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Flowers & Other Stories: Spring Gardens I Love
The garden at the Lincoln Green Inn in Carmel-by-the-Sea is an all-time favorite! Flowers make me happy, how about you? In the spring, Monterey County bedazzles with a bevy of blossoms. Gardens here become a riot of color and texture, as flowers tell their stories. I love seeing the blossoms magically appear, and like turning the pages in a book, discovering all the colors and textures as each garden comes alive. Here are some of my favorite local gardens in the spring.
I love the foxgloves growing outside this stone cottage in Carmel in the spring. Cottage gardens have always pulled at my heartstrings, how about you?
The spring flowers in the gardens at the Cooper Molera Adobe in Old Monterey are breathtaking. Sweet peas make me swoon; their scent is amazing!
Fairytale gardens are like stories I want to read again and again. These flowers in Carmel-by-the-Sea are simply magical.
In the spring, the gardens at Casa del Oro and the Pacific House in Monterey are enchanting.
The Church of the Wayfarer in Carmel-by-the-Sea has a lovely flowers year round, but in the spring it simply sparkles.
The Maple Park area in Salinas has many quaint vintage homes with magnificent gardens. I love the roses lining the old stone wall at this one.
Even the smallest homes with the tiniest yards can have the loveliest gardens. This one is located in Pacific Grove.
Larkin House in Monterey has a beautiful secret garden that just exudes peacefulness. There are benches everywhere to sit and relax. I love the rose covered pergola. There is even a very old stone well in the garden!
Another beauty from Carmel-by-the-Sea. Do you love the house or the flowers more?
My dog Sasha with some of my favorite spring flowers–primroses! I hope you enjoyed flowers and other stories. You may also like What the Color of Your Flowers Says About You and Enchanting Gardens of Carmel-by-the-Sea. Wishing you peace, love, happiness & beautiful vistas!
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Quarantine in Captivating Carmel-by-the-Sea
Even though the quarantine has disrupted many travel plans, I feel so blessed to live in this area. I hope that everyone has a chance someday to visit Carmel-by-the-Sea, located in central coastal California, and witness first hand this captivating and charming town. I have previously written other blog posts about Carmel-by-the-Sea, including Gardens of Carmel-by-the-Sea, Garden Gate Inspiration from Carmel-by-the-Sea, and Fairy Tale Cottages in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Even though shops and art galleries are still closed, many of the amazing restaurants here are open with take out and social distanced al fresco dining. And fortunately, the pandemic can’t hamper one of the most fun things to do here, just walk around. You will feel like you are in a fairy tale, because this little seaside town just happens to be home to some of the loveliest cottages and gardens in the area.
It all started in the early 1900s, when Hugh Comstock built the town’s first fairy tale cottage for his wife, Mayotta. The homes he built featured steep roofs, arched windows and doors, and rustic stone chimneys. His cottages have been duplicated over the years, and have inspired generations of delightful homes, so that walking through many of the side streets you may imagine you are no longer in America, but rather, in a charming English village.
The gardens in Carmel-by-the-Sea are simply the icing on the cake. From fetching window boxes, to picket fences, to lovely archways and stone walls, there is an eye-catching assortment of detail. Colorful flowers paint the landscape around these storybook homes with a beautiful palette of colors and textures.
Quarantine or not, it is clear that many people here are passionate about gardening and put a great deal of time and love into their gardens. I would like to personally thank them for all the inspiration and cheerfulness they provide to us passers-by!
A quirky thing about Carmel-by-the-Sea is that all the homes have names instead of house numbers. Most of the home names are pretty or cute, but I like the name I saw on one the best of all: “Nobody’s Perfect”!
This home is called “Irish Rose”. The latest addition to Carmel-by-the-Sea, on 6th Avenue & Mission, this Instagrammable wall mural was being completed while my friend Amy @seasaltandcypress and I were dining al fresco at nearby Grasings. Opinion has been mixed, folks either love it or hate it. I love it!
Someday, I hope the word quarantine will be obsolete. I hope that we all have discovered what is most important in life. I hope that we have learned to slow down and appreciate the beauty around us. I hope we never again take anything for granted and have learned to be grateful for all good things. If you do someday visit Carmel-by-the-Sea, dear friend, here is my parting advice. The best way to end the day is to take a leisurely stroll down to the beach and enjoy the soothing lull of the ocean waves and the color-drenched sunset. Because in Carmel-by-the-Sea, fairy tales really do come true.
Thank you for visiting my blog! Wishing you peace, love, happiness, & beautiful vistas.
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Stop and Smell the Roses in San Jose!
Footfalls echo in the memory, Down the passage which we did not take, Towards the door we never opened, Into the rose-garden~T. S. Eliot.
San Jose is home to some pretty amazing places, including their Municipal Rose Garden. Since I absolutely love roses, I had to check it out. I am so glad I did!
Located at the corner of Naglee & Dana in San Jose, the garden is housed on 5.5 acres. Beginning in April, thousands of colorful roses begin to bloom, creating a vivid and stunning kaleidoscope of color and scent. The garden is home to more than 3500 plantings, and contains over 189 varieties of roses.
A sense of peacefulness overwhelmed me when I entered this oasis. The hustle and bustle of the city seemed to melt away, like ice in the warmth of the sun. It seemed as though time stood still.
There are many pathways to explore throughout the rose garden. Each path leads to new landscapes of color and delight.
In the center of the garden is a huge pool with a two-tiered fountain, called the “reflection pool”. It is surrounded by benches where you can indeed sit and reflect upon the beauty around you.
The Municipal Rose Garden was once home to a prune orchard. In 1927, the Santa Clara County Rose Society voted to create a rose garden. Groundbreaking for the new rose garden took place in 1931, in 1937 it was offically dedicated, and today is a historic landmark.
You can enjoy the colorful blooms here from April through November, although the optimal time to visit is in May.
Did you know that the Rose Garden is also home to brand new, unseen before rose varieties? It is one of only a handful of gardens chosen by the All-American Rose Selections to test new roses before they are available to you and me. In 2010, it was awarded “America’s Best Rose Garden”, beating out more than 130 other public rose gardens in the first nationwide competition of its kind. It is no surprise that it has also been voted the best location to get married. Who wouldn’t want their nuptials held in such a romantic and beautiful place?
I love the names of some of the roses, including “Betty Boop”, “Angel Face”, “Alchymist”, and “San Jose Sunshine”!
The Garden is filled with lush, grassy areas, and at the edge is shaded by majestic redwood trees. You are sure to find the perfect spot to relax. Bring a picnic lunch or a book and enjoy the serenity!
Hours: 8 am to 8 pm daily.Admission: Free.
Location: Dana Avenue & Naglee Avenue, San Jose, California, 95126
Website: Municipal Rose Garden
Thank you for visiting my blog. Wishing you peace, love, happiness & beautiful vistas!
