AT THE HORTUS

Botanicus in Leiden Mischa and I found the carnivorous plants in the hothouse again. It is almost a ritual to go there and look for these amazing plants. To take pictures and decide which one will be the blip for this day, My birthday it is. 70 years I am now. Born still in World War II, amidst the airfights in The Netherlands, at the border of the provinces of Utrecht and Gelderland. Born in a small village called Nijkerk.
I went in the morning with lightrail and train, and walked to the house where Mischa sits three cats and a dog for this week.
We walked together with the dog, a little round.
And after lunch we went to the Hortus Botanicus, a place I liked to go so much when Piet Hein and I lived in Leiden, before Mischa was born.
One of the hothouses has nowadays some butterflies, but we found more dead ones than alive. A sad sight and I tried to console Mischa by saying that even butterflies do not live forever.
We, luckily, had some blue sky above us. I suggested that we would look into the 'Sterrewacht' a famous place, where in the 19th century the sky at night was watched, described and interesting theories were tested.
When we entered the building a young student (as later we discovered he was) asked us if we wanted to follow the little tour. We did and entered one of the domes. Very interesting but of course we could not see the stars or the moon, by daylight.
Piet Hein came at the end of the afternoon for our little celebration meal, in the indian restaurant and after that we both went home again.
Now I sit here and look amazed at the overwhelming reactions on my yesterday's 1500th blip. What some numbers can evoke is so amazing.
It will take some time before I will have visited all my dear blipfriends, but here I beforehand thank you so very much for your attention and sweet words, stars and hearts.

My haiku:

I come and I go
I wait for signs or images
And then I leave again

And the quote by James Thomson in The Seasons:

Who can paint
Like Nature? Can imagination boast,
Amid its gay creation, hues like hers?