The Ground Floor

If entering from the front, you step into a foyer through large french doors, in beveled glass. All the wood is oak, polished and shining. Fittings are in brass. The foyer is a large, airy room. It is the only room which is open the full three stories up. Around the balcony of the second story are wooden benches interspersed with potted exotic flowering trees. Around the balcony to the third story, ivy trails down, brushing the flowering trees below. The skylight is stained glass - an Asian style design of cranes in flight. It would take keen eyes and observation to note the discrete security cameras at every level, as they are well hidden in foliage.

The foyer is a wide space, with chairs and tables scattered in groupings designed for conversation. All furniture is oak and brass, with cushions of a green, subtlely Asian floral pattern. The floors are stone. Like the exterior, they make the building look older than it is. Four doors open off the foyer, in an irregular spoke pattern, with the entrance as the fifth spoke. The first spoke on the right leads to an office area. The office is small, and comfortable. There is a desk, and an assortment of chairs designed for comfort as well as style. These can easily be moved to suit any sort of meetings, though the room itself cannot comfortably hold more than five or six people at once. Along one wall is a bookcase, and a coffee service. The back wall is all window, displaying the gardens outside. The drapes are in the same subtle Asian flowers as the cushions in the foyer. The other wall is decorated in Georgia O'Keeffe prints.

In the back of the office is a doorway labeled "Maintainance". It is through this door that Kindred may enter a secret elevator, and venture down to the basement. The door and elevator require keycards and numerical codes to operate.

The second spoke on the right leads to the Conservatory Cafe. This is the casual dining area of the Conservatory. As with the foyer, it is full of comfortable chairs and tables, designed for people to sit in groups of varying sizes, or alone if they so choose. The walls are wood, and the main decorations are plants. Several types of trees, plenty of ivy. The room is set up so it will feel as though one is eating in a garden. The lights in this room, however, tend to be fairly bright. The back wall, as in the office, is all window, displaying gardens.

The food in the Cafe isn't fancy, but it is of far better quality (and more reasonable prices!) than one would expect. The menu is mainly sandwiches, salads and soups. There are plenty of choices for vegetarians. The coffee selections are varied and excellent. Bar service is available as well.

On the left, the fourth spoke leads to the Conservatory Library. This is a room for quiet work. It is a small library. The books all deal with plants, and nature in general. Most of them are of local interest. There are some books on herbalism. Seating here is individual, at smallish tables. Lights are available on each for reading, but the ambient light is low.

The third spoke leads back to the main part of the building. A long stone corridor, with a high, arched roof, leads back a long ways. Doors lead off either side, to various garden rooms. Each room highlights certain kinds of flora. There is a tropical rain forest room. There is a Japanese garden. There is a southern US garden. There is a garden of all cacti. There are rooms that are dripping with humidity, rooms that are dry but hot, and rooms that are fairly chilly. In each room, there are benches designed to fit in. As with the rest of the place, security cameras are well hidden in the foliage.

At the end of the long hall, there are french doors, just like the ones out front, leading out to the gardens outside.

Return to The Conservatory