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Monday, January 21, 2019

Brookside Gardens-A Secret Garden

Couple of years ago, a co-worker told me about Brookside Gardens.  I visited it and fall in love with it ever since.   It’s been couple of years now and I have been visiting it at least once a year mostly in the springs and summers.  Lately, I’ve started visiting it more often and have since introduced it to my friends and family.  We all fall in love with it and have since created many enjoyable memories.

To me, it is really a secret garden.  It’s just right size to spend 1-3 hours and you would never get tired of visiting it. 
Spring is the high season since its time for the flowers to bloom and weather is comfortable.  People come with their friends and family and leisurely walk around, taking photos or just seats around in many benches place through the gardens.  Tulips gardens and azalea gardens are the highlights of spring season.  You see visitors are all very busy taking pictures of those fabulous flowers.  There are also many other flowers and trees in between the walk ways.
When the weather is nice, you can also see people jugging in the park.  However, no bikes or pets allowed.
During the summer, the park also offers “wings of fancy” live butterfly exhibit that last from June to September.  The exhibit provides opportunity for you to see different types of butterflies  imported from other countries.
Each season, the park looked quite different as you can see from the photos.  As many times as I have visited there, each time, I am delighted to see different flowers and different decorations of the gardens.  The place was recently renovated with new visitor’s center and huge parking lot so, you will never have to worried about parking.
There is also a conservatory which offers flowers all year round.  It is especially nice in the winter time when everything else turned grey and mostly outdoor flowers went on winter break.  It is a warm place for you to spend some time to feel the spring and summer again and relax.  Over the years, I’ve taken the photos for almost all the flowers of different kinds presented in the conservatory.

The gardens also provide people for wedding event and get professional photos shoot for wedding or other celebrations events in the gardens.  It is always a delight and joy for me to see people, young and old and children all dressed up walking around while get their photos taken.  Many times I also enjoy watching beautiful wedding where two beautiful young people get married.
The gardens are free for entrance.  I often wondered where do they get money for up keeping?  Does the county pay it from the tax or people donate money?

In the winter time, the gardens also present holiday lights exhibit where you can see beautiful flowers, animals made by colored lights. 


Brookside Gardens in the Spring










Brookside Gardens in the Spring










Brookside Gardens in the Summer













Brookside Gardens in the Winter












Brookside Gardens in the Fall











Monday, January 7, 2019

Walk of Lights




Walk of Lights

Another holiday season past by quickly.  Here are some photos from the winter walk of lights at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Vienna, VA during the winter holidays.  This is another park similar to Brookside Gardens and Mormon Temple, you park your car and take a walk on the ground to see the holiday lights.    This walk takes you to be with the natural:  trees, flowers, animals and gardens and lights that dancing with the music.