a tale of two gardens

our first stop this morning was the Palmiarna that we promised ourselves yesterday. i should have taken pictures of the little side walkway you have to go through to get there that's barely marked and looks so unpromising. the patio though, is really pretty and we were tempted to sit there but went to check out how to get seated first and entered the cafe:

of course we had to stay inside. it's the craziest thing with this leaf cutter ant highway and terrariums right above and next to the tables:

i got an egg breakfast that came with a little salad and two of the best croissants. Poznan is famous for its croissants and even has a museum dedicated to them that we have yet to visit. even the butter was delicious. this dessert was unavoidable: homemade honey cake:

here's just one picture of the inside of the very extensive greenhouses. eventually it got so hot in there we had to leave...but saw so many exotic plants including coffee, cinnamon, cardamom... basically everything except a joshua tree

these are carnivorous plants:

we emerged back into the Wilsona Park and found a bench in the shade next to the bandshell. a violinist was busking nearby:

i should mention there are benches EVERYWHERE. In parks, on the street, everywhere. they don't have dividers to keep people from lying down. they are comfortable and clean. and right next to them there is always a trash receptacle. and they are emptied regularly. consequently there is little to no trash on the streets.

after a short respite to observe all these tiny details that make life pleasant and also to admire all the dogs being walked on their lunch hour, it was time to start walking in the direction of our second destination. plantains (babke) are just now starting to reemerge after the cold weather:

a wacky package type grafitto sticker was noted:

as was a contemporary take on an ancient architectural style:

our second destination was the university botanical gardens. to get there A figured out a route on public transit, this time a street car. these things are all completely immaculate, even the velvet upholsery:

oncewe disembarked, we made a wrong turn at first and encountered this mysterious entry. the picure placement suggests we followed the white rabbit to...

this place:

but no, we actually had to walk a bit to get to these

indescribable, overwhelming botanical gardens. they look depopulated in these pictures but there were tons of people strolling around enjoying the day, contemplating the plants and generally having fun:

i think this is a mint garden:

A reminds me this is pulsatilla, possibly anemone pulsatilla?:

the weather began to threaten rain and it did begin drizzling, eventually becoming a real spring shower with thunder:

we waited it out under a grouping of evergreens and i tried to capture the moment while A called around to see what restaurants were open. it's still a holiday here so there's slim pickins...

here's a map of the gardens and a list of the birds that frequent them. we didn't get to all of it, maybe half?:

again in the streetcar... this time A noticed not only are there many lines (14?), and they're all spotless, even the velvet seat covers, and they run constantly and often, clearly display each stop onboard as you're travelling any given route, the doors are level with the street so getting on and off is easy, and, get this... they have ticketing onboard and on the street (in english and other languages designated by flags) and... they have USB charging outlets ON THE STREETCAR and they work!

once back on the street we ran into this grafitti artist again... so funny... and it even has a halo :)

my other favorite tag was close by (maybe they work together?):

we ended up back at that place we ate at last night at the foot of the castle. the food is so good and they are very friendly. here's what it looks like inside because it was still raining when we got there:

we hardly ordered anything but they serve large portions. this is a salad and three kinds of pierogies:

a chicken broth with dumplings and a hot beet and sourcream soup with tons of garlic. compot and a rose beer... we were going to get dessert but there's no way i could have eaten another thing.

the bill arrives in a wooden pierogie:

a another view of the same restaurant from a different street:

and a little bit closer to include a bar that reminds A of his youth :) i forgot to mention that while we were waiting on this corner for a cab back to the apartment (it was cold and we were tired and it didn't cost much more than a streetcar) one of the guys from the Japanese restaurant from two nights ago recognized us and waved hello...it took us a second to figure out who he was and that he was waving at us! so cute :)