Faces of Texas: Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center

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Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center is located in Orange, TX. I was lucky enough to meet two of its employees (both below) who introduced me to its grounds. It is such a huge beautiful garden that a person could get lost in what it has to offer. For more information, click here.
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"I come early [to work] and walk around.
You just can't believe you're in the center of town."
- Marlene Cox, Admissions Administrator of Shangri La,
on how she prefers to enjoy the gardens.
She was enthusiastic about every detail of the park,
from the colorful flowers to the migratory birds.
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"There's an old Cajun legend that blue bottles
collect bad dreams. It's like a dream-catcher."
- Allison Palser, Environmental Education Intern at Shangri La,
on why several trees were adorned with blue bottles.
Aside from hosting me, Allison gave me a tour of the grounds
and showed me everything from bees to a sculpture garden to a reflecting pool.
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"You get to tell people about nature.
That's why I got a degree in biology."
- Jayne Carlisle, Environmental Education Intern at Shangri La,
on giving bayou boat tours.
On a busy Saturday, Jayne said,
she'll do four one-and-a-half hour tours in a day.
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"After so many years, I just couldn't believe
this photo was up. It gave me shivers."
- Billie Burns, Member and Volunteer at Shangri La,
on discovering a picture taken of herself and her husband in the visitors' center.
She tapped the picture and said that her husband,
now deceased, was "so handsome."
The photo had been taken at Shangri La
some fifty years ago before the couple had married.
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"See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil."
- Three pumpkins, special guests at the Scarecrow Festival
and Autumn Fair, on how to live in this world.
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