A WALK IN THE PARK

Soganli Botanik Parki, or Botanical Park of Bursa, was opened in 1998.  It is a 400,000 sq.meter protected area, containing 150 species of trees, 76 species of shrubs, 20 species of ground cover, and 27 species of roses.  There are Japanese, English, French, Rose, Azalea, Fragrance, Color/Butterfly, Rock, and Topiary Gardens.  Each year over 250,000 tulips are planted for the International Tulip Festival.  The gardens are a source for botanic research and scientific studies, as well as a welcome respite for the citizens of Bursa.  The gardens have not only walking paths, but bike paths (and bike rentals), playground,  model car track, race track and a table tennis area.  There is a collection of 16th to 18th century  historical buildings within the park grounds that have been restored and are used for restaurants and hotels.  We enjoyed a walk through the park one afternoon, just as the pansies were nearing their end and the tulips and other spring bulbs were just beginning.  We will have to make periodic visits to catch all the different garden areas in their prime.  However, I won't be taking a purse that has only a snap closure and let my husband carry it, swinging it back and forth, quite high, as I take pictures.  The next day I went looking for my cell phone.....yep, at some point it must have taken a flying leap right out of my purse and onto the soft grass.  So, there was an exercise in cancelling a sim card before too much damage was done.  We did learn from our Turkish sources, that whoever would have found the phone would have thrown away the sim card and kept the phone, as the sim card was traceable and the chances of getting caught were too great; the phone was far more useful and valuable.  Luckily, I am smart...I didn't have a "smart phone" which would have been worth a lot more.

The end of the pansies

Tulip trees just beginning

Hyacinths

 

Daffodils

 

Red Tulips

And purple tulips

This was an ornamental tree in the Japanese Garden area that we did not know, but it was very interesting, with different fruit or flowers

A family enjoying the sunshine and feeding the ducks

 

There was a farm that shared a fence with the gardens; seems spring is alive and well there too.

These sheep look as if they are ready for a hair cut

We could just see the snow capped top of Uludag a we were leaving the Botanical Gardens, reminding us that we need to come for a visit...soon.