Wednesday, April 30, 2008

L.A. COUNTY ARBORETUM

I haven't been to the Los Angeles County Arboretum since I went as a kid in elementary school on a field trip. All I remember was being on the tram, the peacocks and a whole punch of trees and plants. Its about the same but as an adult I appreciate it in a different way and I think that much like the Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens it is a photographer's dream location.

There is a difference between the Arboretum and the Huntington Library in that the Huntington Library seems more funded, more manicured and they have more buildings. It is a museum/library and research center. The Arboretum is strictly botanical gardens. The truth is, I actually enjoyed the Arboretum more. First of all it was less crowded. Second, I so enjoyed the peacocks that were just everywhere. I saw more birds, butterflies, ducks, geese and squirrels than at the Huntington.


Before I even got to the entrance building there was a peacock out front that had all of the little snaggle toothed kids who just got off the bus in awe. I was in awe too and happily took a few pictures of this beautiful bird strutting it's stuff. I paid, walked through the door and didn't get a few feet before I saw another peacock perched in a tree.

If the amount of pictures I took is anything, I took 468 pictures by the end of my little adventure and a lot of them were peacocks. The tram wasn't working today. If you're going to go and you don't want to walk a lot, please call in advance and check to see if their tram is running. They were doing a lot of work and planting so roads were restricted for tram use. I walked, and walked, and walked but probably saw a lot I would not have seen otherwise.

My favorite part of the Arboretum was the Tropical Forest around Baldwin Lake. For a short while it was easy to feel that I had actually stepped into a tropical forest. The drop in temperature was immediately felt - cool, tranquil and quiet except for the squawking birds. Take a little walk with me and see some of what I saw....



I thorougly enjoyed my day out at the Arboretum. If you're looking for something to do put on your walking shoes, take your camera and venture out to the L.A. Arboretum and Botanical Gardens. Its $7.00 for adults, $3.00 for the tram and parking is free. It's directly across from the Santa Anita racetrack. Get up to the 210 and exit on Baldwin. It's about 2 blocks south of the 210.

Monday, April 28, 2008

THE ROSE AWARD


I'm really touched to have been passed along The Rose Award which was given to me by Edagowa over at Black Tennis Pro. This rose award has been passed along by some lovely women that I'm going to acknowledge here:

Sojourner's Place
Opinionated Black Woman
Coffee Stained News
360 Degreees of Diversity
Black Factor
Vanessa: Unplugged

Thank you SO much for this award. In turn I'm going to pass along this wonderful Rose Award to:

Iriegal at Time To Eat Mon for always making me hungry

Raw Dawg Buffalo for keeping it real and stroking the wrinkles in my brain

A-6 Dude over at The Dry Martini for all of his great martini recipes.

Have a wonderful day everyone and thanks for making me smile.

Sunday, April 6, 2008

CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVAL


I started to do the lazy thing and stay home. I mean, it was cloudy, kind of chilly and it was a perfect day to stay home, stay inside and do nothing. But at the last minute I decided to go to the 7th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival in Little Tokyo in downtown Los Angeles.

I'm glad I decided to go. It only cost me gas and $5.00 for parking. I met a fellow blogger/crafter who gave me a lesson in a form of japanese fabric painting called shibori. Check out her blog and the clip below:



I saw Ernest Thomas who you might remember from the t.v. show What's Happening. He's producing a rather good looking man named Une (pronounced yoo-nay), who has a CD coming out in about a week (I think), and sang the national anthem:



I didn't stay for a long time so I didn't see any of the shows or entertainment that was planned outside of the opening ceremony and the martial arts demonstration. Still, I love the vendors and the wide variety of things to see, buy and eat. I hope you enjoy my pictures of my day at the festival.

Get out and see L.A. There so many cultures to experience and so many things to enjoy.