Okay, so first things first, the Gardens were gorgeous. I don't think I've ever seen so many cherry blossoms in my life, nor so many perfectly kept lawns. We were quite lucky in choosing a day that was not overly hot so not only did this mean that we could enjoy the gardens at a comfortable temperature, but also that the gardens were not swarming with people. That's not to say that it wasn't busy though, on the first Saturday in May it was only to be expected that everyone else had the same idea as us.
Unfortunately, that's where the positives stop. Firstly, the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens charge for entry. Whilst I understand that upkeep and maintenance is expensive, it makes what could have been a relatively cheap day out that little bit more expensive. Secondly, and most annoyingly, is that the gardens seem to have a stricter grass upkeep policy than Oxford! Okay, so you can walk on the grass (some areas) but that's where the buck stops. If you're like us and decided that on such a beautiful day in such a beautiful place a picnic was only necessary, you will be sorely disappointed. The prowling security guards quickly told us to put away our cheetos and crackers (never thought they'd be illegal substances), and when we just got used to having a foodless picnic we were also told that we weren't allowed the picnic blanket we were sitting on (not great when you're wearing white trousers like myself). The afternoon would have been much more enjoyable if we were allowed to eat, but c'est la vie.
One thing that prevented our trip feeling completely wasted was that right next door to the gardens is the Brooklyn Museum. The weekend we visited was the closing weekend of the Wiley exhibition, something that we'd been wanting to see for a while. The Brooklyn Museum, unlike the Botanical Gardens, was free! It was a truly great museum, welcomed by music in the foyer, very open plan exhibits that allow you to get extremely close to the art works.
