Brooklyn Botanic Garden

A few weeks ago we wanted a mini-escape that didn't require too much effort, and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden was the perfect spot. It's on the northeastern corner of Prospect Park, right by the 2/3/4/5 trains. Despite having a lot of friends who live near it, I haven't heard of many actually checking it out. It's a hot spot for weddings, koi fish feeding and alligator spotting.
It's a very relaxing spot, lots of flowers, trees... things you might expect from a botanic garden. I thought it was nice to visit at this time of year and see the leaves turn, though I imagine the really spectacular time is in the spring. A few highlights from our visit:

The remaining flowers (they might have disappeared now post-snow)

 Wandering through the tropical greenhouse - I felt transported to a tropical island!

 Magic flowers

Although I'm sure he will deny it, I convinced Greg that there was an alligator in this swamp and that I saw it peering out. Not saying that he 100% believed it, but he definitely considered it as a possibility.

To end the day, we bought a new house pet/plant in the Botanic Garden Gift Shop. His name is Seymour, ala the shopkeeper in Little Shop of Horrors, a musical featuring a man-eating plant. This pitcher plant only eats flies, thankfully. I have to say - it really works. Our kitchen fly problem has disappeared, and he's growing.