Butterfly Wonderland

Paul’s parents, during their yearly winter stay in Sun Lakes, always make it a point to take their grandchildren on some kind of educational field trip. In the past such excursions have included places like

St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Monastery (from December, 2011 – I remember how much I loved looking at Megan’s photos from that trip. Her interest in photography was beginning by then!)
Kartchner Caverns (this was when the children were much younger, back before we were into photography. I hope to go with them again, as I have not yet been able to see the wonders of this state park with my own eyes.)
and the Grand Canyon (before I started blogging… we have a few old photos but nothing like what I would like to get there. SOME DAY – maybe after I acquire a wide-angle lens!! :-))

This past Saturday we (Paul, Jr. and I) joined them for another in the series and spent the morning visiting Butterfly Wonderland, in Scottsdale. It is billed as “America’s largest butterfly atrium” and yet it seemed curiously small, sitting off to the east of highway 101 as we approached from the south. That was, of course, merely an illusion, as most any size building can be dwarfed by the surrounding desert and backdrop of the Superstition Mountains. The visit began with a 14 minute 3-D film about the great Monarch migration that occurs annually. It was fascinating and very well produced; and the 3-D effect was really fun, especially with all the small children in the audience reaching out to touch the butterflies that seemed to be flying right in front of us.

From there it was on to the Butterfly Emergence Gallery, where we could actually observe metamorphosis in progress. At first I didn’t realize it was “for real” — I just thought it was a display *about* the process — until I got close enough to see some of them actually moving and emerging! It was marvelous!

Then for the main event, so to speak – the Conservatory, a 10,000 square foot butterfly atrium. It was very moist and tropical inside, and I was thankful our visit was taking place in the winter (can’t imagine visiting in the summer, although I’m sure it is thermostatically controlled). It truly was a wonderland, and I made the most of the opportunity to learn to work with my new macro lens. I was extremely pleased with how it performed, and many of my SOOC’s were about as perfect as they could get. I’m used to having to do more post processing with my photos to get a quality result, so I’m going to have to learn to keep my hands off! 🙂

After the Conservatory came the Ant Colony (unfortunately the ants were “on vacation”) and the Honey Bee Extravaganza (not quite as extravagant as it sounds, but interesting nonetheless) and the Rivers of the Amazon Aquatic Life Exhibit (where I did not get any good photos at all due to my inexpertise with dim lighting conditions), finishing with a few minutes in the Butterfly Treasures Gift Shop (where we could have, but wisely did not, spend any money).

I absolutely loved the entire visit, and would totally go again if any of you out of towners want to come down and take it in! Just be aware, particularly if you have issues with creepy-crawlies, that the flutterbyes do land on you from time to time. One must restrain the impulse to smack at them, as they are there to be, you know, preserved! 😉 I only got one tag-along during the visit, and it was just on my clothing, rather than say, my face, so I was never in any danger of being forcibly ejected on account of committing bug-i-cide.

Here are the photos I took, some better than others, but such a joy to see in person and remember again as I look through them. I’m so thankful for the making of such memories, and the ability to preserve them through this art form I’ve been learning.

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