So we went to this little atrium yesterday called The Butterfly Place.
For $8.50 apiece, you got to walk around a fabricated wilted jungle and observe all kinds of butterflies, with names like Giant Swallowtail, Ghost Brimstone and Isabella Tiger Longwing.
It was kind of neat, especially for a 1-year-old. Definitely good photo ops.
You weren't allowed to touch the butterflies, but if you were lucky, they would land on you.
Up close, butterflies aren't always beautiful. With bodies like worms and dis-proportioned larvae, they are lucky they have wings to offset their homeliness.
The environment was warm and muggy, and if you wore glasses, they would steam up upon entrance. Kind of like stepping out into a June New Orleans morning from an air-conditioned hotel.
It was a quiet place, this Butterfly Place, and despite the crowded walkways packed with strollers, parents and cameras, there was a sense of peace.
Butterflies, after all, are free.
Sort of.
Anne and I visited a similar place in south Florida near Lauderdale and not too far from our place in West Palm. On the day we visited, we had both lathered up earlier in the day in this aloe lotion that we can only find in Florida. Well, wouldn't you know the butterflies loved the lotion. At one point there were about 3 dozen butterflies on Anne. All the children around were so envious. Suddenly, Anne became the star attraction at the place. Definitely a unique and neat place to visit. Looks like the place you visited in Mass. is very similar.
Posted by: Tim | April 30, 2006 at 01:39 PM
Tim - that's too funny. I didn't realize how easy it was to be a butterfly magnet.
Posted by: Dan | April 30, 2006 at 05:25 PM
My husband and I have been to the Butterfly Place. It's very cool. I agree that butterflies can be a bit freaky up close and personal.
Posted by: Christine | April 30, 2006 at 07:09 PM