Corona de Tucson
April 27, 2025
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| A garden of wildflowers at Tucson Botanical Gardens |
April just seems to have come and gone without much going on. We followed our vet's orders and made sure Lucy had two weeks for recovery from her surgery although it was much harder the second week than it was the first week. We have started back walking the past few days. I was surprised Lucy picked up right where we left off. She tolerates the leash and walks without pulling unless she hears another dog(s) bark or sees someone she needs to greet. We aren't quite sure how to teach her to ignore those two things and are banking on some maturity. She turned eight months old on April 20th.
Joe and I have each had a couple of appointments in Tucson. We headed straight to Baja Cafe for liege waffles with berries and danish cheese on one of our outings and ate every morsel Another day we enjoyed a nice lunch at Wildflower. I always say I'm going to try a different meal there, but always end up ordering the lobster and artichoke salad with grilled asparagus, roasted cherry tomatoes on greens served with a delicious truffle vinaigrette. We also indulged ourselves with bars of sin for desert...cappuccino mouse covered in praline chocolate with vanilla gelato...quite tasty !
Our only other outing was a spring visit to Tucson Botanical Gardens. Joe and I both agreed that the gardens were more beautiful and colorful than we have ever seen them. The iris were gorgeous...
The amaryllis were striking...
Lady's Glove were dramatic...
The poppies were vivid...
The Swallowtails were busy...
The Dove were protecting...
The bees were working...
And the guests were playing.
One of the exhibits is Beautiful Spirit : Art in Motion. The dragonfly wings are about 6 feet wide and hinged at midpoint. With a little pedal power, the wings will flap and the body moves up and down.
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| Majestic...artist Joe Benedict |
We also enjoyed the Fiesta De Los Animales exhibit. It is a collection of folk art sculptures to celebrate the imagery and symbolism from indigenous Mexican cultures. Each sculpture showcases a region and culture.
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| Hummingbird...in the style of Purepecha ceramic. Purepecha are an indigenous culture from western Mexico and their influence on folk art dates back hundreds of years. These ceramics have a limited color palette with detailed line work. |
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| Parrot...in the style of Tonala burnished earthenware. Tonala pottery dates back to pre-Hispanic times. Burnishing is a finishing technique that uses stone to polish the piece creating a smooth, shiny appearance without the use of glaze. The color is derived from iron and manganese oxides and local clays. |
And one more exhibit located in the Porter Hall is Curious Allies. It is a collection of 48 paintings in a range of styles and media that shine a light on many environmental benefits derived from mutualistic relationships between fungi, lichens, parasitic, etc and the species with which they interact...ourselves included.
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| The Fifth New York Botanical Garden Triennial with the American Society of Botanical Artists |
Tucson Botanical Gardens has been rated #4 in the country for "Best Botanical Garden" in the USA Today 10 Best Readers' Choice Awards for 2025. This marks the third consecutive year the gardens have received this national recognition. Joe and I sure enjoy our walks at the gardens. As many times as we have visited, we never tire of the beauty during all the seasons of the year.
Back at the oasis, we are enjoying the rockers. The birds come and go..the oranges have been a favorite.
And I happened to see the Cooper's hawk at the bird feeder, but by the time I grabbed the camera he was resting on the fence.
Until next time,
HAPPY TRAILS!
Lucy is just adorable! You sound like Barb when it comes to something new, she always says she is going to try something new but the fear of being disappointed and knowing that what she always gets is so good, brings her back to "the usual".
ReplyDeleteGood morning Jim…Lucy has a way of making us smile and laugh a lot! We don’t eat out that much so the things that I know are very tasty seem to always be at the top of the list. The truffle vinaigrette on the salad is what I really like the most.
DeleteWe are both bad about ordering the same thing every time in a restaurant we've been to. Mike usually always gets a hamburger and I think I'm going to try something new then don't! All your photos from the Botanical Garden are lovely--I loved the sculptures! How I would love to have all those wildflowers in my flower beds. It's snowing here this morning after getting over an inch of rain overnight.
ReplyDeleteGood morning Janna…it is really hard to wrong with a yummy burger! Joe and I enjoyed our morning and lunch at the gardens so much. Such a beautiful day! The sculptures were a nice surprise and the flowers were the prettiest we have seen! More snow? I can’t wait for photos!
DeleteGood morning Gay - Fran's diet is more restrictive than mine, so I'm more likely to try something new, but then again why mess with a favorite. The botanical garden looks like a fun way to spend the day. Your photos never disappoint.
ReplyDeleteGood morning Jeff…thank you! We don’t eat out that much, but when we do, we go to places that have favorites. Burgers at Five Guys, Sonoran dogs at BK’s, waffles at Baja, and Salmon Benedict’s at Cafe a la Carte so ordering is very easy for me. I always save room for those bars of sin at Wildflower! Joe is like you!
DeleteWhat a lovely, colorful post today Gay! Each picture made me smile. Thank you....
ReplyDeleteGood morning Sue…thank you so much! Aren’t those blooms so pretty and oh my, all the vivid colors!
DeleteI'd like to think the blooms will wait for me to get back from NM - they are spectacular!! Love the framed pieces too. How fun to play with the dragonfly :-) Lucy's soulful eyes must be challenging to resist her every want.
ReplyDeleteHi Jodee…there are always blooms at the gardens, but that visit was the prettiest of all our visits there. It is hard to resist those looks Lucy gives us and yes she is spoiled (but in a good way!).
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