Polgreen

Paradise in Eden

by Geoff_Wright

The Biomes have been constructed using a scaffold pole and hexagon 'bubble' system. This scaffold structure holds the 'Guinness Book of Records' accolade of being 'The World's largest free-standing scaffold structure'. The 46,000 tubular poles used in this construction would stretch for 230 miles if placed end to end!

The Temperate Biome

by Geoff_Wright

Cornishman Johathan Ball was the first architect of the Project, and became a co-founder with Tim Smit (although these two gentlemen were to fall out in a big way later !). Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, who designed the famous Biomes, was the second architect. sir Nicholas was guaranteed no payment for his efforts, but had the satisfaction in knowing he was designing the 'Eighth Wonder of the World'.

The Temperate Biome at 35 meters in height, is smaller than the Tropical Biome, and naturally does not contain nearly so many exhibits. It consists mainly of plants from the Mediterranean, South Africa and California. I would suggest that the visitor visits this Biome first of all, and then the Tropical Biome will be a wonderful surprise!

Sen Ostell

by Sjalen

"Take a walk on the wild side"

St Austell is a town of only 22 000 inhabitants but that still makes it the biggest town in rural Cornwall and it has a good position in the middle of the county, not far from the sea. Nevertheless, there is not that much to see in what was previously a big centre for china clay producing (some pits are still open). Still, the one big thing people come for is the huge Eden Project just outside town in nothing other than a disused clay pit. Some also come for the famous Lost Gardens of Heligan, but it was the former which lured us here for a stopover on our way to St Ives further west.

We booked a hotel outside the centre on the way to Eden since all websites suggested that the town itself had little to see, and this was confirmed by the local cab drivers even if we would have loved to have had time for the famous brewery. The driver taking us from the station to the hotel muttered in thick Cornish that "...town centre is like Beirut" and the one finally dropping us off at the same station a day later developed this story a bit and volunteered information about how the local council members seem on collision course and that's what's stopping a whole lot of new development from taking place even though it has been planned for ages. Therefore, do not be alarmed by the rather scruffy railway station. They are aware of this and it's on the list of things to do. Just get off here and enjoy the garden of Eden - but make sure you have a spare t-shirt readily to hand afterwards...