Closing Out My Birthday With Food & Tulips - San Francisco 3/16

I've spent my last two posts are two amazing places in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco.  The exciting and educating California Academy of Sciences  and the historic and beautiful Japanese Tea Gardens.

The day was drawing to a close and my lovely daughter had to drive back to Los Angeles the next day.  So we decided to have dinner in the park and then she and I would head back inland.

But first, we had to walk back to Rose's car from the gardens.  On the way, I couldn't resist taking this awesome picture of Beethoven.

Okay, okay.  So it's not Beethoven himself.  He is dead after all!  This is a copy of a statue in New York City and was gifted to the city of San Francisco in 1915.

I also couldn't resist taking a picture of the succulent garden in from of CalAcademy.  I don't think the photo does justice to how vibrant and beautiful these are though.

My sis suggested the Beach Chalet, which I've actually always wanted to eat at.  But alas, it was super crowded (as I guess it usually is) and we would have had to wait at least 45 minutes.  Then we were told that the kitchen was extremely backed up and that getting food would probably take another 45 minutes or longer.

So, no thanks.  We decided to head down Highway 1 to the Cliff House, another restaurant I've wanted to try.

It's right on the ocean (Next to the absolutely gorgeous Sutro Baths) and the views are breathtaking.  There was a storm out to sea that made it look like a dream.  And right on cue, a large ocean-going ship sailed out from the Bay and headed to the shipping lanes.

This is the view of the Sutro Baths from the observation walkway on the Cliff House.

And, the sky and ocean was so incredible, that I have to post more photos!  #SorryNotSorry

Looking North, the sky and ocean became a soft pastel watercolor.

And another ship exited the Golden Gate and sailed into the storm.

I must say, my food was amazing. I had the best of the bunch, which is a good thing since it was my birthday!

I started with an endive and spinach salad with mushrooms and bacon vinaigrette.

And finished with a delicious pork chop crepinette with roasted Brussels sprouts and crisp discs of potatoes on top of a bed of mashed potatoes with a yummy sauce.  There was also an amazing pistachio mixture stuffed inside the caul.  It was just tender and full of flavors!  And there was bacon. 

After one last look at the gorgeous sunset,

We headed over to the Queen Wilhelmina Tulip Garden.  

I love tulips.  And they had the most gorgeous deep purple ones!  

And the windmill, which is so photogenic.

I did not enhance the color in the next photo.  There was one sole lavender tulip in with it's deep purple brothers. 

And of course there were other flowers as well. 

Unfortunately, it was the end of the season for the white and yellow tulips.  So I don't have any good shots of those.  I did include the bed of white tulips with the windmill in this next shot.

But since purple is my absolute favorite color, I was extremely happy that they were still in full bloom. 

One last shot of the dramatic windmill, but this time in black and white. 

And a view of the garden with blue (?) trees in the background.  I'm not sure why they are blue!  But you can see the structure of the garden with the border of hedges and purple flowers.  In the center are the deep purple tulips around a center bed of, I think, multicolored poppies.  And the white tulips are in the foreground.  The windmill is to the left, out of frame. 

And in the back are GREEN trees.  I swear.  Something I did in post production made part of the sky and tops of the trees have a blue haze.  lol  

A beautiful place to be sure.  And we only covered about a 10th of Golden Gate Park!  It has many, many wonders left to explore.  Just a word of caution, be aware of your surroundings at all time.  There are many homeless and transients in the park and you just want to be alert. 

Until next time!

xoxo

Nikon D3000

San Francisco Travelogue - Japanese Tea Gardens 3/2016

After leaving the amazing California Academy of Sciences, we wandered over to wander through the beautiful Japanese Tea Garden.

These historic gardens were first built in 1894 for the World's Fair held in San Francisco and are the oldest operating in the United States.  The truly fascinating story of how the temporary exhibition became the permanent garden is well worth reading.  Wikipedia has a comprehensive article with the history of Makoto Hagiwara and his family and how they and the Japanese Tea Garden were impacted by World War II.

As is frequently the case, the gardens were quite popular and crowded on this Saturday.  But I was still able to capture some beautiful and peaceful pictures. Such as this one looking through one of the many stone lanterns which symbolize the coming together of the five elements in the harmony of nature.

The waterfall seen through the lantern is symbolic of the purest type of cleansing of bad spirits in the Shinto religion.

Speaking of religion, the main Japanese religions of Buddhism, Shintoism, and Taoism are all well represented.

This is the Treasure Tower.  It is a five-tiered Buddhist shrine that was installed in 1915.  It was obtained after the end of that year's Panama-Pacific International Exposition, which was held in what is now the Marina District.  

The shrine was later moved to the site of the Shinto shrine, which was removed due to anti-Japanese sentiment after the war.  The fence that can be seen in the bottom of the photo is a mizugaki, or traditional Shinto picket fence.  It is unusual for a Buddhist shrine to be within the Shinto fence.

