roofline. He’s like a guerilla artist, planting mosaics everywhere.
The main entryway and stairs to the lower level.
From the bottom of the stairs.
At first glance, confusing.
There are a few spaces with high walls, but open to the sky.
E. in one of the narrow corridors.
Mirror mosaic.
Photo of a person taking a photo.
There is a lot of figurative work. Most of the walls have human figure outlines as organizing features.
One of the nicest spots to relax.
Beautiful tile floor.
My patio chair is waiting.
Artsy photo of a view.
The rear service entrance.
This is the artist’s personal parking space. No kidding — E. saw him get into his car.
Philadelphia is still a city of murals. Here’s a nearby example.
