A thought on visits to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden in Cape Town: Make sure when you visit that you go for a long 1 hour ride around the gardens in the electric open car; it's a marvellous treat with exceptionally knowledgeable and chatty drivers, We try to go on these tours regularly as it would be impossible for me to walk around the entire garden in a week let alone a day! ----- Original Message ----- From: Lee Poulsen To: Pacific Bulb Society Sent: Thursday, April 13, 2006 12:54 AM Subject: Re: [pbs] IBSA Bulb & Corm Symposium On Apr 12, 2006, at 12:39 PM, Mary Sue Ittner wrote: > Dear All, > > I don't think anyone has written on this list about the IBSA Bulb & > Corm > Symposium scheduled for August 28 to September 1 2006 in South Africa. And if you want more plant reasons to go, less than a week later in Pretoria is the 4th International Clivia Conference on the 6th & 7th September 2006 (not including all the tours and plant shows that will occur in coordination of this event). I believe there are a number of members of this list who are planning on attending that event, so there is obviously an overlap of interests. [See the website <http://cliviasociety.org/clivia2006/…> or for more information write to James Abel (a very nice man) at <jcabel@absamail.co.za>.] Plus, Mary Sue didn't make it quite clear but this is also around the peak blooming season for the wildflowers in the Western Cape. Of all the non-Western-European, non-North-American countries I've visited (quite a few), South Africa has turned out to be the most wonderful of them all. My wife and I loved the entire time we were there. (Only three weeks--far far too short a trip). And there are many non-plant things of interest there as well. Like the animals just to mention one. We spent 3 nights in Kruger National Park and I can only say that if you think of the best zoo you've ever been to (like the San Diego Zoo and/or Wild Animal Park for me), it's at least 100 times better than that. Maybe 1000 times better. And of course you can't not go to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden in Cape Town. We live a stone's throw away from the Huntington Botanical Gardens, and it is world class and wonderful. But again, it paled in comparison to Kirstenbosch for Angela and me. Angela loves to look at plants and flowers, so she thought she would humor me by allowing an entire half day at Kirstenbosch in our schedule. She was so busy taking pictures (which she rarely does) that we ended up spending all our daylight hours there the day we went. I would love to attend these two events later this year, and wish I could go again. So if you're even halfway thinking you might want to go some time, this is the sound of opportunity knocking at your door. (And besides, even if you don't know anyone else there, you know Mary Sue virtually. And she (and her husband) are just as great people to hang out with in reality as they are in the virtual world. Actually, better.) --Lee Poulsen Pasadena, California, USDA Zone 10a _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.ibiblio.org http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php