Although the site is only 5 acres, it appears to be much bigger and you feel like you can wander in the tranquil woods forever.

The peaceful Zen Garden was a favorite of mine.

Three main components in Japanese gardens are trees, water, and rocks.  Obviously, this garden has all of these and they are designed to bring a sense of calm and peace to those observing them.  

The large, ornamental gates seen in the photo below were also obtained by Mr. Hagiwara from the Pan-Pacific Expo. 

March is one of the best times to visit this beautiful place.  
Not only are the California blossoms in full bloom...

...but the magnificent cherry blossoms are in full bloom as well!  

The lower part of the Gardens are filled with beautiful water features with koi, flat stepping stones, and statuary.  

From this lower vantage point one can look up and see the pagodas standing tall amongst red and green foliage on the hillside.  If you look closely to the lower right, you can see another cleansing waterfall. 

This tree was very cool, leaning over one of the ponds.  I have a hard time believing its "lean" is intentional, but everything is so planned and well-placed that it may well be.  

One of the most eye-catching items in a garden full of them, is the Drum Bridge.  Designed to slow foot traffic, these extremely arched bridges reflect a circle in the water below, which, coupled with the design of the railing, looks like a drum.  

As expected, the architecture and details in the structures are as beautiful and important as the placement of the rocks, trees, and water.   

Well worth a closer look...

Such a visually stunning experience and so very peaceful, even with the crowds of people.  Definitely a must-visit when you are in Golden Gate Park.  I hope you've enjoyed this peak at the Japanese Tea Gardens in Spring!  

xoxo

Nikon D3000

Birthday Butterflies, Toads, & Jelly at California Academy of Sciences San Francisco 3/16

Turning the big 5-0 is not something I have dreaded or had any sort of mid-life crisis about.  I mean...I do feel hella old now.  Which is completely new to me since I've never felt old before, but I'm going to blame that more on what a rough year this one has been and the health problems I've had rather than just...you know...being old.

But just as turning 50 wasn't really something to fear, I really didn't want to exactly CELEBRATE it either!  I'm sure you know what I mean.  lol  So when my daughter and sister asked what I was planning for my birthday, I said that I would love to go to San Francisco while Adrienne was home on Spring Break.  I wanted to visit a museum and/or do something outdoors (of course).

We settled on the amazing California Academy of Sciences which fits both bills.  Adrienne and I had never been, but Rose had so she acted as our tour guide.  First thing we saw walking in the entry is a gigantic T-Rex skeleton.

I was so excited to get to the Rainforest, but there were many cool things to see on the way.  A fan favorite at every aquarium caught our attention and we made out way to a clear pool filled with rays and sharks.

If you're into amphibians, CalAcademy is the place for you!

They have various terrariums and aquariums set up here and there so there is always something fascinating and beautiful to see.

After oooing and aaahing at the various species, we finally entered the Rainforest.  The difference in atmosphere is felt immediately.  The air is much hotter and very humid of course.  You really get the sense of being under a rainforest canopy as you enter at ground level.  Your senses are alight with visions of butterflies, songs of birds, and the smell of plants and water.

Much to my disappointment, it was hard to get a clear picture of the birds flitting in the trees.

The beautiful bromeliads were another story, making brilliant splashes of color against a background of green.

As did the gorgeous and varied butterflies!

Looking down from the pathways of the rainforest, you can see into the aquarium below with it's wild-looking creatures.

Look out for butterflies!!

Once you reach the top of the rainforest, there are more terrariums with cool creatures.

When you're ready to depart, you must check yourself carefully for any hitchhiking butterflies and then board the elevator which stops only at the bottom.  The mirrored walls assist you with further checks for wannabe escapees; once you're all clear, you exit the room and step right into the  underwater beauty of the deep ocean.

There you tour the California coast and all it's creatures.  Of course there is a wonderful hands-on tidepool exhibit where I couldn't resist spending some time learning about the amazing creatures.

And of course, there are jellyfish.  I love jellies.  This is the beautiful Man O' War.

And I believe these are Moon jellyfish.

I stood and watched this tank for quite awhile.  It's so soothing. I could seriously spend all day watching these.

We made our way back upstairs (with a brief stop to look at the top of the lagoons)

And a stop in the Naturalist Center where Adrienne and I had a wonderful chat with a curator about nature birds and Rose made a paper butterfly. 

Then we hit the living rooftop.  This is the DeYoung Museum which sits just across the street. 

Then, it was time for out last stop of the day... The African Hall to watch their colony of African Penguins at feeding time.  They are adorable and amazing. 

All in all, it was a wonderful and education time spent with family.  I would highly recommend this museum and will definitely be returning there in the future!

xoxo

Nikon D3000