We were greeted by this wonderful frog sculpture, so we knew the place was A-OK!
Benjamin loves frogs... as you regular readers know! You can see he even has on a frog shirt (one of many).
We visited the Conservatory which was full of amazing pants, flowers, small sculptures, waterfalls and humidity. That cost an extra dollar. Otherwise most of the gardens are FREE. How very generous of the city of FW.
Then we walked through several loops and pavilions and vistas seeing all kinds of wonderful things that you will never find in my backyard. I especially liked the herb garden where we fondled all the interesting smelling geraniums. Chocolate mint?! Superfantastic.
Then we paid another very small entry fee for the Japanese Gardens which were really spectacular. Life size Zen garden. I should have taken this picture which something for scale... those rocks are probably 2 to 4 feet across. It's not a little desktop thingy like you see in trendy catalogs.
Gigantic greedy koi. Happy sweaty kids.
Stepping stones and half moon bridge in the background. Green Green Green!
Is this a great blue heron? He didn't mind us being so close. What a great place for him to hang out.
There were also many wonderful Japanese style statues. I took pictures of nearly every one which I will post separately. We have a bit of an Asian theme going on in our bathroom and I think they could make a great little grouping above the tub.
Then we proceeded on to the Rose Garden. We were all running very low on energy. We hadn't eatten enough and it was (not surprisingly) hot. We did manage to squeeze in two letterboxes before we completely self-destructed. We'll definetely go back to complete the series of four boxes.
On the way out, we ran into an older couple. At first glance I thought, "Hmmm, she's sprinking some kind of plant food on the roses." Then I picked up a few other clues and realized she was spreading ashes. It was Memorial Day and a lovely location. It seemed right. My dad, who is an Episcopal priest, chatted with them briefly and offered to say some prayers, which he did.
Then we drove home in the air conditioned car.
7 comments:
Deborah, I love your trip through the Botanical Gardens. That is one of my favorite places!!
I have posted links to both your blogs on the North Central Texas Mixed Media page. Hope you'll be joining us in Granbury next Saturday!
Are you missing Maine weather? Oh, I wish I was with your parents. I am starting to get caboin fever. I love the botanical garden photos - thanks for sharing.
Sounds like a wonderful day trip. The kids looked like they really enjoyed it! It's funny, but I don't usually think of Texas as being so lush and green. Thanks for sharing the great pictures. You'll have to give us more details on your parents' trip to Germany! It sounds really neat.
The gardens are glorious... there is something about the Japanese aesthetic that so appeals to me. At a workshop I took several years ago, one woman had a book of Japanese architectural detail as an inspiration source for her art quilts. It has been on my amazon wishlist ever since! When I hit the lottery, one of the first things I'm gonna do is buy just about every book on my wish list!
Looking forward to the next round of photos, and it's SO good to see you all, even if just over the ether!
Hugs, Sarah
We *love* the Japanese garden in Fort Worth. I've used up many rolls of film there over the years. Your pictures are great!
That looks so much like the Portland Japanese Garden--what a beautiful place. I love going to our Japanese Garden on the hottest days--seems cooler and more peaceful there.
That frog sculpture is great! And what a cute picture of your son and the frog.
I love visiting botanical gardens and those look lovely. Thank you for sharing your visit with us!
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