#rabbit topiary tree

[livlyislands]

id: p6vfa3x2

[fuckitandmovetobritain]

Buntingford, Hertfordshire, England, UK

[girl-next-door-writes]

535,600 minutes

Characters: Mycroft Holmes x reader

Summary: Snapshots of your first year with Mycroft, and how he adjusts to being part of a pair.

Word Count: 1924 words

Prompt: ‘How about Mycroft doing something seasonal.’

A/N: This one is for the wonderful @theweepingvulcan91. I couldn’t decide on a season, so I went with four, because who doesn’t want a whole year of Mycroft Holmes?

You met the elusive Mycroft Holmes in the spring. The details of how you both found yourselves at this particular gathering were lost to memory, but Mycroft was standing by a trestle table in the terrace gardens of Yardley Hall, failing to conceal his confusion and precisely how horrific he was finding this event. Small children were everywhere, which meant squealing and sticky hands and chaos. They were running around, searching (and ruining) the topiary in their search for small chocolate eggs, while a man, who Mycroft suspected was Colonel Yardley, was scampering about dressed as a terrifying giant rabbit.

“Which of these delights are yours?” Turning to his right, his scowl was met by amusement, causing his sour mood to melt just a little.

“Technically, none.” He took the flute of champagne you offered, mentally scanning your fingers for any signs of a wedding ring.

“Technically? That’s intriguing.”

“My brother’s friend has a daughter and they felt this would be a ‘fun’ Easter activity for her.”

“So, you are here for your brother’s friend’s daughter?” The way your brow furrowed while the corners of your lips curled up was enchanting, and Mycroft found himself momentarily distracted.

“I am merely their ticket in.”

“And yet, you are still here.”

“I am. And you? Which of these delights are yours?” He watched your response curiously, trying to deduce as much as he could.

“Oh, I am just here as a wingman to my friend who has a huge crush on some single father who is here. Honestly, we just kinda crashed, but I am trusting you not to tell on me.” Your eyes glinted with mischief and Mycroft realised he was chuckling.

“Your secret is safe with me, my dear.” Clinking his glass to yours, he wondered how long he could get away with monopolizing your attention. Unfortunately, fate, or rather his brother, intervened.

“Here’s Uncle Mycroft, Rosie. I am sure he will be more than happy to help you discover the last of the eggs.” Sherlock smiled brightly at the little girl, allowing his smile to tighten as he looked at his brother.

“Sherlock, I-“

“John is busy talking to a rather uncomplicated woman and Lestrade just called. As a responsible adult, I am leaving Rosie in your care until John is done. Goodbye, brother mine.” And with that, Sherlock strode off.

“Uncle Mycroft.” Rosie tugged at his coat, and he tried his best to hold back a frustrated sigh. “The bunny has put out more eggs, Uncle Mycroft.”

“Then we shall take your basket and see if we can ascertain their location.” His nose scrunched slightly as the four-year-olds sticky hand slipped into his, then turned to give you an apologetic smile, only to be stunned to find you crouching down to address Rosie.

“Which eggs are we looking for? What colour is the best?” You asked earnestly.

“Pink. They are bright and you can see them more so you can get lots.”

“Ah, so pink is easiest to see. I’m guessing, with that being the case, there are possibly a LOT of green ones still hiding. How about you look for pink, I will look for blue, and your uncle can look for green because I think he should take the hardest challenge.” You smiled teasingly as you looked up at Mycroft, who was suddenly imagining a whole future life with you.

Twenty minutes later, John was standing on the terrace, frantically scanning the garden as he searched for Sherlock and Rosie. His eyes widened with surprise however, when he spotted Rosie sitting on Mycroft’s shoulders as she reached up into a tree for an egg while a rather attractive stranger held the basket up for the treasure to be placed. This was a side of Mycroft he had never seen, and he considered filming a little to send to Sherlock. Mycroft looked happy and relaxed, and John couldn’t help but wonder if that was down to you.

The summer heat was stifling, and Mycroft wondered why on earth you had insisted upon meeting him in Hyde Park at the hottest part of the day. It was so warm he’d already had to remove his suit jacket, hanging it over his arm as he searched the vicinity for your presence.

“Mycroft! Over here!” His head whipped around at the sound of your voice, and the reasoning for such a venue became apparent.

“My darling, a picnic?” He looked skeptically at the blanket you had spread in the shadow of a huge tree.

“I have blankets to prevent you getting grass stains on your suit. Everything is in containers which can be closed while not in use so there will be no surprise insects in your food. We are in the shade, so you won’t burn. I have a fan, so you won’t over-heat. The drinks are on ice, I’ve brought all your favourites, I know how much you despise eating outside, but I was rather hoping you would make an exception, just this once, as the weather is so glorious.”

“How could I ever deny you anything?” He gave you a soft smile, appreciating how much effort you had put into this compromise.

Sitting next to you on the blanket, he rolled up his shirt sleeves and picked up a container of your favourite fruit, already cut into perfect bitesize chunks. Peeling off the lid, he carefully picked up a piece and offered it to you, silently elated when you ate it directly from his fingers. If this was where compromise led, then he vowed to be more compromising for you in the future.

The afternoon was spent laying in the warm breeze, reading and talking. At one point, he was sat with his back against the tree and your head resting in his lap, and he wanted to bottle that moment up and store it away in his mind palace, untainted forever. The scent of the grass and the dry earth at the base of the tree, the mixture of heat and mild caress of the breeze from the fan, the texture of your hair as his fingers toyed with it in a distracted manner, the weight of your head against his thigh, the soft susurration of the pages turning and gentle sighs which fell from you as you read. This moment right here was perfect. You were perfect. The last four months had been perfect. He wanted this to be his reality, his always.

“This is ridiculous.” He huffed, adjusting his collar once more. “If you wanted to get all dressed up then there was a masked ball we could have attended.”

“Mycroft, you look incredibly dashing, and you do not fool me for one instant. You enjoy dressing up just as much as I do.”

“That is-“

“Lady Bracknell.”

“How did-“

“Sherlock.”

“Ah. Sherlock.” He grumbled with a frown.

“It is Halloween, Mycroft. One party.” You hummed as you smoothed down his shirt.

“One party.” He nodded, psyching himself up for the teasing he knew would inevitably come from his brother.

“I think you make a rather stunning Victor Frankenstein.” This compliment had him smiling despite himself.

“Yes, well, you picked out the costume so I would hope so. I do think, perhaps, nobody will be looking at me when they see you. Exquisite, as always, my dear.” He tenderly caressed your cheek before leaning in and placing a gentle kiss to your lips, not wanting to mess up your make-up.

“Maybe next year you could be one of those detectives from those films you like to watch, we could do a little role play.” Your smile was mischievous, and Mycroft felt a heat roll through him.

“That is a role play we would most certainly not be doing in public.” He growled, pressing you close to him.

“Now there’s a thought. Sadly, we have a party to attend.” You pushed him away, leaving your hands on his chest. “But I will absolutely take that scenario into consideration for a later date.”

Watching you sweep out of the room, Mycroft knew he was left standing there, grinning like a loon. Just when he thought you could not possibly get any better, you threw something like that onto the table.  In the back of his mind he thought, ‘I really need to get a ring’.

The howling wind battered the rain against the window, but it was barely audible over the crooning of Michael Buble which filled the room. The scent of pine was far too strong for Mycroft’s liking, and the pine needles littering his carpet were irking him, but watching you carefully unpacking various baubles made his irritations shrink significantly.

He did wonder quite how you intended to dress the tree, as the only light in the room came from the crackling fireplace and the fairy lights he had fought to wrap around the branches not so long ago. Regardless of his misgivings, he observed you assessing the tree before hanging the first of many ornaments from the branches.

“Are you going to stand there all evening, or are you coming to help me?” You asked with amusement, not even turning to look at him. Mycroft instantly moved to lean against the mantle above the fireplace, glass of whiskey in his hand.

“I was rather enjoying your masterclass in tree decorating, my darling.”

“Really? And here I was thinking you were just afraid of the tree falling on you again.” This earned a scoff from him and a light peal of laughter from you.

“It did not fall on me, it just became a little unbalanced.”

“Well, come over here and make sure I don’t become ‘a little unbalanced’ while I try to put the star on the top.”

Mycroft placed his glass down and moved to stand behind you, his hands coming to rest on your hips as you stretched up.

“Here, let me.” He murmured in your ear, his fingers trailing up your arm and taking hold of the ornament slowly, enjoying how you shuddered slightly at his touch. Placing the star on the top of the tree, he smirked as he pressed himself against your back.

“Perfect.” You hummed, turning your head slightly to look at him.

“Is this likely to be a tradition?” He asked as his eyes met yours. The lights from the tree illuminated your skin, making you look ethereal.

“I know how much you like a tradition.”

“I am rather traditional like that.” He smirked, leaning in a little closer as he wrapped his arms around your waist, resting his chin on your shoulder.

“Yes, you are. It is one of the many things I love about you.” You smiled as you placed a soft kiss to his cheek.

“You have a list? That is interesting.”

“You don’t?” You raised an eyebrow as you suppressed a giggle.

“I have a whole filing cabinet full of dossiers.”

“That was smooth, Mr Holmes. Very smooth. Well, before we get into a rather entertaining argument about who has the bigger list, I am going to get the vacuum and get rid of the pine needles. I know that just knowing they are there, hiding, is itching at the back of that brilliant mind of yours.” You moved to leave, only for him to pull you back against his chest.

“And that is another of the multitude of reasons why I love you.” He grinned before thoroughly kissing you. Christmas morning couldn’t come soon enough, he could only hope that your answer would be yes.

[lavendersies]

Willuz prompts:

- Willow and her bumblebee Palisman grow an extravagant topiary of her and Luz, adorned with beautiful bouquets of flowers (as well as make delicious honey) for Luz to thank her for everything.

- Kind of a recap of Season 1's Luz and Willow adventures, but with the notable highlight that Willow gives Luz an appropriate flower bouquet as thanks of helping her out (can be combined with previous prompt if preferable)

- Amity and Hunter argue which of the two Luz loves the most, only to find Luz on a date/making out with Willow in a secluded, forested area, maybe with blossoming flowers (this is a non-serious fic as an allegory to the whole shipping war at the moment, but could come off as a bit mean :P)

- Luz practices with her Glyphs once more to make nice flowers and topiaries for Willow.

- Willow has a crush on Luz and can't help but feel a little jealous when she and Amity get close instead. Willow is too shy to confess her feelings for Luz, fearing rejection, and doesn't want to be in hot water with Amity again after they're finally getting along since their breach years ago. Willow wants to be happy for them, but Gus notices her depression.

- Boscha has thrashed Willow's beautiful plant garden, a passion project that's been taken years, and Willow is despaired by this, too depressed to continue and rebuild. Luz decides to fix the garden and improve it.

@Arendalphaeagle gave theses wonderful prompts so I have went with fourth one. The request was suppose to be uploaded on A03 but it didn't work out so until further notice all Willuz requests will be uploaded here. Feel free to drop ya'll request in my ask box. Enjoy.

