We were very lucky to be in Phoenix around the time we did to check out the Chihuly in the Garden Exhibition at the Desert Botanical Garden.

Dale Chihuly is a glass sculptor and making them in large scale. The closest I have come to experiencing making glass is when I took a one-day glass blowing class here in Edmonton many years ago. It is such a hard substance to control to the way you want it and you really have to work with it than controlling it. Since that day, I have a great appreciation for the glass making in general and Dale's works of art is no exception - his large scale sculptures were really amazing incorporating them into the garden itself.

As you enter the Botanical Garden, you will see this beautiful burst of blue and transparent ball of glass that he also uses as his main sculpture on the banner posted just outside the garden. The amount of work and detail that go into this is just amazing. I couldn't even fathom how they can transport all these delicate items piece by piece from one exhibition to another - taking them apart and putting them back together again.

While going through each area, you feel like you are playing a game of "Where is Waldo" as he also camouflages some of his sculptures into the garden itself.

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While in Phoenix, we thought we would go visit the Biosphere 2 about a 2 hour drive south. Along the way, we saw many different types of terrain that was not just dessert like and saw many luscious plants.

As you approached the facility, you cannot notice how huge it is (about 40 acres altogether). The main facility is glass-enclosed and is about 3 acres, We went for a guided tour where the guide had many information to present to us as we went along each area. The tour itself was probably about 2 hours long if I can recall (depending on your group as well).

The facility was constructed in the late 1980s in hopes to explore life systems in particular ways to colonize in other planets in the future. The research facility houses different areas of the life system so it can be controlled such as the rainforest, ocean, desert, and water and life experiments. Living quarters were also built to house the scientists specialized in their own fields to create living areas where they will depend their basic survival needs from. For example, using their agricultural system, they were able to produce about 83% of the total diet like bananas, beets, rice, wheat and even peanuts.

As you tour the facility one-by-one and learn what they managed to do while living in Biosphere 2, you will be impressed on what they were able to achieve despite the problems they ran into that ultimately cancelled and aborted the mission that Biosphere 2 intended to do. The engineering that went into this building is amazing especially when you get to see the machinery to maintain the facility dealing with water transfers. It's definitely a recommended stop if you happen to be near there.

They even offer summer programs for students interested in working with the sciences!

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