Tag Archive for: Rhododendron

Our first day in Canada began with walking from our hotel to the Parliament Buildings – just a couple of blocks from our hotel.

Parliament Buildings

Victoria, is the capital of the province of British Columbia, Canada and the Parliament Buildings are quite beautiful.

This very English city is said by many “to be more English than England.”

As for me, I don’t know if I would call Victoria more English than London, but I do know that I miss the British accents 🙂

Parliament Buildings

However you feel about the ‘Englishness’ of Victoria vs. London, the Parliament Buildings certainly look very English.

It’s important to note that the Europeans weren’t the first people here in British Columbia…  

Parliament Buildings

Native Americans came here first and their importance in the past and present in this Canadian province is evident everywhere – especially when you see their iconic totem poles.

Parliament Buildings

The sight of a totem pole in front of the very English architecture of the Parliament Building is a great illustration of Victoria with two different cultures coming together and calling this beautiful area ‘home’.

Parliament Buildings
Parliament Buildings

We decided to take the self-guided tour and were handed a guidebook and got started.

Road Trip Day 6: Parliament, High Tea and Unexpected Gardens
Road Trip Day 6: Parliament, High Tea and Unexpected Gardens

The rotunda was beautiful and filled with scenes describing the history of British Columbia.

 Elizabeth II is Queen of England

We all know that Elizabeth II is Queen of England, BUT she is also Queen of Canada.  So it was no surprise that a significant portion of the  tour involved things related to English royalty.

 Elizabeth II is Queen of England

This stained glass window was created for Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee in 1897.

 Elizabeth II is Queen of England

And this stained glass window was made for Queen Elizabeth II for her golden jubilee in 2002.

The Queen has visited Canada many times, including the Parliament Buildings.

 legislative assembly

Here is where the legislative assembly meets when they are in session.

When it was designed, the seats were positioned two swords lengths to prevent any ‘accidents’ in the middle of a heated debate.  

Parliament Buildings contained a variety of colorful annuals.
Parliament Buildings contained a variety of colorful annuals.

Large beds outside of the Parliament Buildings contained a variety of colorful annuals.

Our next stop was at the Fairmont Empress Hotel.

The Empress

Commonly referred to as ‘The Empress’, there is nothing common about this famous hotel.

The Empress

The Empress is the oldest hotel in Victoria and opened in 1908. She has over 477 rooms and is perhaps best know for her ‘Afternoon High Tea’ where participants indulge in finger sandwiches, scones and tea.

The Empress

Many people were enjoying the afternoon tea. The Empress even has their own China pattern available in the gift shop.

The Empress

While the hotel is not inexpensive, you don’t have to stay there to enjoy the experience.

 fancy Royal Mail box

Walk through the lobby and see the fancy Royal Mail box or one of the staff dressed up in period costume…

white wisteria vine and dark pink rhododendron.
white wisteria vine and dark pink rhododendron.

The grounds of the hotel were beautiful with white wisteria vine and dark pink rhododendron.

California lilac shrubs (Ceanothus)

The flowers are huge.

California lilac shrubs (Ceanothus)

A hedge of California lilac shrubs (Ceanothus) added beauty to the grounds.

Road Trip Day 6: Parliament, High Tea and Unexpected Gardens
Road Trip Day 6: Parliament, High Tea and Unexpected Gardens

I love their flowers, although they aren’t fragrant.

The Empress Hotel

The The Empress Hotel sits just off of the water.

Road Trip Day 6: Parliament, High Tea and Unexpected Gardens
Road Trip Day 6: Parliament, High Tea and Unexpected Gardens

The presence of boats, ferries, sea planes and mini-water taxis won’t let you forget that you are on an island.

British Columbia

Native American vendors sold their products nearby where I bought a pair of earrings.

British Columbia

Next, it was on to Government Street and more shopping.

British Columbia
British Columbia

There were a lot of the typical souvenir shops that each sold the same items. Many of them were rather overpriced, so I limited myself to buying a small gift for my granddaughter, Lily.

We did enjoy some of the specialty shops, but did mostly window shopping.  

Lavender

Lavender is widely planted in this area and looked great in this window box.

Soon, it was time for a lunch that really wasn’t a lunch at all…  

British Columbia

Like I’ve said in earlier posts, I will really need to get back to healthy eating when I get home!

British Columbia

Victoria is well known for their iconic lamp posts and their hanging flower baskets.