A flower for Willow

Luz tapped the symbol emitting a green light and a single flower merge. She looks over at her spell book that specializes in plant magic for something new. She had committed her time to mastering a new glyph, hoping it would create the perfect gift for Willow. Luz didn't care if she spent the whole night out here and woke up with tired eyes caked with crust. Starting earlier this week would have been the wise thing to do but studying for her witch classes ate up the time. In a sluggish motion the sun disappeared behind the trees, allowing the moon to provide a dim light and usher in darkness. Luz casted a luminous orb as she read the instruction on how to evoke multiple flowers. She read the guide once more then traced the symbol on paper and activated it. A patch of lavender and lilac flowers bloom before her, this was just what she needed. Luz would allow her artistic skills to do the rest, she took her book and went inside. 

She found Eda knocked out on the couch with an empty cup of apple blood dangling from her hand. A smile spread on her lips seeing the grey-haired witch in her apple blood coma. King was probably upstairs waiting for Luz's return so they could continue watching an anime series that she had downloaded on her phone. Upon entering the room Luz sees King scowling one of his stuffed animals.

When he noticed her presence. He stopped chiding the pink rabbit, "Oh hey Luz, are you ready to watch soul eater with me?" He asked, sitting on the sleeping mat.

"Not tonight love," She replied.

"Why not?!" King whined.

Luz faced the opposite direction and stripped from her outwear into pj's. She put them near the mat and got out her sketch pad.

"I have to finish a gift for Willow," she said, sitting down to begin sketching her friend's face.

"You can finish it tomorrow, I've been watching all week for us to watch soul eater!" 

"Sorry King, I promise we will watch it together tomorrow" she assured.

The furry demon grumbled under his breath and joined her on the mat. "What are you drawing anyways?" He asked, peeking over her shoulder.

"A picture of Willow" she responded.

"What's the occasion?"

"None, I just want to do something nice for my friend," she said.

"Do you have anything else in mind?"

Luz had finished Willow's eyes and moved on to her nose, "Tomorrow I'm 

going to create a plant statue with this picture".

"I want a plant statue of me!" King cried. 

Luz chuckled.

"And you've been doing a lot for Willow lately, last week you went out of your way to get her that plant baby".

Luz's heart raced, she already knew the next words coming, "She sounds more than a friend" King commented. 

"Friends do things for each other all the time" Luz struggled to tolerate her frisky heart, hoping the tone of her voice wasn't a dead give away.

"Eh, if you say so."

The room fell in silence and Luz worked diligently on Willow's portrait. The plant witch dominates her thoughts, now her heart flutters thinking of those olive green eyes behind the thin-rimmed glasses. The way her ear twitched at sudden noises. Willow had been nothing but a sweet-heart since day, she deserved the world and Luz was willing to give her it. Although these feelings bloomed, she didn't know if it was mutual on Willow's end, and she would keep them buried away. When Luz finally looked up from her sketch-pad King was fast asleep at the edge of her mat. She set aside the finished product and got some rest.

Later that night, Luz had woken up to relieve her heavy bladder, she carefully stepped over a sleeping King and visited the bathroom. After washing her hands, she found herself outside.

 The moon's bright orbs brighten her path as she walks through the woods. Luz was a moth drawn to light, she felt compelled to keep moving. The orbs glowed rapidly like glistening gems, Luz could hear the vibration. She was led into the opening and a massive bush that resembled Willow's head came in view. 

Woah...

"Thank you Luz!" It says

"Huh?"

Its large yellow luminous remind her of fireflies, she had accidentally swallowed one when she was seven.

"Thank you" it repeated.

"What for?" Luz asked.

She didn't get a response to her question,7 the bush thanked Luz on an endless loop. Suddenly, gravity reeled her forward and its mouth opened wide, swallowing her. 

Luz was expecting to be engulfed in darkness, her eyes were squeezed shut. She felt warmth and a chubby body press against hers, opening her eyes. Luz realized it was Willow. She embraced the plant witch hug and gently ran her hand along Willow's turquoise hair. 

"Luz!" 

Everything faded. Luz woke up in her makeshift room with an annoyed little demon held prisoner in her arms. "Luz let go!" He whines struggling to break free.

"Sorry.." she said sheepishly.

Luz released him and King scurried off on all fours. She took care of her personal hygiene then returned to the room for her uniform. When Luz went downstairs, Eda was waiting at the door with her staff. She wore her pajamas. "Can we take the tub?” 

“No, its for emergencies only”

“Please” Luz said, giving the grey haired woman pitiful eyes.

“I’m immune to those” Eda stated dismissively.

“But you can’t be the coolest witch without it,” 

“Keep it up and you’ll be walking to school” Eda said heading out the door. 

--

The schoolyard was still empty when Luz hopped off the staff. She watched Eda fly away, disappearing over the autumn colored trees. Luz took out her plant magic textbook and turned to the page about manipulation. After she got a good understanding, she pulled out the portrait of Willow and drew two symbols on them. Luz crossed her fingers and tapped the paper, a stem sprouted forth and the leaves took on the form of Willow's face. Two Lilac flowers blossomed on both sides, the topiary was the size of a miniature house plant. She had expected bigger  but before Luz could sulk her crush arrived. 

"Willow!" She quickly hid the plant behind her back.

"Hey" Willow smiled. 

Luz felt butterflies tickling her stomach, she forced a skittish smile and revealed the topiary. Willow eyes widened with astonishment, she took the plant from Luz's hands.

"Aww thanks" Willow shifted the plant in her other arm and gave her a hug. Luz no longer had butterflies pestering her insides. The euphoria buttered her up, if Luz hadn't stopped herself she would have kissed Willow. For a brief moment, the turquoise haired witch stared at her. Luz was about to look away but Willow touched her cheek and gently kissed her lips. She led Luz by the hand towards the school building. 

[datenightfright]

Bastian

The shrill voice of Mrs. Cherish Blackmire rings through the cold room with clarity few can achieve. “Get up you lazy pig!” Bastian, up and dressed long before she comes to his door. He opens up immediately. “What took you so long?” She asks. He doesn’t answer, not that she expected one. She turns from him in disgust and begins to walk down the servants hall. He follows immediately, listening carefully to her instructions. “The roses need watering, the lilacs and lupines need weeding, the herb garden is in desperate need of fertilizing, and I want my arrangements done before noon.”

He nodded as she continued her list. The rhododendrons needed to be moved, she wanted the willow tree needed the moss scraped off it, and for Maker’s Sake please washe the statues, they’re getting grimy. “Did you get all of that pig?” 

“Yes Mrs. Blackmire.” He says as quietly as possible so as not to startle her delicate senses. She hmph’s and turns back to him, “Don’t forget tonight is a very important night for me.” He nods, not daring to speak. They stand there for a few moments. “Well, get on with it! Don’t be lazy!” Bastian doesn’t hesitate and rushes to the garden. 

If there was one thing in life Bastian had to be proud of, it was Blackmire Garden. Though the family didn’t want to admit it, he’d transformed a veritable wasteland into an oasis of greenery. Homegrown flowers to exotic plants, fountains to stop at, topiaries and statues to admire, a maze of carefully clipped bushes, trees to provide shaded areas for picnics. Birds flitted through the leaves, squirrels danced on the branches, there was even a rabbit or two if you looked closely. Yes, he was proud of the Blackmire Gardens indeed.

Bastian gets to work on his list of chores. With practiced hands he waters, weeds, and washes. The sun overhead gleams, making him the warmest he will be all day. He enjoys working in the heat of the sun, sweating, getting his hands dirty. It’s relaxing to him, he feels that’s why he’s succeeded in this place and failed in others. 

He break for lunch once the flower arranging is finished. He enters the kitchen long after all the other servants have left. They often look at him with jealousy when he eats. It wasn’t that he got better fare, it was that he got more than they did, much more. He couldn’t help the fact that he was half-orc, thus did most of the heavy lifting for the Blackmires. The other half-orcs his masters had got the same amount of food he did, but they worked the fields and this ate at different times, in different places. He was the only one to work inside with the other servants. 

He eats his share, savoring the gruel and salted pork for last, as they were his favorites, and then went off to work once more. Washing the statues wasn’t such a hard job, the grime comes away from the surface with ease, it was just the sheer amount of statues he had to clean that took the longest. 

Even so, it’s well before dusk when he finishes his last task. He goes to his mistress, careful not to be seen by the others of the house, for more instructions. He found her, as he often did on days when she was planning a great feast, in the dining hall. She had no work for him, which meant he had the rest of the day off. He knew better than to stay in his quarters in the servants wing, they would talk, and eventually get him in trouble. He went, as quietly as he could, to young Ms. Blackmire’s window. 

Hiding in the bushes he listens closely, closing his eyes as he listens. Ms. Blackmire had a soft, delicate disposition, and loved poetry just as much as Bastian did. She read it aloud daily to her cat, and whenever he could, he listened to her. 

Poetry was the single most beautiful thing to Bastian in all the world. No sound, no sight, no smell, touch, or taste could move him like poetry did. As he listens to her recite line after line of love poetry, he allows himself to dream. He dreams of a world where a beast like himself can read and write. Where he could compose his own poetry. Where it was read world wide, by people just like young Ms. Blackmire.

[starstruck-thirst]

Crimson Dance Card

Illumi Zoldyck: Part 2 ‘A Dangerous Foxtrot’

Previous- Part 1 ‘A Waltz Macabre’

Next- Part 3 ‘Insidious Quickstep’

