The weather is warming up quickly, the chilly windy days are almost completely over around here (for those of you gawking at me, I live in the mountains, so it stays colder longer here). I’ve already cranked up the air conditioner a few days in a row now.
Last year in May I took a vacation to Hilton Head Island, South Carolina and it was amazing. I did it all on the cheap, because it was more about just getting to go than it was about staying somewhere fancy. Although it still wasn’t exactly camping, it wasn’t the Hilton, either. We were about a half-mile from the beach in a decent hotel with wi-fi access and a continental breakfast.
This year, I might look into the Shangri La Gardens and Nature Center in the city of Orange, Texas. The name of the city even sounds nature-y. The big thing this past year seems to be everyone going “green” – and Shangri La Gardens is no exception. They have the U.S. Green Building Council’s Platinum certification for LEED®-NC, and almost every aspect of the center is focused around teaching people to be in harmony with the ecosystems around them. Not in a hippy-kinda way, though.
“Shangri La” typically is used to describe a place of peace, harmony, beauty, and a general state of enlightenment. The gardens in Orange, Texas exist to educate and improve the quality of life in the Southeast part of Texas. The gardens are also educational, featuring several opportunities for kids (of all ages) to observe nature, plants, and visit a laboratory.
Check out their website at the link above, and see what kinds of opportunities they have – this seems like a fun vacation idea for families, couples and single people who just want to get away to a serene environment and be surrounded by nature.