Plants. We all need them. Photosynthesis happens, and plants create oxygen. It’s a pretty basic understanding of the importance of plant life on Earth, but an apt one.
My partner loves plants. She cannot get enough of them. I am currently looking at a single bamboo shoot in a glass vase in front of me as I type. There are countless other plants around our place as well. I am indifferent to them, but she loves them, so we have them around. I believe my indifference stems from my childhood, particularly from being forced to help my parents garden on weekends. It became a chore, one I didn’t enjoy participating in.
Then, somehow, I worked at a nursery. Plants became my day-to-day. Did I retain anything I learned while there? Not really. I do appreciate plants, though! That appreciation extends to wanting to visit spots where plants and various forms of ecology are found.
Enter, The Eden Project in Cornwall.
Walking from the car park, I knew nothing about the place. We ventured downhill for what felt like forever because we decided to not take the pedestrian shuttle bus. It was a lovely night, with the weather being perfect, so we walked in. Once we passed through the turnstile, we made our way out to a balcony, and this was our view. I went in blind, and I was in awe at what I saw.
The entire place was lit up for the Christmas holidays. They were hosting a special nighttime light and music extravaganza, if you will. The geodesic domes were lit up, and the surrounding spots were also dotted with colourful lights. It was a truly inviting atmosphere for people of all ages. They even had an ice skating rink set up! We declined to skate but saw many people enjoying the rink.
There are numerous domes throughout the park. The domes represent different biomes. The largest dome simulates the rainforest, and the smaller one is more Mediterranean.
Walking around was quite the treat. Not only were the lights up and illuminating the plants in a variety of unexpected ways, but they also played bits from Hans Zimmer’s score from the movie Interstellar in the background. It created this ethereal and futuristic vibe for our walk among the plants. So cool!
If you ignore the music, lights, and the actual importance of The Eden Project, it reminded me a lot of the movie Biodome. Insofar as the biomes were in domes. That is the extent of my reference to that movie. Oh, and Kylie Minogue! Sadly, no Kylie there that night, but the experience of walking around was a treat in and of itself.
Those involved did an exceptional job creating a unique experience. There were disco balls in the rafters. Things that appeared to be jellyfish, or the woodsprites from Avatar, also looked to be floating above our heads at one point. Add in a waterfall or two, and the walk through the biomes was a pleasant and joyful way to spend the evening.
As we neared the end of the journey, we found ourselves face-to-face with home.
That’s right, we walked into a California-centric part of the biome! We love that we were both born and raised in California. It’s a special place. We have forests, deserts, beaches, and snowcapped mountains spread throughout our entire state. Sometimes those spaces can be mere hours from each other.
But with these wonderful spaces, we also realize how delicate our ecosystem is. Climate change is real (sorry, not sorry to the losers who think otherwise), and living in a state that recognizes that and is working toward solutions is vital to both of us. Seeing our home state represented so far from home was a nice cap to the evening. It reminded us of what we have back home, but also what we need to protect.
Numerous spots throughout the park take an environmental focus and look to educate the visitors. Beyond the typical Latin genus and where a plant can be found in the world, in some cases, a plaque will be displayed indicating what medicinal uses the plant can provide.
At the very end of our trip, we walked into the art exhibition portion of the park. This area is where local artists display their work, and it also houses hands-on exhibits for children. Given the late hour, there were no classes taking place for kids. There was, however, a giant egg-looking seed “planted” in the middle of the building.
It’s a 70-tonne carved piece of granite. It is massive. I had to completely zoom out my camera on my phone just to try and get most of the sculpture into the frame. It’s a stunning piece that cannot be missed.
With the walk over, we took one last look out at the domes. The sun had set entirely by the time we left, and the domes looked as if a party was taking place. I usually log these walks, so I wish I could tell you how many steps/miles we walked in the park. Alas, not this time. I will say that you won’t need your jackets while inside the biomes. We hastily removed ours once we got inside. You can really work up a sweat trudging through a faux rainforest!
John Kidde Writes 