Warnings: None (This will be a slow burn/ build friends)

~~~~~~

Flowers were in bloom in every conceivable space that the garden allowed them to. High standing topiaries created shade for the bright purple lobelias and pure white sweet asylum flowers to flourish. Elaborate pathways broke up the garden beds that held brighter flowers such as magenta and scarlet zinnias and bright orange marigolds. The colors were so vibrant and bright that it hurt the eyes.

Actually, it did hurt your eyes, which was why you were wearing a nice pair of sunglasses as well as a wide brimmed sun hat. Sure, the gardens were lovely, but one could only take such an onslaught of color all at once for so long.

“Are you listening to me?”

You hadn’t been. But it only seemed fair to look at your conversation partner and pretend you were. “Of course. Please keep going,” you said with a small smile as you turned to look at him with your full attention.

Tibor was a rather dull person. So much so that ‘bor’- as in ‘boring’- was part of his name. Or so you had thought somewhat cruelly to yourself when your father told you that he was you intended fiancé. He was nice looking enough: somewhat tall, blond, gray eyes, and tanned just the right amount for his skin tone. But it only served as an outward sign of his inward tedious personality for you. It was all so… expected.

“Oh! Well then. I was saying that after we got married we could honeymoon off content. I know of a lovely place that-,” and you stopped listening again.

The meandering people that were attending the gardens today were far more interesting by comparison, and you didn’t even know them. One woman stopped and pointed to a flower at her feet. Her male companion knelt and plucked a fuchsia gloxinia flower from the ground and offered it to her. She took it with a delighted giggle and you sighed, leaning on your arm as you watched the couple walk away.

Suddenly, you sat bolt upright. Just past the couple as they walked away had there been a blur of long black hair around a row of high bushes?

“Darling, are you alright?” Tibor asked, putting a concerned hand on your own. “You look as if you have seen a ghost.”

“I’m sorry. I thought I saw someone I knew,” you lied, looking back to your tea cup and lifting it to your lips for a sip. The bitterness of the afternoon black tea was soothing, even if it was starting to grow cold in the cup.

Tibor ran his fingers over yours in an attempt to be loving. “Maybe we’ve been in the sun too long. If you like we can relocate to the gazebo?”

“No, I’m fine,” you said with a tight, red lipped smile. “I think I might just be getting tired over all. Perhaps today will have to be cut short. I’m sorry, Tibor.”

“Of course, darling,” you hated how he said that word, so full of false romance and sativa sweetness, “whatever you need.” He patted your hand which only made you hate him more.

When he lifted his hand for another pat you slipped it out from under his grip and touched it to your cheek, tilting your head to one side to look particularly adorable. “Oh, Tibor, you are so considerate. I’ll call my driver to pick me up, I know you are busy so I don’t want to keep you.”

Tibor stood, in a fashion that seemed a bit too quick if you were asked, and moved to your side. “Are you sure? I don’t mind being a bit late for my meeting for you, darling.”

He put a hand on the side of your face and you wanted to vomit. “I’m sure. It wouldn’t be good for the image of the company for a junior partner to be late to a meeting. I completely understand.”

“You are such an angel.” Tibor leaned down and went to place a kiss on your lips, but coyly you turned your head just in time. To his credit, he realized and paused just a second before following through and kissing you on the cheek. “You’re always so shy,” he teased, staying in close proximity as he did so.

“Oh, Tibor. You know that I’m too shy to kiss in public.” A convenient lie. One you had established early on when he had kissed you without warning in front of several influential family friends. It hadn’t been particularly good, and you wanted to avoid such things in the future. Luckily remembering how awkward you had felt that day was enough to tinge your cheeks with pink.

Hesitating another moment, he kissed your cheek again before standing straight. “Please let me know when you make it home safely.”

“Naturally. I might do some errands first but I will make sure to tell you,” you replied in a tenor that was all too high and bubbly.

But he seemed pacified. With a satisfied nod he turned and left the garden as he pulled out his cell phone and called his driver.

The moment his back was around another topiary and out of sight you sat back in your chair in a somewhat undignified manner, feeling exhausted. The wedding was supposed to be in three months, but it felt like you were being choked with a collar of duty already. It had only been a month that this whole engagement had been put into place and already you were contemplating suicide.

Just the way you thought that made your mind reel back a month and a half ago to a lavish party where you saw your first dead body, slumped across a hard wood desk. The dark and cold eyes of his killer watching your every move. His dark hair pulled up into a ponytail and when it swayed you wanted to reach up and free the strands from their prison.

That had somehow helped you to feel grounded. The touch of the sun’s warmth on your arms was reassuring, but also beginning to grow too hot.

“Madam, are you finished with your tea?” a neutral toned butler asked, placing a testing hand on the teapot in front of you.

“Ah, yes. I am. Please take it all away. I’ll be going momentarily,” you replied, collecting your clutch purse from the table. “Thank you.”

The butler nodded politely and began to collect the cups and saucers from the table as you carefully slid from your seat and brushed the dust off of your skirt. “Seems too nice a day to go right home, I suppose I’ll walk about first,” you announced out of habit.

“A good idea, madam,” the butler assured with a bow before he turned to take the dirty lunch plates back to the garden’s main building where the kitchen resided.

You were glad that despite having chosen a nice sundress for the day, your shoes were very comfortable. You easily navigated towards the next garden section, away from the bright colored flowers into a more shaded area with tree coverage and benches next to dirt paths.

It was fortunate that many people didn’t like to come onto these little hidden sections, choosing instead to keep to the stone paths around the more conventional attractions. The dirt under your shoes crunched softly and the white noise made you smile as you slipped your sunglasses off, not feeling the need for them in the cover of the trees.

Birds sang out above you, and you whistled in response back before giggling at yourself for behaving like a child. But these little moments of solitude were quickly becoming the only time you felt anything like… yourself. Whoever she was. The person behind the giggles, poised movements, and well-defined makeup.

Was there more to you than all that anymore?

The bird that had just been communicating with you suddenly flew off, followed by several of its friends and you paused to turn around so you could watch them go. “That’s… odd,” you muttered as a black feather fell from the sky and slowly danced its way to the ground in front of you.

You looked back the way you had previously been going, trying to see if you could notice anything unusual- like a large dog- but nothing made itself known down the garden path. Something inside of you whispered, ‘Not that way.’

“Best not to question that,” you said aloud, turning on your heel and going down an alternate path. You hadn’t been persuaded to completely leave this shaded refuge, but you also were a smart enough person to listen to intuition.

If intuition had succeeded, you weren’t sure. The animals were rather quiet for a good stretch of your walk in this direction also. The heavy silence of the trees only being broken up by your footsteps was starting to finally get to you after a few minutes and you were starting to think to turn and go back instead of continuing to where the path would fork in about 20 yards. One of the forks would lead back towards the center of the garden where you could summon your car to take you home, and now it would be shorter than turning around. But was it safe to press on?

You stopped considering your options when the sound of heavy footfall on the dirt path in front of you tingled your ears. The realization of how the animals had been behaving hit you, they had all sensed a danger. While the steps sounded to be a human gait, who could they belong to?

The very real sense of possible danger slipped into your mind and you felt just a little scared. But just as you had the night you saw the body of Mr. Vojtech, there was also a sharp and distinct feeling of excitement as well. What if it was someone that wanted to hurt you? What if they took you away?

The notation was rather electrifying.

Black boots came around a dense bush ahead and you held your breath as the familiar form of Illumi Zoldyck merged from the lush forest fauna. He looked even more breathtaking than you remembered. Dressed for a day of walking around in nature with black boots, long pants, and a short-sleeved shirt. To your utter dismay his hair was also tied back into a loose ponytail. Not as high and tight as the first time you had met him, but not yet flowing in black water around his face.

You felt that cliché ‘rabbit frozen under a wolf’s gaze’ as you stood in front of Illumi, hands clasped over each other on your bag in front of your chest where they had subconsciously gone while you waited to see who would turn the corner. Slowly, to make it look deliberate, you lowered your hands to your waist, resting them naturally in a manner you had practiced since you were six.

Illumi stopped as he noticed you and visibly his posture relaxed just little. His shoulders sank to a natural relaxed position and the poise of the elegant man you had met at the party resumed instantaneously. “Miss. [last name], I’m glad that I found you here,” he said with a tint of a happy tone.

“Illumi?” you asked, and instantly regretted. How stupid was that to say? You licked your lower lip, noticing the slight increase in your heart rate, “I mean… Mr. Zoldyck. What are you doing here?”

Thoughtfully, he looked up into the trees and a slight wind rustled the leaves above the two of you. It was almost picturesque how the leaves separated just enough for some light to sneak through and land on Illumi’s white skin. A hand delicately brushed an escaped strand of hair away from his face from where the wind had pushed it. As the wind settled, he looked down to you again, letting his hand naturally fall to his side. “It’s a nice day, isn’t it?” he asked conversationally.

“Yes, it is,” you replied with an impulsive smile that always came to you naturally during small talk. “It almost seems too nice of a day though. That feeling of something being too perfect to be real.”

He moved towards you with a fluid grace that felt out of place in this environment of dirt and greenery. Even the most cultured men you had met never moved with natural fluidity as Illumi. For him it was if he was in his element wherever he went.

It kind of made a girl jealous.

“You seem bothered,” he put a hand delicately on top of yours that were still clasped tight over your purse. “Did I frighten you?”

His look of concern as he tilted his head to one side made you feel a tiny sense of reassurance, until you remembered Illumi was an assassin. The thought of him killing you still didn’t seem to bother you, despite the slight fear you had felt just moments ago. But some part of you knew you shouldn’t take reassurance from a trained killer.

The tips of his fingers stayed with your hands as you responded, and for some reason that added to your growing calm. “Yes. I’m sorry but you did. I didn’t expect… well anyone, but especially not you out this far from the central area.”

A slight amiable smile slid onto his face as he removed his hand from yours to put it naturally onto his hip. “I frequent this garden when I am in town for business. It isn’t as expansive as where I live though. But I guess when you don’t have that option you have to make do.” You nodded understanding the need to get away from people very well yourself. “What brings you out to the garden today, Miss. [last name]?”

“Oh, I was meeting,” for a flash of a moment between words you thought about lying, but something inside of you told you to tell the truth, “my fiancé.” Your voice had dropped noticeably from start to finish. Mentally you scolded yourself for losing face in from of the handsome Illumi. But you hadn’t wanted to admit why you were in the garden. In some silly fantasy in your head the assassin would one day ask you to dance again and perhaps try to kiss you.

You would let Illumi kiss you in public, you thought to yourself. Just the thought of a party of people seeing that sight and knowing you had escaped a marriage to the stodgy Tibor filled you with excitement, and perhaps just a touch of lust. Lust both for the moment of thrill kissing him in front of a room full of people, and lust of a more sexual nature that lurked below your more girlish desires.

