5/5 Kairra O. 10 months ago on Google
This
is
an
old
palm
house
and
still
has
a
very
Victorian-esque
feel
to
it
but
is
quite
pleasant
to
walk
around
and
take
photos
in.
Besides
the
walkways,
every
inch
of
soil
has
a
plant
or
tree
crammed
into
it,
centered
on
rainforest/tropical
and
desert
species.
Every
now
and
then
you
can
find
small
display
cases
of
special
plants
with
the
odd
animal
(a
large
frog
sits
in
one)
inside,
im
not
sure
if
I
count
this
as
entirely
humane
as
the
frog
had
very
little
room
to
move
around.
The
Koi
pond
was
very
small
and
over
populated
with
fish,
all
of
whom
thrash
and
compete
at
the
water's
surface
any
time
a
person
comes
by
(you
can
buy
fish
food
in
the
building's
lobby
and
you
can
see
they're
trained
to
expect
food
from
passers
by).
There
is
also
a
small
aquarium
and
I
had
the
same
feeling
regarding
some
of
the
larger
fish
there,
like
the
ray
that
had
a
tank
so
small
it
took
up
almost
1/3
of
the
space,
just
by
existing.
I
know
this
is
an
old
place
but
I
think
people's
expectations
of
animal
welfare
have
moved
on
since
the
Victorian
period
and
the
animals
housed
here
need
to
be
better
considered.
Besides
the
questionable
condition
of
the
animal
habitats,
everything
else
in
the
Palm
House
was
a
delight
to
experience.
At
one
point
we
came
across
a
cactus
display
where
you
can
buy
your
own
cactus
plants,
sadly
we
weren't
able
to
as
we
had
no
way
to
transport
it
home.
There
is
also
a
beautiful
pond
area
full
of
Lilly
pads
and
tiny
fish
that
will
nibble
on
your
fingers
if
you
dip
them
in
the
water.
After
a
while
the
trail
leads
you
to
a
small
cafe
where
you
can
indulge
in
coffee,
cake,
ice
creams
and
so
on.
It
was
fairly
cheap
and
the
atmosphere
inside
the
cafe
was
pleasant,
surrounded
by
African
and
south
American
curiosities
and
plants
growing
around
you.
However
if
you
want
to
visit
the
gift
shop
you
either
have
to
walk
all
the
way
back
through
the
Palm
House
or
go
out
and
around
the
building,
back
to
the
front,
as
the
gift
stand
is
next
to
the
ticket
area
in
the
lobby
of
the
building.
It's
small
and
has
a
few
trinkets
to
remember
the
place
by
but
don't
expect
too
much.
I
found
a
box
of
basically
carved
ebony
wood
tea
spoons
which
were
absolutely
delightful,
so
I
took
one
home.
Overall
it's
a
pleasant
walk
around.
It
took
about
1.5
to
2hrs
for
us,
at
a
slow
walk
with
a
10
year
old,
taking
photos
on
the
way.
Just
bear
in
mind
that
it
is
obviously
hot
inside
and
very
humid
in
many
places
(tropical/rainforest
environments).
We
went
on
a
Saturday
morning
and
there
were
no
queues
or
crowds
-
there
were
people
there
but
it
didn't
impact
us
in
any
way.