A 17-acre downtown park centred on the Crystal Bridge Tropical Conservatory — a 70-metre glass cylinder lying on its side, half full of rainforest plants and the other half a desert biome. Tropical mist drifts through the rainforest end; a 10-metre waterfall drops into a pond filled with koi.
The surrounding gardens are free and open from dawn to dusk and good for a picnic — there's a children's water-play area, a sunken Great Lawn that hosts free summer concerts, and a Thunder Fountain that runs jets of water and coloured light. The Crystal Bridge itself charges admission but is worth it; the unusual architecture (designed by I. M. Pei's firm) is half the experience.