He frowned. It was noticeable. “You don’t sound very happy about that,” he stated.

Manners dictated that you corrected him. ‘No, I’m very happy about my engagement.’ ‘Tibor is a perfect match for me. I worry I’m too boring for him!’ Something along any of those lines, but you couldn’t. The shame you felt for not being able to complete your duty in front of Illumi got to you and your eyes slid down to the dirt. The fingers that were laced over one another on your clutch tightened.

“Miss. [last name]?”

“I don’t have any interest in my fiancé. His family is old money, invested in my own family’s corporation even. But… I feel nothing for him.” You paused, feeling more and more childish as you stood there not looking at the man in front of you.

‘You are acting like a spoiled little girl! Get it together,’ you chided yourself mentally as you forced your eyes back to up look at Illumi who was watching you silently. The same leveled expression as the day he had watched you wonder into the scene of his own work. You labored a smile back into place. “But you have to do what you can for your family, right?”

He was quiet. No response came from him as he stood before you, potentially thinking about your sincerity? Finally, he moved next to you and offered his right arm out for you to take. “I want to walk you back to the front of the garden.”

“Oh, you don’t have to. I’m sorry I shouldn’t have distracted you from your nice day.” The denial of his time came so naturally that it was as if you hadn’t slipped up in your decorum at all.

“I insist.”

You took his arm with a hand, slipping it around his forearm and to his wrist. “Okay,” you muttered softly, feeling your body instantly react to touching his again. It was so slight, just like when you had danced, but you felt so alive. Excited was too simple of a word, but it was all you could think of as he started to walk the way he had come from. As you turned the corner away from the where you had been speaking, the memory of the fleeing animals so far from your mind that it could have happened a lifetime ago, you were grateful for your sunhat. Not only did the trees open back up shortly after that turn, but Illumi would be unable to see your cheeks as they turned an iconic pink.

“May I ask you a question, Mr. Zoldyck?”

“Yes. But I can’t promise I’ll answer.”

That seemed a fair response considering his life. “I hear you have siblings. Are you also the eldest?”

You couldn’t be sure as you weren’t looking at him, but Illumi sounded pleased. “Yes. I have three younger brothers.”

“Younger siblings are wonderful, aren’t they?” you said more to yourself than to Illumi. “I have one younger brother and one youngest sister myself. They can be… annoying sometimes, but I prefer a world where they are my siblings to one without them.” You laughed a little to yourself as you remembered your little sister at the age of 8 when she accidentally killed her pet fish by taking it out of the tank. “They remind you of how amazing the world can be. Learning things that you have known for years makes the world fresh for you.”

What sounded like a chuckle came from Illumi. “That is true. Watching my brothers grow up definitely has reminded me of some things.”

You wanted to ask what exact thing he was thinking of, but you didn’t want to push your luck. You had gotten at least this much and it felt like a bounty of information from an assassin.

Truth be told, you had tried to search the net for more information about the family after the chance encounter at the dance. But very little came up. The mountain they lived on was very public knowledge, how many supposable family members there were was public- but the sources weren’t ever sure.

“You didn’t ask me if you were my target this time,” Illumi pointed out as the front of the garden house came into view, a few couples leaving together having finished their own lunches and strolls. The woman you saw earlier now wore her fuchsia gloxinia in her hair like a prize. As she slid into her car the man that had been with her held the door open and watched her go with a smile. Your chest ached, and you gripped Illumi’s arm.

“I didn’t feel it mattered,” you responded. The ache in your chest was spreading and suddenly you felt a little sick in your stomach.

Illumi placed his left hand over yours and you looked up enough to see him just past the brim of your hat. “Are you alright?”

You noticed then your pace had slowed considerably. “Probably too much sun,” you told him realizing you felt somewhat sick. “Just sun sickness. I’ll be fine. Oh, I still need to call my driver! I was enjoying our conversation, so I forgot.”

Keeping up with Illumi, he urged your pace to quicken back to what it had been previously, and you matched it even though your stomach was starting to turn. “Don’t worry about that. You will just take my car.”

As the two of you approached the driveway, a black sedan pulled up and stopped perfectly in front of your path. A young woman with hair as black as Illumi’s stepped out of the driver’s seat. She seemed very pretty to you, with a serious face as she moved around the car to open the door with a slight bow at the waist.

“I don’t want to be a bother,” you said as Illumi led you up to the door. But in spite of your words you let yourself be urged to the car, and Illumi held your hand to steady yourself as you slid into the backseat. “Thank you,” you said sheepishly from the comfort of the car seat.

He nodded at your words and lifted a hand towards the woman still holding the door open. “Amane will take you where ever you need to go. Just give her the address.”

“What about you, Mr. Zoldyck?”

“I have some business to attend to and Amane will return for me.”

Amane nodded at Illumi to show she heard him, and on some unspoken order she left to return to the driver seat. “Well… if you insist. Thank you. I do hope that we can meet again Mr. Zoldyck.”

“Of course. I still plan to claim another dance,” he said with a smirk that you couldn’t quite place the intentions behind before he shut the car door and Amane directed the car away from the curb.

You muttered to the dark-haired woman your address before laying your head back on your seat. The ability to rest instead of walking was a real relief as the car made its way around the city back towards your home. You ran over the events of the afternoon. Dull Tibor, the nice walk, the birds, and running into Illumi.

Some part of you realized that he hadn’t asked you to take his arm so much as told you to. It should have taken your notice at the time, such a bold act against decorum. But, it had seemed so in place.

A fresh wave of feeling very ill rushed you and you were forced to stop the train of thought as you sat up again to try and stay focused on pushing past the feeling. Had you really gotten that much sun today? Perhaps lunch had been to heavy for such a warm day.

Grateful to see the building your family condo was in on the horizon was an understatement. Usually in the summer your family was in the summer home in the country, but with the engagement and many business matters coming up for the next month you had all been somewhat forced to stay where you were for the time being.

Amane pulled up in front of the doors perfectly. In fact, all of her driving had been perfect and perhaps was the only reason you weren’t feeling worse. “Thank you, Amane,” you told her as the doorman of your building came to the car and opened the door.

“You’re very welcome, Miss. [last name].”

A gloved hand offered itself down to you, and more than grateful for the assistance you took it. The black sedan left as soon as the door was firmly shut by the doorman and you made way inside to a blissfully controlled temperature environment that did a lot to help you feel better.

Stepping into the condo off of the elevator was a relief, and you didn’t remember much of making your way through to your room- kicking off your shoes and ditching your hat in an unceremoniously, bad-mannered fashion- but when you woke up at 3am you felt disoriented but much better.

You even managed to eat some food in the quiet kitchen, unsure of which family members where home and their state of unconsciousness. But admittedly you didn’t quite care as you nibbled some toast and egg. The gentleness of the toast was a nice carrier to the egg protein that you felt like you needed as your empty feeling stomach gurgled loudly.

The sound of someone saying your name caught your attention as the elevator doors slid shut in the front of the condo. You had been so out of it that you hadn’t even heard the elevator announce itself. Maybe you really had been sick. You abandoned your second piece of toast to investigate who was calling you, though your stomach groaned in remorse.

Your father stood in the living room, looking exhausted but happy to be home in his familiar environment as he let his body fall into a stuffed chair. You had only seen him throw himself about like that two other times in your life, so it was startling. “Daddy? What’s wrong?” you asked, going to sit on the sofa nearest to the chair.

“I’m glad you are up,” he said, rubbing his eyes as before righting himself so that while he was still lounging he was doing so with slightly better posture.

“I slept a lot longer than I had meant to. I didn’t feel very well when I came home from lunch with Tibor.”

His lips fell even further into a frown as he looked at you. For a moment you wondered if it was slight disapproval that you were still in your sundress at 3:30 in the morning. “Did I miss something important?” It had been a rare day off for you, not having to attend any meetings with your father or do any social calls- other than Tibor- for the sake of the company. So the paranoia that perhaps you had forgotten something in your enjoyment of the day easily slid over you as you mentally went back through your calendar.

“Do you like Tibor Waterman?”

The question struck you as a bit odd, but you responded quickly, “He is a perfectly fine gentleman.”

“That isn’t what I asked.” The serious and strong tone of your father hit you with a force you hadn’t felt since he scolded you as child. “Darling,” he slid forward in his chair to be level with your eyes, “Do you like Tibor?”

The corner of your mouth turned down and you gripped the hem of your dress in your hands tightly. “No. I find him boring. He has no personality, his attraction to me is played up in such a way that makes me feel like a useless doll, and I don’t find him handsome in the least.”

“But still you would marry him?”

You nodded. “Of course. It’s what is good for the family right? Perhaps…. With enough time together I can start to find some of his charms.” Unconsciously your eyes slid away from your father’s to the glass coffee table. The images of marrying Tibor flitted across your mind. Seeing him every morning over coffee, getting texts from him while you worked on data sheets and letters, him making you have lunch together almost every day, coming home and having to slide into bed next to him.

His hands on your naked body.

It made a sense of dread wash over you. If white noise had a physical feeling it would be as if you were wrapped up in that. But you forced yourself to think of anything positive about him, trying to cope with the outlook of the future. His hair was nice. You touched it once when you had kissed his cheek. And maybe with time you could find the movies he showed you interesting.

“Darling,” your father called, and you snapped out of a mental image of trying to find joy in your dull marriage to look at him again. “The wedding is canceled.”

[ahnsael]

It’s too late in the day for me to be falling down a YouTube rabbit hole (I’m still on the final Billy Hill and the Hillbillies performance -- at first I was bummed it wasn’t inside or just outside the Golden Horseshoe, where they performed most of the time, but...they were able to fit a MUCH larger crowd into the old Festival Arena for the show, and I think that was a good call).

But sometimes I need a video like this. Not promoting the latest and greatest, just...B-roll footage of Disneyland.

By the way, anyone know when they did this, and whether they still do it?

I mean those rectangular trees.

They’re so reminiscent of the backgrounds of Sleeping Beauty, and...I’ve always been a fan of shaped vegetation. Topiaries are one thing (whether they be Disney, like during the Flower and Garden Festival at Epcot, or the animals outside It’s a Small World at Disneyland), but...I once read in a book produced by Disney (I don’t remember the name or year) how to make spiral trees, and...stuff like that is more interesting to me.

My stepdad, last summer, clipped the wrong limb when pruning a tree in our back yard, and now only half the tree gets leaves. So...how does Disney’s horticultural staff do stuff like this while leaving the tree healthy?

But yeah...just like I listen to old Disneyland (and, to a lesser extent, Walt Disney World) attraction audio to relive the old days, videos like this help me get through the day.

[tsghuntsvillealabama]

Scout Is Out!

