Missouri Botanical Gardens

I love a beautiful garden. Botanical Gardens are one of my favorite places to visit. So, when a friend told me that the Missouri Botanical Gardens was having a special exhibit at the same time Kevin and I would be in St Louis, Missouri I looked it up online, and changed my plans from a day visit to an evening visit. It was well worth the extra $$ and the itinerary change.

At the entrance gates of the Missouri Botanical Gardens, we were greeted by a large dragon.

Being a big Chihuly fan, one of the first things I noticed, after we purchased out tickets, was the large glass sculpture hanging inside the building. It didn't have anything to do with the special event but I had to stop a picture. (I asked Kevin to pose next to it.)

We arrived about 7 PM - just in time to catch the lanterns and sculptures in the daylight.

 There were a few fun activities for the kids. Cole was excited to take a turn beating the drums.

After dark when everything was lighted, all of the really amazing lanterns turned the gardens into a magical far off land.

There were several of the cheery tree lanterns  - this is how it looked in the light.

After dark they glowed.

During the day we could see how this boat was made using thousands of clear plastic water bottles.

A lantern the size of a building!

After dark the dueling dragons, made out of china plates, moved their heads and had smoke flowing from their nostrils.

We walked down a path of moons and stars, and enjoyed a glowing lily pond,

but, our favorite may have been the Pandas who were "hiding out" in the bamboo.

We stopped by the tents that were selling yummy Chinese food and had a few bites of crispy pot stickers before we left. I dipped mine in the Chinese Hot Mustard and quickly understood where the dragons get their fiery glow!