N and I headed to the B-Gardens yesterday to see the light display. Tickets for the 4 to 6 pm time frame. We arrived early, at a little after 3. Early enuf that we were the 5th car allowed thru the gate. Front row parking. We walked to the visitor center, got our ticket-stickers and waited in the lobby, with the lovely Christmas Trees, until they opened the doors to the Garden.
20 minutes after we were let into the Gardens the power went out.
I took this next picture just seconds before it happened.
As you can see, the day was still too bright for the lights to be shining at their best.
There was a collective groan throughout the Garden when the lights went out and everyone froze in place. For about 10 minutes we just stood there, hoping the lights would come back on. About the time our collective hope started wearing thin, and a slight rustling of movement began among the visitors, a couple of the lights came back on! An approving murmur emanated from all of us, as hope was renewed, and we instantly froze in place again. It was only 5 minutes before hope ran dry and we all decided to begin the mass exodus to the entrance and find out what exactly what was going on. Car accident. Lines down. Refund issued. No one can leave the Gardens. ... Wait. What? We can't leave? Downed power lines, make that LIVE downed power lines, are preventing a safe exit from the Gardens. Police have cordoned off the exit. A disapproving murmur spread throughout the crowd. It's rapidly getting dark, rapidly getting cold and with hope of seeing a glorious light display gone, the desire to leave took it's place. But these Gardens are run by wise people. Free hot cocoa, coffee, chili and chowder if you were willing to wait in line at the snack station! Again the crowd made with the approving murmur. Of course we're willing! At least half of us were, anyway. It's not too cold to wait in line for cocoa and the food's not going to ruin that fast. While we were waiting, the parking lot slowly began to empty of those who didn't wait. The police had quickly set up a detour. To get our free meal, get to our car, get on the road and get out of town took slightly over 2 hours. Not the way I expected to spend the evening. But I must say, it was a great evening! The wonderful company of N, the great crowd that took everything in stride with such good humor and the tasty cocoa served up by a great group of people turned what could have been a disastrous evening into an adventure. The wonderful people running the show quickly kept us informed of the situation and just as quickly did everything they could to appease a disappointed crowd. And kudos to the city of B. Talk about successful rapid response. They had their act together when it came to dealing with the accident and the overwhelming traffic caused by the massive amount of people trying to leave the Gardens.
I can't wait to go back!
Imagine all this in the dark.
.Oh yeah, I gotta go back!