We are very pleased to release The Scout Guide Huntsville - Volume 2 to our community on August 27, 2019. The complimentary guide can be picked up at the following locations beginning August 27 and throughout the year until supplies run out.

If you own or know of a business that we be interested in being a distribution location, please email us at huntsville@thescoutguide.com.

Accents of the South

Acupuncture and Wellness Center

Anytime Fitness Jones Valley

Anytime Fitness Hampton Cove

Bragg’s of Huntsville

Brooks and Collier

Bullet and Barrel

Burritt on the Mountain

Carole Forêt Fine Art

Carriage House

Church St Wine Shoppe

Creative Lane by Lexus of Huntsville

Crush Wine and Food Festival

Dental Professionals on Whitesburg

DePriest Robbins

Domaine South

Elitaire Boutique

Faith Woods Events

Fantasy Playhouse Children’s Theater & Academy

4site, a Schoel Co.

FOW WOW Designs

Gina’s Balloon Decor

Golden Griffin

Good Company Cafe

Gray Analytics

GrubSouth

Haley’s Flooring & Interiors

Heritage Kitchen + Bath

Home Choice Windows & Doors

Huntsville American Cabinets

In Bloom

Interior Marketplace

Interiors By Consign-Huntsville and Madison locations

Jill’s Studio of Dance

Johnson Orthodontics

Jones, Paparella and Thomas Group | Merrill Lynch

K Butler Interiors

Keller Williams Realty | InTown Partners Real Estate Group

Lankford & Battle Allstate Insurance Agency

life as paper

Lindsey Jennings Art and Design

Lowe Mill ARTS & Entertainment

Lyn’s Gracious Goodness

Main Street South

Matheny Goldmon Architecture + Interiors

Maynor and Mitchell Eye Center

Mazzara’s

Moderne Jouel

MixItUp.Fun

Move Digital Group

Nesin Therapy Services, P.C. -Huntsville, Madison and Research Park

Offbeat Coffee Studio

Old River Interiors

Pillar and Peacock

Piper and Leaf-Downtown, Lowe Mill and Madison locations

Pizzelle’s Confections

Progress Bank

Purveyor

R City Eye Care

Radiant Day Spa

Randolph School

Regenesis

Roosevelt and Co.

Southern Essentials Company

Southern Reclaimed Salvage Barn

Straight to Ale & Shelta Cavern Spirits

Sweet City Micros

The Artnasium

The Chameleon Fabrics and Interiors

The Ledges

The Pourhouse

The Topiary Tree

The WEDC Foundation

TOC Spine Center/Larry Parker, M.D.

U.S. Space & Rocket Center

VanValkenburgh & Wilkinson Properties, Inc.

Vertical House Records

Westmark Construction

White Rabbit Studios

Windham Travel and Leisure

Limited quantities will also be replenished monthly at the following locations:

1892 East

AC Hotel

Al Christopher

Alison Wellness Clinic

Anthropologie

Arts Huntsville

Belk Hudson Lofts

Cafe 153

The Catalyst Center for Business & Entrepreneurship 

Cil

Clean Juice

Cabana Wax

Cork and Crust

Downtown Huntsville Inc.

Edgar’s Bakery

Embassy Suites

Envy Boutique

Fresh Starts Coffee

Gold Sprint Coffee

Green Pea Press

Grille 29

Holtz Leather

Honest Coffee

Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau

J. Whitener

Kendra Scott

Mason Dixon

Melt

Metro Diner

Mezza Luna

Moe’s Barbecue

Moon Bake Shop

Neo Mode Hair Salon

Orange Theory

Oshi Poke Bowl

OTBX

Poppy

Preservation Company

Pure Barre Huntsville

Pure Barre Madison

Queen Bee of Beverly Hills

Shea’s Express

ShoeFly Huntsville & Madison

SiP

Starbucks

Stovehouse

Sweet Pineapple

Tangled Strings Studios

Terra Me Jones Valley

Terra Me Parkway

The Artisan Apartments

The Avenue

The Juice Bar

The Little Green Store & Gallery

Tropical Smoothie Cafe

Uncorked Wine Shop and Tasting Room

Valley Sole

Victoria’s Interiors

Vintage Cigar Lounge

Vintage West Interiors

Walker’s Market

Westin Hotel

Yellowhammer

Zoom Fitness

[daisyaydon]

Did you know that I sell material packs for my Miniature Motif collection? I supply enough DMC threads and linen to stitch at least two motifs - possibly more if you’re careful with placement…😉 You’ll also get a John James gold-plated needle tucked into a piece of felt and it’s all parcelled up in sustainable packaging - no plastic! . You can choose either 32ct or 56ct linen and even add a 5in wooden hoop. If you’ve never stitched on linen before, it’s a great way to give it a go without investing in a large piece of material 🤩 . Visit bluecoppice.com or click on the link in my bio to see the new autumn motifs and all the other possibilities - from chickens, squirrels and hedgehogs, to tiny beehives, topiary trees and pots of lavender, not to mention rabbits, toadstools and little Christmas trees…🍄🎄🐝 . #bluecoppice #miniaturemotifs #countedthreadembroidery #dmcthreads #zweigartlinen #pincushion #embroiderylove #embroideryart #needleart #handcraft #crossstitchingofinstagram #stitchersofinstagram (at Rugby, Warwickshire) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cjfza_6Nkcg/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[nocturnecurio]

The mini bunnies I ordered for the fascinator arrived early and I couldn’t help myself😊 I tried my hand at making a tree stump out of polymer and it turned out pretty cute. Now I’m deciding what to place on it 💭 pretty sure I’ll go with the tea pot 🫖 I have other plans for the dessert 🍮 I also added to the topiary bunny and secured the items to her tray…. 🙃🙂 enjoy the pics… more to come!!! . . . #fascinator #fascinators #milinery #milinerycouture #teaparty #teapartytheme #teapartyideas #polymerclay #topiary #dollhouseminiatures #dollhouse #rabbits #bunniesofinstagram #etsyshop #nocturnecurio (at Wilmington, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/CbBzY-cgx9j/?utm_medium=tumblr

[arplis]

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Could anyone possibly tell me if Wilhelma is open these days? . umweltzone or emission sticker and youll see advice that others have given on this topic. Frequently asked questions about Christmas Garden Stuttgart Here you can find all . Tip: At www.myticket.de you have the possibility to book a print@home ticket. . Do day tickets and annual tickets for the Wilhelma allow admission to the. For the first time at Wilhelma Christmas Garden Stuttgart from 15.11.18 to 06.01.19 Get your ticket now! Nov 21, 2018 The magical journey begins at dusk thats the theme the Wilhelma will go by when the Christmas Garden Stuttgart opens their doors to. After the tremendous success of Christmas at Kew in London and the Christmas Garden Berlin, for the first time in a dream setting at the Wilhelma. Nov 19, 2018 Sichern Sie sich schnell Ihre CHRISTMAS GARDEN STUTTGART . Stuttgart Wilhelma Zoologisch-Botanischer Garten Stuttgart 17:00 Uhr. Stuttgarts Wilhelma Zoo and Botanical Gardens is the only zoological botanical garden in Europe and has over 8000 animals and various beautiful flowers. Jan 4, 2018 Trees that no one wanted to take home for Christmas have come in handy at . but in Stuttgarts Wilhelma Zoological Botanical Garden, Weihnachtsbaum . Tip of the week: How to donate time or money in Germany over the.

Arplis - News source https://arplis.com/blogs/news/tips-solar-powered-christmas-decorations

[exploringatlanta]

Memorial Day in the A

The long holiday weekend is coming up and if you’re not headed out of town, here are some really fun events to check out here in #Atlanta.

MomoCon. Weds 5/23-Mon 5/27. $35+. Annual anime convention held downtown that is a multi-genre fan convention encompassing American and Japanese animation, gaming (video gaming, board and card gaming, Live Action role play gaming), comics and costuming. 

Orpheus Brewing’s 5th Anniversary. 5/24-27. $25+. 4 days of celebrating the local craft brewer’s launch in Atlanta. 5 Anniversary Bottle Releases, 20+ NEW Beers, Food Trucks, Local Art, and more! 

Atlanta Jazz Festival. 5/25-25. FREE! Annual music event in Piedmont Park draws thousands every year! All month long more than 100 of the best jazz performers showcase their talents in venues throughout the metro area before coming together in a huge weekend celebration. Kids activities, food trucks, and more! 

Stone Mountain’s Salute to the Troops. Thurs 5/24 - Mon 5/27. $34+. Spend the day enjoying the park with your loved ones, then marvel as the night skies light up in a specially choreographed tribute honoring the brave men and women who protect our country. Special patriotic fireworks finale will follow the Lasershow every night!

Atlantic Station Summer Kick-Off Party. Friday 5/24 5-8pm. FREE event features live music from LeeRoi and The Regulars, food trucks, yard games, and fun contests + prizes.

Decatur Arts Festival Art Walk. Friday, 5/24 5-10pm. FREE event, stroll around town to see exhibits at various shops and galleries and enjoy complimentary snacks and drinks. 

Atlanta Dream vs. Dallas Wings. Fri 5/24 7:30pm. $35+. Enjoy a fast-paced WNBA game at the newly renovated State Farm Arena downtown.

Decatur Library Spring Book Sale. Sat 5/25 9am-3pm. Stock up on your summer reads at this local book sale with gently used fiction, nonfiction and children’s books, CDs and DVDs

B at the Movies in Roswell. Sat 5/25 7:30pm. FREE movie screening of Incredibles 2 hosted by B98.5! 

Alpharetta Arts Festival. Sat 5/25- Mon 5/27. FREE! 90+ artists, music, amazing food and hands-on art activities for children.

Brew at the Zoo. Sat 5/25 5:30-9:30pm. 70+ brews, and a limited selection of wine, all within an exotic outdoor destination that’s home to more than 1,000 animals from around the world. 

National Wine Day at City Winery. Sat 5/25 12-5pm. First-come, first served tours with free tastes of their locally made wine! Get there early!

Holy Taco Pop-Up. Sun 5/26 12-7pm. FREE! Family friendly event featuring ive music, tons of vendors, drink specials, live llamas, and more! 

Wrecking Bar Barn Bash. Sun 5/26 3-7pm. $19+. Get our of the city and enjoy a day on the farm! This party features food from five chefs paired with beverages created by five local bartenders.

David Crosby and Friends. Sun 5/26 8pm. $55+. All-ages live show at Variety Playhouse with the iconic David Crosby.

Yoga in the Park. Sun 5/26 7pm. Free weekly class hosted by King of Pops is held at the Foundation/O4W Skatepark - BYO mat and make some friends! 

Urban Tree Cider 5K. Mon 5/27 8:45am. $35. Run the westside and enjoy Free Cider Tastings, & Tour after! 

Monday Night Garage Crawfish Boil. Mon 5/27 1-4pm. $18+. Enjoy finger lickin’ good crawfish from Big Easy Grille, live music from brass band Wasted Potential, games in the courtyard, overall good vibes and a specialty beer that pairs perfectly with crawfish.

Ongoing Shows/Exhibits:

Anne of The Thousand Days - Shakespeare Tavern. Now thru 5/26. $15+.Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII separately relive the memories of the one thousand days of their tempestuous relationship.

European Masterworks: The Phillips Collection at the High. Now thru 7/14. Free with admission. The iconic works by Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, Expressionist, and Cubist artists in European Masterworks show Phillips’s efforts to bring European modernism to a larger audience.

Ad Nauseam at Dad’s Garage. Now thru 6/1. $12.50+. Written by Megan Leahy and starring Archer’s Amber Nash, the show is a gender-reversal comedy set in a 1960's advertising agency, in a world where women call all the shots. 

Imaginary Worlds: Alice's Wonderland at Atlanta Botanical. Now thru 10/27. Free with admission. Follow Alice down the rabbit hole with new topiary creations in the Skyline Garden and more.

[nervousbananacloud-blog]

chandigarh tour and travels service

Chandigarh is an image of arranged urbanization and is a goal known in India for its nurseries, for example, Rose Garden and Rock Garden. The quiet and tranquil environment of Chandigarh is ensured by the broad stops and timberlands encompassing the city offering cover for different creature species.

Lake Sukhna, found south of The Rock Garden, is home to a wide assortment of flying creatures, including transient ones.

Best Places to visit in Chandigarh

Rock Garden

Rock Garden is one of Chandigarh's most visited goals.

The recreation center covers a territory of 25 sections of land, was structured as an open-air presentation lobby utilizing metropolitan and modern waste by Nek Chand, a previous street Inspector of Chandigarh. Nek Chand started the nursery covertly close to Lake Sukhna in 1957.

The site where the stone nursery stands today was a landfill, and from here Mr. Nek Chand gathered a lot of waste materials and in the long run displayed them into some amazing human structures and different structures.

This nursery has a few counterfeit cascades interconnected lakes and different figures produced using scrap, for example, plastic containers, car parts, dirt, coal, marbles, forks, outlines, tiles, jars, squander electrical and adornments like arm ornaments.

Lake Sukhna

Lake Sukhna is one of the most mainstream vacation destinations in Chandigarh. This lake offers a stunning exhibition, encompassed by the blue sky and the Shivalik mountain go.

 You can decide to take a pontoon ride, walk or simply take it easy.

On the off chance that you need and are searching for a spot to give some uninterrupted alone time, visit the impasse of the lake. To arrive at the endpoint, you go through an impressive tree-fixed road with a fairway on one side and staircases to a few passageways to the lake on another.

