San Diego - Day 3 PM

Fooled you, didn't I!  You thought you'd finished with Day 3 yesterday, but I was being kind.  In the afternoon of that day, we went to Balboa Park so we could visit both the rose garden and the cactus garden - and things in between, too.  Lots and lots of photos, but I will try not to overload your senses!

The rose garden first. It had been cool in San Diego so the roses weren't as far along as we hoped.  Also because it was breezy, the fragrance of the blossoms eluded us.  But here are my three favorites.

Such a beautiful dusty pink that opened to a very unusual color.

A glorious yellow that reminds me of the sun.  

Finally, a red with just a few streaks of white.

Now three from the koi pond.

This is a photo I really like: colors, shapes, textures.  They all came together in this one.

My koi photos surprised me a lot.  When I took the pictures of these fish in somewhat murky water, I expected little to nothing.  But a quick click on a Picasa button, and the water cleared to magically reveal these fish.

The colors of these fish are remarkable, and I can't wait to use them in a painting.  Wonder if  I'll have to "murk" up the water I paint?

The cactus garden was my favorite of the areas in Balboa Park we visited that day.  The sculptural quality of cactus plants is always amazing and sometimes even bizarre.

This cactus looks like wired ribbon with fuzzy buttons on the edges to me.  It's quite tall, and as you can probably tell, impressive against the blue, blue sky.

When I said "bizarre" this plant's flower illustrates what I mean.  But I have to admit that I not sure if it's technically a cactus.  It's an agave which I think is its own family, but I didn't check that out.  Sorry.

Its flower looks so soft and fluffy, doesn't it?  I behaved myself and didn't touch it so I can't tell you if it is or not.

Cactus adrift in a sea of flowers.

These little guys look like pouting hedgehogs to me.  But they're not that little and they're quite spiney so I will behave when around them!  The yellow blossoms were just beginning to open when we were there.

We can't forget the trees!

The eucalyptus trees have a very distinctive profile and bark.  Great for sketches!

Lovely ornamental tree against that California blue sky!

A very unique shape on this tree, and I should know what it is, but I can't remember it.  Can you make out the red blooms?  Like a magnolia, this tree appears to flower before the leaves appear.

And here's the blossom.

Back to the cactus garden for a moment to view my favorite photo - the seed head of a plant silhouetted against some gray agave leaves.