Chinese Culture Days at Missouri Botanical Garden

This is my second posting on the Missouri Botanical Garden, and if I remember correctly, when we visited the gardens last summer there was also some sort of Chinese cultural festival going on then.  However, as you will soon discover, this posting will not be a boring repeat of of our last visit there.  I hope all St.Louis citizens realize what a gem they have in the botanical gardens.  And if you live within that metropolitan area and never have paid the gardens a visit, I will just say shame on you!  Over the years we have been there during various seasons of the year. Each time there have been different plants in bloom, and new areas of the garden to explore.  It is just one of those places which never disappoints us.  Sunday afternoon my sisters Julia and Linda joined John and I for our visit to the gardens.  Currently, the big attraction in the garden is a large patch of blooming iris flowers.  What a beautiful riot of color!

Equally thrilling for us was a gorgeous display of blooming evergreen azalea, pictured below.  Also flourishing presently are the fragrant peony flowers, and the rose bushes are also well into their blooming season.

Since 1996 the Garden has collaborated with the Chinese Culture Education and Services Foundation to produce an event celebrating Chinese culture.  Two days of this past weekend were filled with Chinese pageantry, art and dance.  We were there only for the events on Sunday afternoon, which were the dragon dance and parade and the New Shanghai Circus.  The circus offered a juggling act, amazing acrobatics as well as charming mystical dancing.  One of the dances was called the changing of the masks.  We were too far back to figure out how it was done, but mysteriously somehow the dancer frequently changed his face mask.  As you may note in the picture below, his dancing costume was quite elegant.  My sisters, Julia and Linda commented that when they visited China they had seen a similar show there, however it was a bit different in that there more performers on the stage, all changing their masks as they danced.

Perhaps some of you are wondering how much longer we will be staying in St.Louis.  Thursday we are planning on moving our home north to Iowa and then westward.  Stay tuned for more Schramm adventures!