Sadly, they hadn’t hung the flower containers yet during our visit. But, have you ever wondered how they water all those baskets?

Notice the drip irrigation lines…

British Columbia

The restaurant where we ate breakfast had drip irrigation going to its flowering containers.

After doing a lot of walking and exploring, we took a small break back at our hotel before heading out to afternoon tea.  

White Heather Tea Room.

There are a number of places in Victoria that serve ‘high’ tea and we made reservations at White Heather Tea Room.

British Columbia

In addition to your choice of a number of hot tea, you get a selection of finger sandwiches, smoked salmon, mini-tarts, scones, cookies and other pastries.  Top them off with clotted cream, lemon curd and/or raspberry jam and you are in heaven!

After tea, our day was winding down and we headed toward our last stop – The Government House’s gardens.

From the description in our guidebook, I expected a few acres of nicely landscaped gardens around the house. But, I wasn’t prepared for the sheer size of the gardens or how beautiful they were. I even found some plants growing there that are also growing at my home in Arizona.

British Columbia

An enclosed area boasted of fragrant rose bushes, including old-fashioned roses. The sound of the water fountain made this a very peaceful spot.

blackbird

This blackbird found the fountain a great place for a welcome drink of water.

British Columbia

Benches were strewn throughout the gardens, inviting you to stop, rest and enjoy the view.

Everywhere you looked, there was a new place to discover, including somewhat hidden areas that invited you to go in further and explore.  

British Columbia
British Columbia

Parts of the gardens were covered in grass and filled with colorful rhododendrons, but there was a large section that was filled with winding garden paths flanked by colorful perennials and succulents – the majority of which, were drought tolerant.

British Columbia

*Note the agave in the lower left corner?  Many plants that grow in both cooler climates, such as peonies and hellebores, co-existed alongside agave, Santa Barbara daisy and salvias.

purple-flowering plant

Can you guess what this purple-flowering plant is?

Believe it or not, it is the herb sage. Mine flowers at home, but not this much.

Santa Barbara Daisy (Erigeron karvinskianus)

Santa Barbara Daisy (Erigeron karvinskianus)

'Hot Lips' (Salvia greggii)
'Hot Lips' (Salvia greggii)

‘Hot Lips’ (Salvia greggii)

This salvia is growing in my garden right now.

Several huge trees dotted the property.

Government House where the lieutenant governor resides.

The 36-acre landscape surrounds the Government House where the lieutenant governor resides.

I must confess, that I took only two photos of the house and over 300 of the garden 🙂

British Columbia

While there many plants in bloom in late spring, you could also see plants that flower in winter and also those getting ready to bloom in summer.

beautiful peonies
beautiful peonies

Much to my delight, my favorite flower (that I cannot grow in my desert garden) was in bloom.  I never get over how beautiful peonies are!

Iris

Iris

Red Rhododendron

Red Rhododendron

British Columbia

These plants were growing in shallow pockets on top of this large boulder.

Large groves of Garry oak trees

Large groves of Garry oak trees stood throughout the gardens.  You could almost imagine that you were standing in a California garden.

As I stood admiring the oaks, I noticed out in the distance, a mountain range across the bay.  

Olympic National Forest in Washington state

It turns out that the view is of the mountains in the Olympic National Forest in Washington state. We were there, enjoying the beauty of those majestic mountains only the day before.

It’s really amazing how much sightseeing you can do in a short amount of time!  

British Columbia

As I finished up my tour, I circled back around the house toward the parking lot, when I saw this squirrel sitting up in the grass.

British Columbia

Whenever I find myself near a beautiful garden, I tend to disappear in order to explore more.  My husband and my mother understand this and are so patient.  In this instance, my mother and I had expected a smaller garden that would take us a few minutes to see.  But, it was soon evident that there was more to see.

My mother understands me so well and my love for gardens.  So, after she explored parts of the garden, she patiently waited in the car for my return.

The next day of our journey involves a return trip to the world famous, Butchart Gardens. I can hardly wait!  

We’ve just finished the first day of our Northwest road trip.

Northwest road trip

It all began very early this morning.  We left the house at 4:50 a.m. in order to get to the airport on time for our 6:50 flight to Portland, Oregon.

While I have traveled to the Northwest twice, this was to be my first time in Oregon and I could hardly wait to explore Portland.

