All posts filed under: Explore.

entwined.

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Need a fun, easy, magical date night idea for the whole family? Now through March 12, Entwined is on display at Peacock Meadow in Golden Gate Park. It’s described as a ‘dazzling forest of light.’ It really is dazzling! I love a good art installation. Entwined is colorful and mesmerizing. There is an interactive component, too. Scan the QR code on one of the ‘flowers’ when you get there. You’ll get added to the queue to control the lights – the intensity, the colors – to create your custom art show. The field is covered in hay and they have a few chairs for sitting and admiring the display. All that was missing was a warm cup of cocoa. SF Parks Alliance hosts events on select days including salsa dancing, arts and crafts, and yoga! I didn’t do enough research before going, but apparently there are knots in the ‘trees’ where you can view miniature art created by local artists. I’ll have to go back. It seems like worth a visit during day just before …

hello dah-ling.

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Some major flower crown inspiration here! I’ve been wanting to visit the dahlia farms in Petaluma. I didn’t have the opportunity to go this season, but I did get to visit the dahlias in Golden Gate Park. This garden is near the San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers and is maintained by the Dahlia Society of California. It’s a small garden but packed with so many varieties of dahlias! Apparently, dahlias come in a range of sizes from 2 inches in diameter to over 10 inches! Some, I didn’t recognize to be dahlias. They are all so different! Lucky me, they were in full bloom on my visit (first weekend in October). I later learned that dahlias are the official flower of San Francisco, so it seemed fitting to go see the San Francisco dahlia garden first (before Petaluma). Are you a dahlia fan? What’s your favorite variety? Mine is all. 🙂

places.

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I’ve only recently started to be brave enough to go places. It helps, too, that I am on maternity leave and can do more weekday adventuring. (Weekend adventuring is too crowded.) Here are some outdoor spots in the East Bay that make great social distancing adventures for when you need to get out of the house. Alameda Beach, Alameda / Grab a spot on the sand and feel like you’re on your own private beach. Visitors are really good at keeping a good distance away from each other. Castro Park, El Cerrito / They’ve let the grass dry out so it’s not super lush, but there is a lot of space to spread out and have a socially distanced picnic under your tree of choice. Shimada Friendship Park, Richmond / A lovely spot for watching sunset. There are lots of people exercising along the water and it’s bit more crowded here in the late afternoon; beware of non-mask wearers. Lucretia W. Edwards Shoreline Park, Richmond / This one is a small park, but really lovely. …

travel journaling.

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Whenever I go on a big trip I bring along a notebook to do some journaling. I usually go for a watercolor book because the paper is dreamy and textured. Sharing a little of my Japan travel journal today! I try to journal everyday on vacation to document highlights and everything we did during the day. And I decorate with things I find on my trip. In Japan, I found Kitta washi tape books and sakura washi paper stickers. These were perfect for adding accents to my journal pages. I also save all receipts, booklets, and little paper finds in case I want to include additional decorations. I add these at the very end, usually when I get back from my trip. Some of the local travel guides had cute images of places we visited; I liked including these, too. I sometimes create pockets in my journals to store small booklets, too. And I do lots of doodling (mostly food doodles). Do you journal on vacay? Share your journaling tips and habits below.

the other rbg.

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My “craft fame” brought me to this hidden gem: the Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek! I was invited to teach a crafty workshop in the garden this spring so I came for a tour of the workshop space. If the weather is good I’ll be teaching out on the patio with garden views; if it’s cold we’ll set up indoors in the new event space. After my crafty workshop tour, I got to explore the garden! It is a beauty! The Bancroft family owned over 400 acres of Walnut Creek. The property was a fruit farm in the late 1800s and was passed down for generations. Eventually, the family sold much of the land and the last of the fruit trees were cut down. Philip Bancroft, Jr, encouraged his wife Ruth to take over the land with her plant collection. Apparently, she owned so many potted plants – she was an original plant lady! The garden now sits on 3.5 acres, and their original family home still sits on the property (you can see …

art of DC.