Sukhani Wildlife Sanctuary

Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary is a secured park that covers a region of 2600 hectares. It frames the piece of the catchment zone of Lake Sukhna falling into the Shivalik Hills. Notwithstanding Lake Sukhna there are around 150 little and huge different lakes that pull in transient winged creatures and gloat a rich populace of occupant flying creature species.

Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary is home to a wide assortment of well-evolved creatures, winged animals, reptiles, butterflies and microorganisms. sambar, spotted deer, wild hog, jackals, little Indian civet, wilderness feline, porcupine, langur hanuman, rhesus monkey, Indian rabbit, basic Fox, normal rodent and Squirrel are the unmistakable creatures present right now. There are in excess of 150 assortments of flying creatures including waterfowl which incorporate Peacock, red wilderness chicken, dim partridge, cuckoos, night containers, Golden Ears, Kingfisher, Swifts, hoopoe and different sparrows. There are assortments of reptiles including snakes like Cobra, Rat snake, Common Krait, Russell's snake, Indian Python, and Common Monitor, Turtle and so forth.

 Rose Garden

Rose Garden is the biggest of its sort in Asia and furthermore one of the most well-known vacation destinations in Chandigarh.

Spread over a zone of 30 sections of land, the recreation center displays the absolute rarest and most dazzling assortments of roses and is said to be home to 1600 assortments of blossoms. Roses were planted in impeccably prepped gardens and blossom beds. The recreation center turns into a scene during blossoming.

 The other incredible fascination of the nursery is spoken to by the wide assortment of trees and restorative plants including the bel, Behera, Harar, camphor and yellow Gulmohar.

Pinjore Garden

Pinjore Gardens is a lovely Mughal Garden made in the seventeenth century situated in the town of Pinjore. The nursery covers a huge territory of 100 sections of land.

The Pinjore Garden is a famous goal in Punjab for it all around looked after vegetation, reviving wellsprings and entrancing water bodies.

During Baisakhi, among April and June, the nursery fills in as the setting for the yearly Mango Festival.

The nursery has a wide region of delightful greenery, yet additionally a smaller than expected zoo, a Japanese nursery, and a cookout territory.

The best time to investigate the nurseries is at night.

Nirjhar Vatika

It is mainstream for its green condition with the fake cascade framing a little lake that draws in the consideration of guests for its excellence.

The extension over the lake was made with rocks.

You can go for a stroll around the nursery, lay on the greenery of the recreation center or appreciate an outing.

Mahendra Chaudhary Zoological Park

Mahendra Chaudhary Zoological Park is one of the biggest zoological stops in North India traversing a region of 505 sections of land. The open wide open around the zoo gives naturalists an incredible chance to intently watch nature and characteristic assets in the first structure.

The zoo incorporates around 1240 creatures living in excess of 100 fenced-in areas.

The stores of the Asian lion and the Tiger of Royal Bengal are the central matters of the fascination with this zoo. The perspective on the Royal Bengal Tiger turning unreservedly in its practically regular environment makes it a goal not to be missed.

The zoo has an enormous region committed to deer including Sambar, spotted deer, dark deer, and even wild hog deer. Lion Safari gives guests a rush of life. The Lion Safari is spread over a territory of 8 hectares.

Topiary Park

This park is mostly intended to have a ton of fun and have a fabulous time for youngsters. The plants have a place with the hedge and the climbing family has been inquisitively displayed as creatures, for example, elephants, bears and different creatures which make youngsters extremely glad. The significant extraordinary assortment of fancy plants and other embellishing plants makes it one of the most visited goals.

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[tsghuntsvillealabama]

Scout is out!

The Scout Guide Huntsville will be launched on September 11, 2018. You can pick up a complimentary copy at any of the following locations beginning September 12. Hurry, before they run out!

1818 Farms 24889 Lauderdale Street, Mooresville, AL 35649 Accents of the South by Beverly Farrington 501 Church Street Northwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 Alison Wellness Clinic 900 Bob Wallace Avenue Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 Belk Hudson Lofts 110 Washington Street Northeast, Huntsville, AL 35801 Brooks and Collier 813 Meridian Street North, Huntsville, AL 35801 Bullet and Barrel 3252 Leeman Ferry Road Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 Burritt on the Mountain 3101 Burritt Drive, Huntsville, AL  35801 Carriage House 115 Johnston Street Southeast, Decatur, AL 35601 Church Street Wine Shoppe 501 Church Street Northwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 Connie Ulrich Studio 2211 Seminole Drive Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35805 Country Cottage Assisted Living 4200 Chris Drive, Huntsville, AL 35802 Courtney Allen Studio 313 Franklin Street Southeast, Huntsville, AL 35801 Elitaire Boutique 114 Clinton Avenue East, Huntsville, AL 35801 Ella Rae’s Children’s Boutique 5732 US-431, Brownsboro, AL 35741 Emmett Blevins Jewelers 2325 Whitesburg Drive, Huntsville, AL 35801 Envy Boutique 930 Bob Wallace Avenue, Huntsville, AL 35801 Fantasy Playhouse Children's Theater & Academy 3312 Long Avenue Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35805 Golden Griffin 104 Longwood Drive, Huntsville, AL 35801 Green Pea Press 2720 Governors Drive Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35805 Green Pea Press (additional location) 2211 Seminole Drive Southwest, Hunstville, AL 35805 GrubSouth 109 Jefferson St. N Suite 12, Huntsville, AL 35801 Hamley Bake Shoppe, LLC 12023 Highway 231-431 North, Meridianville, AL 35759 Heritage Kitchen + Bath 111 Washington Street, Huntsville, AL 35801 Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau 500 Church Street Northwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 In Bloom 601 Mc Cullough Avenue Northeast, Huntsville, AL 35801 In Bloom Downtown 100 Jefferson Street North, Huntsville, AL 35801

Interior Marketplace , 5732 US-431, Brownsboro, AL 35741

Jones, Paparella & Thomas Group // Merrill Lynch 4725 Whitesburg Drive, Huntsville, AL 35802 Keller Williams Realty | InTown Partners Real Estate Group 809 Shoney Drive Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 Kennedy & Rowe Clothing Company 114 Clinton Avenue East, Huntsville, AL 35801 Larry Parker MD || TOC 927 Franklin Street, Huntsville, AL 35801 Lowe Mill ARTS & Entertainment 2211 Seminole Drive Southwest, Hunstville, AL 35805 Lyn’s Gracious Goodness 2306 Whitesburg Drive, Huntsville, AL 35801 Martinson & Beason, P.C. 115 Northside Square, Huntsville, Alabama, 35801 Matheny Goldmon Architecture + Interiors 108 Woodson Street, Huntsville, AL 35801 Maynor and Mitchell Eye Center 3501 Memorial Parkway Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 Mezza Luna 2724 Carl T. Jones, Huntsville, AL 35802 Mint Julep Market 7540 Memorial Parkway Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35802 Nancy Finnegan, Makeup Artist 100 Jefferson Street North, Huntsville, AL 35801 Neo Mode Hair Salon 4851 Whitesburg Drive, Huntsville, AL 35802 Olivia Reed Photography 313 Franklin Street, Huntsville, Alabama 35801 Pizzelle’s Confections 2211 Seminole Drive Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35805 Progress Bank 201 Williams Avenue Huntsville, AL 35801-4308 Purveyor 201 Jefferson Street North, Huntsville, AL 35801 Randolph School 1005 Drake Avenue Southeast, Huntsville, AL 35802 Roosevelt and Co. 114 Clinton Avenue East, Huntsville, AL 35801

Spirited Art 2620 Clinton Avenue West, Huntsville, AL 35805 Sterling Health Boutique 802 Shoney Drive Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 The Avenue 201 Jefferson Street North, Huntsville, AL 35801 The Cardinal Collective 313 Franklin Street, Huntsville, Alabama 35801 The Commons 4300 Chris Drive, Huntsville, AL 35802 The Eye Center - Huntsville 401 Meridian Street, Huntsville, AL 35801 The Eye Center - Madison 1041 Balch Road, Madison, AL 35758 The Ledges 32 Castle Down Drive, Huntsville, AL 35802 The Little Green Store & Gallery 820 Monte Sano Boulevard Southeast, Huntsville, AL 35801 The Topiary Tree 1801 University Drive, Huntsville, AL 35801 Turkish Treasures 415 Church Street Northwest, Huntsville, AL 35801 U.S. Space & Rocket Center 1 Tranquility Base, Huntsville, AL 35805 Valley Sole 964 Airport Road, Huntsville, AL 35802 VanValkenburgh & Wilkinson Properties, Inc. 204 Gates Avenue, Huntsville, AL 35801 Walker’s Market 603 Pratt Avenue Northeast, Huntsville, AL 35801 Westmark Construction 250 Goverors Drive Southeast, Huntsville, AL 35801 White Rabbit Studios 2211 Seminole Drive Southwest, Huntsville, AL 35805

Please email us huntsville@thescoutguide.com if any of the listed locations have run out of guides. We will be happy to replenish as soon as possible. Thank you! 

[triptogermany2222222222-blog]

History of the English Garden in Munich, Germany

This might be a bit long, but I’ve spent so much time looking up the information I figured I might as well post it on the blog in case I lose it.

Creation of Englischer Garten

The creation of the Englischer Garten began in 1777 with the passing of the Elector of Bavaria Maximilian III Joseph who died childless. Because he had no heir, the throne then passed to Charles Theodore, archduke and elector of the Palatinate. Theodore did not immediately take up the crown of Bavaria because he had many illegitimate children who could not inherit Bavaria nor the Palatinate. He prefered his court in Mannheim to the newly acquired territory in which he felt like a foreigner, and he sought land that he could pass on to his children. He tried to exchange part of the land in Bavaria for territory in the Austrian Netherlands but was unsuccessful although he did give away part of lower Bavaria to Austria. Despite being unliked by the citizens of Bavaria, he left a distinctive mark on the city of Munich through the creation of the Englischer Garten.

Theodore was a lover of the arts and spent a great deal of money promoting music and drama at his home in the Palatinate. By comparison Bavaria was undeveloped and had neither an army big enough to defend it nor resources great enough to govern it properly. Agriculture was the people’s way of life and there was little to no industry. Poverty was widespread and beggars made up about a third of the population.

Theodore’s chief military aid was a man named Sir Benjamin Thompson, later Count Rumford; a Loyalist who had fled back to the court of King George III after the American Revolutionary War. Thompson sought to reform the military in order to combat the problems of poverty and unemployment. Soldiers belonged to the lowest class in society and were destined for unemployment as soon as they became too old to serve anymore. Rumford’s idea was to create “military gardens” in order to turn soldiers into useful members of society during peacetimes. In February of 1789, it was decreed that these gardens would teach soldiers agricultural skills such as farming and gardening and would be located in each garrison city.

The very first of the military gardens would later become Englischer Garten. The chosen area for the Munich military garden was the swampy land near the River Isar called the Hirschanger meaning “Deer Park”. This land has been used as hunting grounds since the Middle Ages when it was not flooded. However, because this land was now to be divided up into small garden plots, expensive measures needed to be taken in order to prevent the plains from flooding. A river wall called the Riedl-Damm was constructed to prepare the land for what it is currently being used for today.

Thompson soon began to encourage Theodore to turn the garden into a public park in which the military garden would become only a small part. In August of 1789, the land in the Hirschanger, then known as Theodore’s Park, was devoted to the people of Munich. In spring of 1792 the park officially opened to the 40,000 citizens of Munich. It was one of the first public parks in the entire continent and today is one of the largest city parks in the world, bigger than Central Park in New York City as well as Hyde Park in London.

The Royal Gardener Friedrich Ludwig Sckell who had studied landscape gardening in England was chosen to supervise the development of the project. The park was planted with native trees and designed as an English style garden, hence the name Englischer Garten. It included a model farm, a cattle farm, a sheep farm, an arable farming school, a military garden, an area for arboriculture, several bridges, a Chinese Tower, and a veterinary school to tend to the cattle. Most of these projects quickly died out after the creation of the park but the veterinary school went on to become the Veterinary Faculty of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. The Chinese Tower also still stands though it was rebuilt after being destroyed in a bombing during WWII.

