I remember driving down the freeway and seeing the land being cleared. Something big was coming to Scottsdale. Some huge building was being erected in the desert. I had no idea what would be put out there. There were some office buildings no too far away. On the other side of the highway there were apartments and shopping centers. So what was the plan for this big patch of desert? Imagine my surprise when they lifted a big butterfly onto the building.
I thought, "Seriously? A building that big devoted to nothing but winged creatures of terror?" Ok, they're not that bad. But they are closely related to moths. And moths are the things nightmares are made of. I've been in small butterfly enclosures before. Beautiful Monarchs at the Desert Botanical Garden flitted about and gracefully landed all around us. They respected my personal space. So I thought, how bad could this be?
It's a weekday. I'm thinking we'll have the place to ourselves. Then the school buses started rolling in. The kids weren't that bad. I hardly even noticed them. And the ones I did notice were kind of comical. Like the little boy trailing behind his class rolling his eyes and the other little boy with a look that could only be that of pure boredom. The girls seemed delighted. Are butterflies girlie? I would think the boys would have loved them. They're bugs. That fly.
The place is really big. When you first walk in there's the gift shop. A little further in, they'll take your money and take your picture. It's $19.95 for adults, which isn't that bad. You get to stay all day. They show a 15 minute 3D movie about the migration of the Monarch butterflies that is really interesting. Then off you go to the nursery where you can witness several different types of butterflies from all over the world emerging from their chrysalis. They have to hang around and dry out before they are placed in the atrium to interact with the other butterflies and human visitors.
As you walk out the employees remind you to try not to step on the butterflies that land on the ground and try not to let them land on you as the oils from your skin can be harmful. If they do land on you, gently shake them off. Sounded easy enough. But there were a lot of people in there, and quite a few butterflies on the ground. I watched as one woman was looking around her and stepped right on a beautiful green butterfly, ripping one of his wings. Poor guy never stood a chance. There were actually several who landed and never got back up. It's hard to navigate your way through with all the people looking up and not paying attention to the ground.
They have butterflies of all colors and sizes. They come right at you! Like that 3D movie we saw when we first came in. It can be a little unsettling. Especially for someone like me who is afraid of flying bugs. These butterflies had absolutely no sense of personal space.
There were little ones and medium sized ones and some as big as my hand. They were everywhere! The biggest ones were very beautiful. They were the prettiest blue. I tried to get a picture of them, but they flew pretty fast. When they did finally land, they would put their wings up together, and there went the blue.
The atrium is really very pretty. It resembles a rainforest and has misters that go off every now and again. So it was a little humid. I can't imagine that place in the summer. They also have a small waterfall and a nice bench nearby to rest on.
When you're ready to leave the atrium, there is an employee who will help you look for any hitch hikers. Then you enter the cafe. The cafe has a nice selection of sandwiches, chips and soft pretzels along with several variety of beverages. It's a little pricey, with the sandwiches going for almost $7. But that's to be expected I think.
After our lunch we wandered into another room which highlights other critters of the desert, like the tarantula, scorpion, vinegaroon and various beetles. There was also a bee hive display and some frogs. The volunteer in that room was Dan White. He was retired and his wife wanted him out of the house. He was very nice and had a lot of information of the creepy crawlies he oversaw. He even pointed out the baby walking sticks that had recently been born. I had to admit, they were pretty cute.
The final room was the fish room. Three walls of aquariums displaying different types of giant fish. There was even a stingray pool. I love rays. They're so soft. And if you stick your fingers in the pool they'll come right up to you. But please wash your hands first. One of the aquariums had these huge orange fish that were just about the happiest fish I had ever seen. Don't you just love their little fish lips?
All in all it was a good day. My friend and I were able to catch up on each other's lives and get out in the beautiful Arizona sun. I definitely recommend Butterfly Wonderland. We spent about 2 hours there. Right across the parking lot they're building Odysea Aquarium. And during construction, they're offering lifetime memberships (family memberships are $1,395.00). When it's complete you will be able to don a wet suit and helmet and walk along the "ocean" floor. There will be touch pools and penguins. And shark tanks in the bathrooms. All in the middle of the desert.
Go ahead and put this on your "to do" list. It's fun for all ages.
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