Many of you may know that I am crazy for roses and that my love for them inspired me to go to school to become a horticulturist.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

So, it should come as no surprise that the International Rose Test Garden in Portland was our first stop.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

It is not only a beautiful garden open to the public – it also serves an important function to test new roses to see how they do. The pink roses, above, were undergoing testing and as a result, not been named yet.  As far as I’m concerned, they deserve to pass – they were gorgeous and had healthy foliage.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

I confess to having a preference for roses with multiple shades of color.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

I loved the unique colors of this ‘Distant Thunder’ rose, don’t you?

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

The garden was large, but not overwhelming in its size. We were able to walk around and see the roses within an hour.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

There were all sorts of roses growing there from climbing, floribunda, hybrid tea, grandiflora, miniature and old-fashioned.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

There were a few differences in the rose bushes that is not often seen in drier climates like the desert Southwest.

For one, we don’t see moss growing on rose canes.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

Also, blackspot is a fungal disease that is prevalent in humid climates and while it is a problem in the humid climate of the Northwest, it isn’t often seen in the Southwest.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

The peak bloom season for roses in Portland is still a couple of weeks away, but there were still plenty in bloom.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

Almost as fun as enjoying the roses was seeing all the different types of people who came to visit these gardens, including this little girl who was having fun by the fountain.

International Rose Test Garden in Portland

Not surprisingly, I took over 200 photographs of roses and have more than I will need for upcoming rose articles. Who knows? I may create a rose calendar for my wall next year 🙂

William Shakespeare's sentiments

I happen to share William Shakespeare’s sentiments when it comes to roses.

After a quick lunch, we headed to the Oregon Historical Society Museum, in downtown Portland, to learn more about Oregon’s history.

We then took a stroll along the South Park Blocks, which is a green space that runs through the center of Portland that is made up of 12 squares (or city blocks).  

Theodore Roosevelt

In the middle of each square is a statue or other artwork. Here is one of Theodore Roosevelt.

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln can also be seen enjoying the beauty of Portland.

Lan Su Chinese Garden.

Okay, when people say that Portland is ‘green’, they aren’t kidding. While it is so beautiful, it can be a little overwhelming to this Southwestern resident.

Our next stop was to the Far East, better known as the Lan Su Chinese Garden.  

Chinese Garden

To be honest, this wasn’t a scheduled stop on our itinerary, but we had some time to kill before we could check into our hotel and so we drove through the downtown and drove past this garden.

Well, as a mother of 3 children from China as well as having visited China myself a few times, I looked forward to looking through the garden.

entrance to the gardens.

Chinese lions guarded the entrance to the gardens.

As we stepped toward the entrance, a kind visitor offered to take me with her, using her 2-person guest pass, saving me the admission fee. (Did I mention that all the people we have met in Portland are exceptionally nice?)

Road Trip: Roses, Presidents and a Trip to the Far East

Upon entering the gardens, I was instantly transported back to China and the gardens that I had visited years ago.

pink blooms.

Rhododendrons are in full bloom everywhere you look and I really liked how the pond reflected their pink blooms.

pink blooms.

The blossoms are huge!

Chinese garden.

Being in Portland, some rain is to be expected and we got sprinkled on at the Chinese garden.

Chinese garden.

Visitors and workers enjoyed each others company. I got a kick out of seeing this garden worker working in the pink taking care of the water lilies.

Road Trip: Roses, Presidents and a Trip to the Far East

Decorative pathways made from pebbles stretched throughout the garden.

Bonsai plants

Bonsai plants were scattered about.

Road Trip: Roses, Presidents and a Trip to the Far East

While I like the look of bonsai, I lack that patience to use the technique.

Road Trip: Roses, Presidents and a Trip to the Far East

Before we left the garden, I stopped by the gift shop to buy a Chinese gift for my daughter, Gracie, who is very proud of her Chinese heritage.

Portland is a great place to visit.  The gardens are beautiful…

Road Trip: Roses, Presidents and a Trip to the Far East

And water is not in short supply as is evident from the drinking fountains that run non-stop…

Road Trip: Roses, Presidents and a Trip to the Far East

Tomorrow, we will visit Portland’s Saturday Market, which is a large arts and crafts market with ver 250 vendors. Then we are off to Tillamook (cheese) and Astoria, Oregon.

Road Trip: Roses, Presidents and a Trip to the Far East

I’ll be sure to post more tomorrow!