Gardens by the Bay

This post is a long one, not due to words, but all the pictures, and this only a portion of the pics we took that day.

Gardens by the Bay is a park consisting of three waterfront gardens off the Marina Bay in Singapore--Bay South Garden, Bay East Garden and Bay Central Garden. The park is a strategy by the Singapore government to transform Singapore from a "Garden City" to a "City in a Garden". The aim is to raise the quality of life by enhancing greenery and flora in the city.

On our first visit to the Garden, we spent the majority of our time in the Bay South Garden, which contains two cooled conservatories-the Flower Dome and the Cloud Forest. In the image above, you can see the two conservatories in the far left of the pic. Here are a few facts about the conservatories from the website:

• The conservatories are the worlds largest columnless greenhouse. The conservatories' glass sits on a steel grid that acts like an eggshell.
• The temperature of the conservatories is maintained (despite smouldering temps in Singapore) in the following manner: air is cooled at the lower occupied zones through chilled water pipes in ground slabs, while warm air is vented out at the top.
• The Flower Dome, much like a giant puzzle, has 3,332 panels of 42 varying shapes and sizes of spectrally selective glass.

The Flower Dome

The Flower Dome features 7 different "gardens" as well as an olive grove with a bistro. In the center of the dome there is a display field that changes displays different flower shows and celebrations of different holidays. The seven gardens include:

1. The Succulent Garden and The Baobabs. Plants from this sections are from USA, Mexico, Africa and Madagascar.
2. The Australian Garden
3. The South African Garden
4. The South American Garden
5. The Mediterranean Garden
6. The Californian Garden

Here are some pictures we got during our walk through the Flower Dome. If I was really good, I would separate these out by their respective garden, but no time for that. Just take a look at these pics, they need no words. It is just beautiful! Note Adriana is only 15 months in these pics, so quite different from some of the more recent pics on Facebook.

The Cloud Forest
The Cloud Forest replicates the cool moist conditions found in tropical mountain regions between found in South-East Asia, Middle- and South America. It features a 138 ft "Cloud Mountain". The "cloud mountain" itself is completely covered in epiphytes such as orchids, ferns, peacock ferns, and clubmosses, bromeliads, and anthuriums. It consists of a number of levels, each with a different theme. My favorite part of the Cloud Forest was the waterfall (115ft) at the entrance. The look of awe on Adriana's face was priceless when she saw it.

As you can see below, Miss Adriana was very confident about approaching the waterfall until she got too close for her comfort, got scared and almost pushed Mommy into the puddles of water!

 
                                                                                  LOL!

So after the waterfall you take a short walk to an elevator and then you decend down the top part of the mountain on foot on a circular, aerial walkway. I can think of two parents (Dad and Nancy!) that will not be taking this walk down the mountain when they come visit. Its not so much for those with fear of heights! :) 

And I will let the rest of the pictures do the talking.

See the bird below? :)

Inside the mountain

Supertrees Grove

There was much more to see, but our last stop this first trip was a quick look at the Supertrees Grove, which is outside of the conservatories. The Supertrees are tree-like structures that are vertical gardens that perform a multitude of functions, which include planting, shading and working as environmental engines for the gardens.There is an elevated walkway between two of the larger Supertrees for an aerial view of the Gardens. We will have to do this next time when we are not rushing baby home for her nap (Miss Peticular stopped napping in her stroller after 12 months) :)

Here is a few pics from online, until we go back!