Sckell introduced the concept of English Gardens to German experts through his writings about the style and his work with parks such as the Englischer Garten. He is regarded as the founder of English Gardens in Germany, a style of informal landscaping that separated from the traditional strict geometric gardens that were popular before the 1700’s.

Inspirations for the English garden style stemmed from French landscape painters such as Claude Lorrain and Nicholas Poussain, who depicted idealistic views of nature. There were influences from the East as well through descriptions of Chinese gardens that included winding pathways and irregularly placed rock gardens. Landscape architects like William Kent and Charles Bridgeman channeled these works of art and popularized the smooth lines and serpentine forms that soon replaced the rigid and symmetrical classical French garden as the dominant gardening style of Europe.

The typical English garden was built for a wealthy landowner with a large country estate and included rolling sweeps of green lawn that ran right up to the house, carefully placed groves of trees, a lake, bridges, and architectural structures built to resemble ancient greek temples or gothic ruins. Together it created the ideal pastoral landscape.  Lancelot “Capability” Brown brought these scenic garden spaces to the forefront of fashion in the 1750’s through the creation of over 170 different gardens throughout his career. He is known for telling homeowners their estates have great “capability for improvement”. After working under both Bridgeman and Kent, Brown began to simplify the garden style by eliminating geometric structures, alleys and parterres. Parterres were formal gardens built over flat ground and made with planting beds arranged in symmetrical patterns interwoven with paths. These were developed in France and were hallmarks of the gardening style there, which Brown replacing in favor of rolling lawns that broke into expansive views containing belts and scatterings of trees. He sought to make the landscape appear larger and created artificial lakes that used dams and canals to give small streams the illusion of rivers that flowed through the garden.

The English style of gardening was a “gardenless” form of landscaping that was easier and cheaper to maintain than the trimmed topiary gardens that were popular before. Soon the style began to spread throughout the continent inspiring the creation of Munich’s public Englischer Garten.

When Thompson, the creator of the military garden, left Munich in 1789, he was replaced with Baron von Werneck under the continued guidance of the head gardener Sckell. Werneck tried to make the garden pay for itself through agricultural use and farming, but ended up spending more money than he generated. To accomplish his efforts, he doubled the area of the park by expanding it to include an area known as the Hirschau, the place north of the Hirschanger. In 1800, the military gardens were added to the park too along with an artificial lake called the Kleinhesseloher See. The name of the lake takes after the Kleinhesselohe, a gateway at the original northern limit to the park leading to the Hirschau. The park warden had set up a beer shop for the workers of the park by the watch house at the gate, but because passer-bys loved to stop at it the shop was soon expanded to serve milk and cold foods. The improvements made to the park turned out  to be very costly, mostly from the changes that needed to be made to turn the Hirschau into farmable land. In 1804 the new ruler of Bavaria, Maximilian IV Joseph made Sckell director of the Bavarian garden system and removed Werneck, who was placed in charge of the corps of cadets and made Major General instead.

Sckell’s original vision for Englischer Garten was to create an uninterrupted expanse that played with light and shadow. He sought to design the park from an artistic sense and focused more on the landscape features rather than agricultural use. Although the garden has continued to change and expand throughout the years, Sckell brought the garden to its current form. By 1812 he increased the size of the Kleinhesseloher by one and a half times feeding it water from the Eisbach, a small artificial arm off of  the River Isar. Three islands can also be found in the lake called King’s Island, Elector’s Island, and Regent’s Island. In 1815, an artificial waterfall was created in the Eisbach, or ice stream. Sckell continued to implement designs throughout the park in the image of a beautiful landscape garden until his death in 1823. Today, two monuments by the Kleinhesseloher honor the creators of the lake. One for Werneck, and one for Sckell, which were erected a year after his death.  

Throughout the years, many features have been constructed in the park for users to interact with. These elements are largely what keeps the park so widely frequented. Today the park is used for a wide range of recreational activities including jogging, cycling, swimming, yoga, slacklining, skating, surfing, sunbathing, and sports such as volleyball, frisbee, and soccer. The park includes 78 km of pathways, 12 km of which are horse riding paths, 15 km of streams, over 100 bridges, and over 50 species of bird along with hedgehogs, squirrels, foxes, beavers, and rabbits. The total area of the park is 384 ha with 150 ha made of woodland, 187 ha made of meadowland, and 16 ha made of water. There are 4 restaurants and 4 kiosks in the garden, and over 5 million people visit annually.

The park is divided into two portions separated by the Isarring road: the peaceful Hirschau in the north and the livelier garden in the south. In the tranquil north, some of the meadows are grown long and mown for hay while other meadows are used as pasture for sheep. The north has two beer gardens, the Hirschau and the Aumeister. The Hirschau is very popular with the locals since it is separated from the tourist crowds while the Aumeister, which used to be the royal hunting lodge, is very beautiful but often has empty seats because it is at the very north of the garden. There is also an open air theatre in the north where performances are held in the summer. On sunny days, there can be as many people in a medium sized town found gathering in the open lawns of the south garden. Nude sunbathers can be found in the Schonfeldweise or Beautiful Meadow, and have been gathering there since 1960. The south garden is also where many of the famous sights are located such as the Chinese Tower, the Japanese Tea house, the Standing Wave, Monopteros, and the Kleinhesseloher See.  

In 1789 a small circular temple, named the Apollo temple after a statue of Apollo was added to it in 1791, was erected in the garden near the Eisbach. The Eishach or Ice Brook is a small man made river and a side arm of the River Isar. The basis of the temple was tuff, a soft rock made from volcanic ash. However, the temple itself was wooden and fell apart by the early 1800’s. In it’s place is the Steinerne Bank or Stone bench, with the inscription “Here where you meander was once only wood and marsh.”

Once the Apollo temple had been replaced, Sckell’s original idea for a hilltop temple was commissioned. A small, round, Greek style temple called the Monopteros reaching 16 meters tall was designed and built on top of a constructed hill. The Hill and temple were finished in 1836. 10 ionic columns support a copper covered dome and the building also displays a polychrome stone painting. Monopteros is a photo favorite and offers a dazzling view of the Munich skyline.

The Chinese tower or the Chinesischer Turm is a 5 story wooden pagoda that is 25 meters tall and 19 meters wide at its base. It was built in 1790 after Rumford became inspired by the Chinese-style pagoda at London’s Kew Gardens. It is made to resemble the beautiful towers found in the gardens of Chinese emperors and was created as a symbol of a good, healthy, and rational rule comparable to the vast empire of China. The view from the tower gave citizens a new look at their overall landscape and enhanced the concept of leisure outdoors to appreciate nature; an idea which was still new at this time. Today, the Chinese tower beer garden is the second largest beer garden in Munich. It seats over 7,000 people at a time in benches arranged around the tower. Food stalls offer traditional beer garden foods such as fish on a stick or roasted chicken and horse drawn carriage rides through the park are offered at the entrance to the beer garden.

A past time at the tower that still takes place on the 3rd Sunday of July is the Kocherlball. During the late nineteenth century, about 5000 servants, laborers, soldiers, and students would come to the tower on Sunday mornings to dance to a brass band at 5am. The dance would end around 8 am so that everyone could return to work. It became known as the “Kocherlball” or the “Cooks’ Ball” and was forbidden in 1904 due to moral concerns. However in 1989 a the dance was revived to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the park. About 4000 people attended wearing historical Bavarian costumes and it is now celebrated every year on the 3rd Sunday of July from 5:30 am to 10:00 am.

To the south of the Chinese Tower stands the model farm called the Economy buildings. These were built near the end of the 18th century at the beginning of the parks creation. Today these buildings are occupied by the management of the garden as the farm is no longer in use.

Also near the Tower is a children’s carousel built in 1823. The Carousel was designed not only with horses to ride, but also with ibex, stork, and flamingo.

To the north of the tower stands a small Palladian building, constructed in an architectural style inspired by Venetian architect Andrea Palladio. The style is based off of symmetry, perspective, and the temples of ancient Greeks and Romans. Originally built in 1791 as an officer’s casino to be used by the army, it was later renamed the Rumford House named after the garden’s founder, Benjamin Thompson or Count Rumford. The dining hall, which can fit 150 people, earned the name Spiegelsaal or Mirror Room because it is adorned with mirrors. Today it is used as a cultural meeting place and learning center for children.

Located near the center of the park is the Kleinhesseloher See. Built in 1800 under Wernick and later improved by Sckell, the lake is a popular spot for visitors and offers pedal boats. Although, swimming is not technically allowed, visitors can often be found swimming in one of the many streams in the park. The small beer garden set up by the park warden eventually became the Seehaus or Lake House restaurant. It seats 2,500 people and was built in 1883 as a boathouse with food service. This was redesigned in 1935 with a terrace and then rebuilt again in 1985 with high ceilings, round arches, and a diversified atmosphere. It includes a restaurant, a beer garden, a banquet room, a conference room, and a pavilion by the lake. They also do cocktail parties, birthdays, and weddings.

The lake is constantly being fed water from the man made Eisbach or Ice Brook. Just past the bridge near the Haus der Kunst art museum at the very South end of the Garden, the river forms a standing wave about 1 meter high produced by a water pumping mechanism. This is popular surfing spot, but is very difficult to ride and should only be used by experienced surfers. Surfers have come there since 1972 and competitions have even been held there. The Summer Olympics of 1972 held an archery tournament on the Werneckwiese by the Kleinhesseloher See, an informal open meeting space used for football.

Also created in 1972 was the Japanisches Teehaus. This was added to the park in celebration of the summer Olympics of 1972. A Japanese garden was created with the teahouse on a small island in a pond near the art museum at the south entrance to the garden. The teahouse was gifted to Bavaria by Soshitsu Sen, a tea house master from Kyoto. This gift was given on one requirement, that the Japanese tea ceremony be taught and demonstrated. Traditional tea ceremonies still take place there, hosted by an authentic tea master that visitors can take part in. There is also a tea club that seeks to expand knowledge of the culture to the public.

The Englischer Garten extends from the edge of the Hirschau in the north at Emmeram bridge over the Isar River down to Maximilian Park, the Court Garden, and the Finance Garden in the south by the museum to the Royal Residence. When these areas are included the total area of the park expands to 427 ha. The park is enormous, as well as enormously popular, and Bavaria currently invests 2.7 million euros annually into its maintenance.

Links:

City Trees: A Historical Geography from the Renaissance Through the ...By Henry W. Lawrence https://books.google.com/books?id=He2WfcVi58sC&pg=PA142&lpg=PA142&dq=favorite+trees+from+englischer+garten+munich&source=bl&ots=Aoe4f-eAdF&sig=QLFagsPPtR3nOxnfuFnyvI2-Hrg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjZov6kxfPTAhVERCYKHadtA9gQ6AEITzAK#v=onepage&q=favorite%20trees%20from%20englischer%20garten%20munich&f=false