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Washington DC is full of art, too! I visited the National Portrait Museum, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, and spotted murals and neighborhood art all over town. National Portrait Museum When I go to art galleries I like to get up close with the art and see all the textures in the paintings. At the National Portrait Museum I got to see Barack Obama’s portrait. It was even more amazing in person – so colorful and grand. Blagden Alley I love, love, love alleys with murals! I enjoyed reading about Blagden Alley’s history, too. It made walking through so much more meaningful. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden At the Hirshhorn I spotted a Pollack and a Mondrian! There was a special Manifesto exhibit and in the video room they timed it so the 13 character monologues were at one point in sync and almost chanting with each other. Art! Also at the Hirshhorn, a sculpture series which I didn’t quite understand, but I had to photograph all the pieces. Watermelon House We spotted the …

landmarks of DC.

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In addition to touring gardens, I did some touristing to national monuments and historic sites! Everywhere you look there’s a piece of history and a story. I enjoyed walking everywhere because you could stop and discover places and hidden gems. Apple Carnegie Library Logan Circle Park Major General George Henry Thomas Statue U.S Department of the Treasury The White House and the National Christmas Tree Pershing Park / John J. Pershing General of the Armies Dupont Circle Fountain Lafayette Square / Major General Marquis Gilbert de Lafayette Statue United States Capitol World War II Memorial Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool and Washington Monument Famous Homes: John Logan House, Richard and Agnes Dolph Nixon’s Home, House Where Lincoln Died, Duke Ellington’s Childhood Home Chinatown Friendship Archway National Museum of African American History and Culture United States Department of Agriculture From the road – Thomas Jefferson Memorial and Potomac River Have you been to DC? What are some of your must see historic sites?

gardens of DC.

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I went on a work trip to Washington DC and I made sure to go exploring every chance I got! This was my first time back since my junior year of high school. I remember visiting places I had learned about in history class. This time, at the top of my list were gardens and art museums/installations! Behold, the gardens of DC. United States Botanic Garden. The U.S. Botanic Garden spans a section of the National Mall. I was so excited to be there, the lobby folks gave us additional coloring books and orchid-gami sheets for enthusiasm! 🙂 There were different gardens to explore – desert plants, medicinal plants, the tropics, and my favorite – the edible garden! They also had an exhibit featuring gardens around the United States. My favorite was the Tucson Botanical Gardens display with the blue walls. Community Garden at Woodrow Wilson Plaza. We stumbled upon a community garden while exploring town. For part of the year they hold Friday Farmers Markets in the space. We spotted giant okra. Enid A. …

lake loop.

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Another 24 Lake Tahoe vacay! My parents drove up for their annual Tahoe trip; Hubby and I met them over the weekend. Here’s a peek at our whirlwind adventure! En route we stopped at Rosemary’s Farm to Fork Cafe for avocado toast, chicken and waffles, lemonade, and tea. We also stopped for treats at Mahoroba Japanese Bakery. And when we got to Tahoe, a homecooked dinner was waiting for us! And we found snacks in the pantry. QT ensued! We woke up early to enjoy sunrise at our Tahoe home, but whoopsies, we didn’t realize the sun would rise more to the north so we couldn’t really see it break through from our vantage point. It was still pretty. We suited up and headed to breakfast before the crowds at The Old Post Office Cafe. I’ m a sucker for biscuits and gravy. And then for the first time, we looped the lake in one day. We weren’t planning to, but we just kept going. 🙂 We stopped every so often for nature views… Fancy …

folsom is hot.

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Hubby’s Tennis Team went to District Championships this year (again, yay!). Their schedule was a lot better than last year’s schedule which meant there was time for a farmers market trip in Historic Folsom. The market is held every Saturday 8-1PM, and there’s a parking structure for easy and ample parking. The market is a good size, maybe 30-40 vendors and they had a nice mix of fresh produce, ready to eat foods, handmade items, and services like knife sharpening and chair massage. I wanted to get all the produce, but since we were traveling I just admired all the yummies. I mean, look at these luscious tomatoes! Hubby opted for a post-tennis match chair massage and, since it was 100 plus outside, I opted for a java chip popsicle from Tahoe Pops. Yezz. For food, there was a vegan food truck, Filipino food stand, lemonade, tamales, and coffee. I picked up a chicken tamal and a chile relleno tamal, plus a 24oz iced chai. Yezz, again. Gotta keep cool in the heat. For handmade …