A grayscale beauty: Why I like to walk around Mirror Lake on a cloudy day
There's a section of the Norfolk Botanical Garden that, even on the busiest of days, only a handful of visitors at best can be seen strolling the trail along Mirror Lake. This section of the Garden was part of the original 'Norfolk Azalea Gardens' developed during the Great Depression as a way to generate revenue from tourists for the city of Norfolk, Virginia. Over the years, however, the Norfolk Botanical Garden grew in size and added exciting amenities like a children's garden with lots of fountains, a showy tropical-themed garden, and tram and boat tours that wow visitors with large flowers and soaring bald eagles ( Haliaeetus leucocephalus ). These additions combined with the fact that the main entrance road breezes right past the Mirror Lake area without a clear pedestrian sidewalk makes Mirror Lake the most allusive and least-visited section of the garden. Which is perfect. On a sunny and bright day I prefer to join the crowds of people ooohing and aahhhi