It is part of my holiday tradition going to Como Conservatory early on a Sunday morning with a bunch of other photographers just so I can take this picture. The conservatory is open to the public and it looks wonderful this time of year. If you want to take this same shot without any people in it you can probably do it at about 10:00 AM on a weekday.
I took this photo a couple of weeks ago in Duluth Minnesota. I just want to say that summer isn’t over and people should just stop acting like it is. The weather is warm and the leaves on the trees just barely have a tinge of yellow here and there. There is still a lot of time to go out and play before that other season gets here. It is also of course a good time to list your home with me .
One of the many things I love about St. Paul is that there are wild areas right in the city or close to it. Yesterday I went to Battle Creek Regional park where I knew I could find some of my favorite spring wildflowers blooming in the woods.
I could hear the pileated woodpeckers but none of them would pose for me. The sights and sounds and smells are so therapeutic to an urban dweller.
The bloodroot is in full bloom right now. You can find them in clumps growing in the wooded areas of the park.
On Friday my daughter got married right in downtown St. Paul.
The short ceremony was held at the Union Depot and then we had a lovely dinner and some wine at Christo’s also in the Union Depot, and then went across the street to Bedlam for drinks and dancing. The bride and groom spent their wedding night at the Saint Paul Hotel. Our downtown has several gorgeous places to have a weddings. The Union depot is well lit and immaculately clean. In my humble opinion it doesn’t need any decorations, but we could have included them.
From Alden Square to Xinia Triangle there are at least 144 parks in St. Paul. Some of the parks are on acres and acres of land and others are little patches of land along busy streets. Some parks have a sculpture or a bench while others have Picnic tables, grills, water features and swimming. One city park even has a zoo. We hold events in the parks and concerts and weddings. We love our parks.
No matter where you live in St. Paul there is a park nearby. Oh and dog parks too.
As I mentioned last week I have been doing some tourist type things with a niece who is living with us and is new to the area. It is like seeing St. Paul for the first time. Last week we toured our amazing Minnesota State Capitol building. I have been in the building several times but have not taken the official tour in many years.
The tour takes about 45 min and they have several of them each day and they start on the hour.
We were able to get on the roof for a close-up and personal look at the famous gold-leafed Quadriga. The four horses represent the power of nature: earth, wind, fire and water. The women symbolize civilization and the man standing on the chariot represents prosperity. The sculpture is called ”Progress of the State,” was sculpted by Daniel Chester French and Edward Potter and placed on the Capitol in 1906.
The Minnesota State Capitol is a masterpiece, work of art and certainly a treasure. It was designed by Cass Gilbert and features 23 types of stone. There are many paintings and works of art inside the building and on school days a lot of children too.
We also visited several of the war memorials on the State Capitol grounds including the new firefighters memorial.
Travel is wonderful but lets not forget what is right in our own back yard that people travel here to see.