http://www.muenchen.de/sehenswuerdigkeiten/orte/29935.html

http://www.munichbeergardens.com/Chinesischer_Turm

https://www.revolvy.com/main/index.php?s=Charles%20Theodore,%20Elector%20of%20Bavaria&item_type=topic

https://www.muenchner-stadtmuseum.de/en/sonderausstellungen/archive/2014/rumford-recipes-for-a-better-bavaria.html

https://www.revolvy.com/topic/Englischer%20Garten&item_type=topic  

http://www.aviewoncities.com/munich/englischergarten.htm

https://www.revolvy.com/topic/Englischer%20Garten&item_type=topic

T. Dombart, Der Englische Garten zu München. Munich: Hornung, 1972. ISBN 3-87364-023-6

https://www.revolvy.com/topic/Capability%20Brown&item_type=topic

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/gard_3/hd_gard_3.htm

http://germanculture.com.ua/travel-to-germany/english-garden-in-munich/

http://www.buergerpark-muenchen.de/index.php?id=3

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reinhard_von_Werneck

http://www.schloesser.bayern.de/englisch/garden/objects/mu_engl1.htm  

http://visit-munich-bavaria.com/englischer-garten-english-garden

http://www.kuffler.de/en/seehaus.php

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/germany/munich/attractions/englischer-garten/a/poi-sig/409152/1320849

http://www.guiddoo.com/munich-travel-guide/unwinding-at-the-englischer-garten

http://www.urasenke-muenchen.de/pages/teehaus/

[thinkceleste-blog]

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Now on to the Good Stuff!

It’s no secret that Martha Stewart inspired many of us way back when the internet did not exist, when we marveled on the beautiful books she published, superbly giving us tips on cooking and decorating for family celebrations.

For someone living in far off Argentina, these books were treasures.  I would linger over them with a nice cup of coffee, dreamily planning my family gatherings around them.

Many years ago, I read a wonderful idea by Martha Stewart in her book Good Things (Best of Martha Stewart Living), suggesting her readers use egg ornaments for Easter, showing a beautiful egg topiary, and also hinting that they could also be hung on a “tree” made with a branch.

About that time I had the rare opportunity to see the wonderful Forbes Fabergé collection, the largest private collection of Fabergé Imperial Easter Eggs, owned by the Forbes family before it was sold privately to the Russian oil and gas magnate, Victor Vekselberg.  In the end of this post I put together a description of these jewels.

Mr. Forbes exhibited these eggs at his own museum of art and collectibles, annexed to the offices of Forbes Magazine at 60 Fifth Avenue.  This building is now owned by NYU (New York University).

Coincidentally I found this video made by Martha Stewart, describing the beautiful eggs!

Anyway, I decided to start my own collection of Easter Eggs, with idealistic imaginings of imitating the Fabergé eggs.

    There were sooo many eggs, that I took Martha Stewart’s suggestion, and started what is now a full flung Rossetti tradition!  We started hanging the eggs on a tree, a poplar branch which my daughter dragged home when she was about 5 years old.  Years later we spray painted it white, but at first we enjoyed it natural.

First with my daughter Sabrina, and then also with my nieces, Isabel and Antonia, we decorated quaint quasi jewel-like eggs, and so our egg collection grew.  My two nephews, Sebastian and Philip, and Pablo, my brother, joined in the creativity and I now have rabbits, eggs, and baskets made by my whole family, which I proudly display every Easter.

  Another great idea for Easter is to use the cold porcelain and a bunny cookie cutter to make these quaint bunny magnets for your refrigerator!

  The Eggs:

To make these colorful eggs, we use “Cold Porcelain”, with an inset of small styrofoam balls to make the center.  Of course, I like to make the eggs vary in sizes, which makes the tree even more interesting!

We painted these cold porcelain eggs with acrylic paints and decorated with 3D Color Glitter Glue, sequins, pearls and all sorts of bling that we found around the house.

Cold Porcelain:

At first I tried working with Salt Dough, but the high humidity here in Ingeniero Maschwitz made that project a disaster.  The dough never hardened, and it actually became softer as the days went by!

Cold porcelain is an inexpensive, non-toxic, very easy-to-work-with material. Despite its name it is not porcelain, its main components are cornstarch and white craft glue.  Cold porcelain has a much finer finish than salt dough, and it hardens dry, even in very humid climates.  It air dries overnight, so it is ideal for weekend projects!

It can be purchased commercially or can be made at home.  Here’s the Cold Porcelain link to purchase my favorite on Amazon.  Cold porcelain is known by many different names, such as as porcelana fria here in Argentina.

If you prefer to make your own, you can find many different recipes for cold porcelain.  The paste is prepared by cooking on the stove or in the microwave for a brief time and then kneaded until smooth.  I prefer the stove top method, because I always fret that I’ll overcook the dough in the microwave.

My favorite recipe is as follows:

Ingredients:

1 cup (250 cc) cornstarch (sifted, with no lumps)

1 cup (250 cc) white craft glue

2 Tbsp (30cc) baby oil or liquid Vaseline, for the sheen

2 Tbsp (30 cc) vinegar used as preservative

Procedure:

Mix the ingredients in a saucepan.

Stir over low heat for 10-15 minutes. Remove the mixture from the heat once it starts pulling away from the side of the pan.  Cool slightly.

Put some baby oil or liquid vaseline (whatever you used for the dough) on your hands, and knead continually until the dough reaches room temperature.

Using a Ziploc Storage Quart Bags or plastic wrap, store the dough for 24 hours in a cool, dry location away from direct sunlight.

The dough will be ready to use after this 24 hour rest. After that point you can adjust the consistency by kneading in additional oil to correct overly dry dough, or with cornstarch to correct sticky dough.

If you’d like to make colored porcelain, knead the color of your choice in thoroughly before you begin.  You can add acrylic paint during the initial kneading while making the cold porcelain.  I have also successfully colored it with food coloring.  My favorite method is to paint with acrylic paint after the eggs dry.

Shaping:

Knead each piece before you shape it. Every time you use a new piece of clay, knead it first to increase its elasticity.

Shape the clay into the desired shape. I used the Styrofoam balls so that I didn’t have to use too much dough, and so it would dry faster.  Use such a base for large pieces. Cold porcelain shrinks significantly as it dries, and a large piece may not dry sufficiently all the way through.

I attached 8mm eyelet pins while the dough was moist.  These will be used to hang the ornaments.

If you want to add pieces of dough, they can be glued together using ordinary white craft glue.

Leave the eggs to dry. Cold porcelain requires no additional cooking and will harden simply when exposed to air.

How long this takes depends greatly on the size of your eggs, the overall weather temperature, and the humidity of the air. Keep checking until it is hard.

Once dry, have an egg decorating party!  Every guest can bring their own bling to decorate the eggs.

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Fabergé Imperial Eggs… their story:

The jeweled Fabergé eggs, possibly numbering as many as 69, were created by the House of Fabergé. Most of them were manufactured under the supervision of the goldsmith Peter Carl Fabergé between 1885 and 1917. The most famous are those made for the Russian Czars Alexander III and Nicholas II as Easter gifts for their wives and mothers. The House of Fabergé made 50 such “Imperial” Easter eggs, of which 43 still survive. Two planned for Easter 1917 were not delivered because of the Russian Revolution in which the Romanov Dynasty was overthrown and all the members of the imperial family executed.

The Fabergé Imperial Easter eggs are certainly the most celebrated and awe-inspiring of all Fabergé works of art.

The story began in 1885, when Emperor Alexander III decided to give a gold Easter egg to his wife the Empress Marie Fedorovna, possibly to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary. The Emperor gave detailed instructions regarding the design of the egg, making further suggestions to Fabergé as the project progressed.

Easter is the most important occasion of the year in the Russian Orthodox Church, equivalent to Christmas in the West. A centuries-old tradition of bringing hand-colored eggs to Church to be blessed and then presented to friends and family, had evolved through the years and, among the highest echelons of St. Petersburg society, the custom developed of presenting valuable bejeweled Easter gifts.

The first Imperial Easter egg was born.

Known as the Hen Egg, it is crafted from gold, its opaque white enameled “shell” opening to reveal its first surprise, a matte yellow gold yolk. This in turn opens to reveal a multi-colored, superbly chased gold hen that also opens. Originally, this contained a minute diamond replica of the Imperial Crown from which a small ruby pendant egg was suspended. Unfortunately these last two surprises have been lost.

Photos ©FabergeThePerfectGift.com

The Empress’s delight at this intriguing gift with its hidden jeweled surprises was the starting point for the yearly Imperial tradition that continued for 32 years until 1917 and produced the most opulent and captivating Easter gifts the world has ever seen.

Each egg, an artistic work of art, took a year or more to make, involving a team of highly skilled craftsmen, who worked in the greatest secrecy. From 1887 Fabergé was given complete freedom in the design and execution, with the only prerequisite being that there had to be surprise within each creation. Dreaming up each complex concept, Fabergé often drew on family ties, events in Imperial Court life, or the milestones and achievements of the Romanov dynasty, as in the Fifteenth Anniversary Egg of 1911, commemorating the fifteenth anniversary of Nicholas II’s accession to the throne, or the Romanov Tercentenary Egg of 1913 that celebrated 300 years of the House of Romanov.

Although the theme of the Easter eggs changed annually, the element of surprise remained a constant link between them. The surprises ranged from a perfect miniature replica of the Coronation carriage, that took 15 months to make working 16-hour days, through a mechanical swan and an ivory elephant, to a heart-shaped frame on an easel with 11 miniature portraits of members of the Imperial family.

One of the most expensive was the 1913 Winter Egg, which was invoiced at 24,600 rubles (then £2,460), equivalent to approximately usd 3,5 million in today’s money.

Photo credit: Miek’s Fabergé Eggs

The Winter Egg, designed by Alma Pihl, famed for her series of diamond snowflakes, is made of carved rock crystal as thin as glass. This is embellished with engraving, and ornamented with platinum and diamonds, to resemble frost. The egg rests on a rock-crystal base designed as a block of melting ice. Its surprise is a magnificent and platinum basket of exuberant wood anemones. The flowers are made from white quartz, nephrite, gold and demantoid garnets and they emerge from moss made of green gold. Its overall height is 14.2cm (5.5″). It is set with 3,246 diamonds. The egg sold at Christie’s in New York in 2002 for US$9.6 million.

One of my favorite is the Lillies of the Valley Egg. It was presented by Czar Nicholas II to his wife, Alexandra.  This egg’s surprise is “elevated” out of the egg by twisting a gold-mounted pearl button. When fully raised, three portraits are visible under the Imperial crown set with a ruby: Czar Nicholas II and his two oldest daughters, Olga and Tatiana, painted on ivory. The portraits are framed in rose diamonds and backed with gold panels engraved with the presentation date of July 31, 1898.

The Quick 10: 10 Faberge Egg Surprises by Stacy Conradt

My other favorite is the The Bay Tree Egg. It’s 30cm (12″) high, and is made of diamonds, citrines, amethysts, rubies, agate and pearls, and, of course, gold and enamel.

Tsar Nicholas gave this egg to his widowed mother in 1911.  Hidden between the leaves on the tree egg was a little gold winding mechanism tucked inside. Turning it, the top part of the egg rose up and a tiny little feathered nightingale popped out to sing, flap its wings and move its beak. When he was done singing, the bird and the top of the egg all descended back down.

photo credit: Gatchino Jewelers

  Our first family egg hunt with my nephew Sebastian and daughter Sabrina was organized by Alejandra, my sister, in my parents’ house and wonderful garden, which is actually where I still live.  This garden has given me years of memories and comfort, with wonderful nature encompassing me.

Sebastian and Pablo, Easter 2016

DIY Fabergé Easter Eggs As always, I like to remind you that this blog is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.