Springtime brings beautiful flowers and every year we try to go somewhere to see some of nature's gorgeous blooms. This year we chose The Arboretum in Arcadia. But before heading up the freeway, we started the morning with a scrumptious breakfast at The Avocado House.
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| The Avocado House, Chino, CA |
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| Clockwise from Left - Queen Tina, Joy, Annie, Carol L, Debbie, Carol N |
While we were ordering our food, we ran into one of our former F.R.I.E.N.D.S., Kay Murray, who moved to Tennessee last year. She was back for a visit. How fun to run into her . . . small world for sure! I'm sorry I didn't think to grab the camera and take a photo of all of us with her . . . .
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| Under the Avocado Tree |
Next stop, The Arboretum in Arcadia. This place is huge . . . 127 acres of multiple gardens displaying flowers, plants and trees from all over the world, lots of walking paths, specialty gardens, ponds, waterfalls, fountains, greenhouses, and various kinds of wildlife. It's a place you need to go back to several times to see it all - there's way too much to take in in just one day.
Because a picture is worth a thousand words, here's an idea of some of the beauty of this place . . .
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| Trying to decide what to see first |
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| Mr. Peacock, the official greeter and ambassador of The Arboretum |
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| There were peacocks everywhere, showing off their gorgeous feathers |
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| Hello, and welcome to The Arboretum |
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| It is mating season now, and this is the object of his affections. |
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| This one had his eye set on Carol N. |
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| And this one wanted to be our tour guide |
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| Photo Opp - Joy, Carol N., Queen Tina, Debbie, Carol L., Annie |
We saw a sign that said "Geranium Show", so of course, being lovers of these gorgeous flowers, we had to see what that was all about. Once inside, we were overwhelmed by the variety of colors and shapes of "geraniums". What we were soon to find out is that these aren't geraniums at all, but are actually "pelargoniums". There was an expert inside who gave us a full discourse on the subject. So now we are fully educated and informed, and we're fully prepared if we are ever on Jeopardy. I just think it's hilarious that their own sign said "geraniums". We all came home with a few new plants to add to our flower beds. Here's just a small sample of the different varieties . . .
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| Pelargoniums |
After the "geranium show", we continued exploring . . . here's some of what we saw . . .
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| Loved this tree with the crooked limb |
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| See how these flowers vary in color on the same plant? It's called "Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow" |
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| Weeping Bottle Brush |
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| Pretty Areas |
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| Vegetable Garden - Wish I had raised planters like these - so much easier on the back! |
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| Banana Tree |
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| Inside the Tropical Greenhouse |
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| Gorgeous Ferns |
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| Cactus Garden |
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| Shrimp Plant |
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| Inside the Orchid House |
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| What we are standing in front of in the pic above |
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| More Gorgeous Orchids |
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| Holly Hocks |
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| Where's Waldo? Can you find the peacocks in the tree? Hint - There are two of them! |
We decided to take the tram ride so we could get an overview of the entire place. So glad we did, there is so much to see, way too much for just one day. This at least gave us a glimpse of what to come back to see on another day.
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| On the tram |
Here's some of what we saw from the tram . . .
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| Recognize this from "Fantasy Island"? "Da Plane. Da Plane"? More about this later. |
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| Mr. & Mrs. Goose and family |
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| Gorgeous view of the San Gabriel Mountains |
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| Mayberg Waterfall - Later Queen Tina helped direct a young girl to this location, where her boyfriend was waiting with a sign inviting her to the prom. Young Love! (Sigh) |
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| Snowball Tree (I think?) |
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| Turtles on Tule Pond |
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| Bauer Lawn & Fountains |
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| Shades of Africa |
After our tram ride, we made a quick stop at . . . .
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| The Gift Shop |
Annie had to leave to meet her granddaughters, and Tina found a comfy bench to relax on and enjoy a great view, while the rest of us ventured on around Baldwin Lake and the Historic Circle.
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| Mr. and Mrs. Duck |
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| Elephant Tree |
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| Queen Anne Cottage, dating back to 1885, described as an ornate example of Victorian extravagance set in a lakeside landscape (and used for some of the"Fantasy Island" exterior shots). We wanted a closer look. |
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| Carol L, Debbie, Joy, Carol N in front of Queen Anne Cottage |
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| Inside Queen Anne Cottage - Wonderful Victorian Age Furnishings |
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| Coach Barn - Dating back to 1879 |
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| Inside the Coach Barn - lunch anyone? |
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| There was even a dog house to match. |
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| California Poppy |
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| One last pose |
What a gorgeous day and such a beautiful place to walk around and
appreciate some of God's amazing creativity! Thank you, Queen Tina, for
inviting us to join you for this awesome day at The Arboretum. We absolutely must do this again!
