A stroll in the park.

A stroll through The H. O. Smith Botanic Gardens at Penn State's Arboretum, to be more specific. 

The first thing I was struck with was how easy it was to feel secluded, even though about twenty other students were there from my class and a few others from other classes were there too. The paths through the gardens curved around a lot and much of the foliage was almost too thick to see through (ahead and to other paths). That, added to general quietness of the other visitors, made for a pretty peaceful time. It also gave an element of wonder. I was constantly curious about was around the next corner.  

Everything is densely packed together. Flower patches, in front of trees, flanked by bushes, surrounded by grass (not necessarily in that exact formation). It's actually very structured and pretty and not as jumbled as I make it sound. There are so many different types that you hardly see much more than one plant or one group of plants of the same species. Much of the flora in the gardens is non-native too. So what we have is all of these plants from all around the world, peacefully coexisting, beautifying this space together... One might find it inspiring. If I was the type of writer to wax poetically about the significance of this as an allegory for hope and the possibility of world peace, I would.

On my way out, I happened on two really great spots. One was an empty courtyard, surrounded by arbors and thick bushes. Two paths on opposite sides are the your entrances. There are a couple benches and some flower pots scattered around, but it's mostly empty. I also noted that the wind hardly touched the courtyard. The other spot was on the outside of the gardens. A rectangle of poplar tees within a rectangle of poplar trees. It looks nice now, but I think I'll make another visit later in the year. I bet it looks brilliant when the leaves from all the different trees start changing color. 

All in all, a good way to spend time.