Traipsey Turveybecause I love

Most of you may know that the MOMster and I have are members of The Huntington Library.  As such, we get special perks including updates on the infamous Corpse Flower! This flower is called titan arum or Amorphophallus titanum which basically means giant p3n1s! I’ve seen the famed flower and it DOES look like one, more so now that it’s not in full bloom!  Quick trivia:  It’s called bunga bangkai in Indonesia.  What I find to be interesting is that these words mean the same in Filipino!  (bunga means fruit and bangkai [bankay in Filipino] means corpse).

This flower is closely related to the calla lily due to its inflorescence and is indigenous to Sumatra.  I read a pamphlet at The Huntington about their flower and it looks like they have a few plants in their greenhouse.  Since this flower only blooms only a few times and NOT every year, the act of blooming is hailed as a celebration.  Of course I’m being dramatic but when they bloom they do cause quite a stir.

We went there last Tuesday for a special preview for Huntington members only and the flower itself is not yet in full bloom.  It is already pretty large but it still doesn’t stink because they only emit their rotting smell when in full bloom.  The Library did provide a small squeeze bottle in their display and if you’re brave enough sniff the lovely perfume that is the Corpse Flower’s smell.  Naturally, I gave it a whiff and peeeeeeeeeyyyyyeeeeeeeewwwww!  It was definitely stinky!

I knew that the flower was at The Huntington but I never expected it to bloom this year!  I can’t wait to see it in all it’s glory!  Below is a photo of the flower in full bloom from Wikipedia.

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Last weekend, we went to The Flower Fields in Carlsbad, California.  That was my second trip there but this time, I brought my Ashton with me!  Exciting?  Yes it was!

The Flower Fields is a fifty acre field of Giant Tecolote Ranunculus flowers that is open to the public for approximately six to eight weeks annually.  Unfortunately, The Flower Fields are already closed because the flowers are already out of season.  We were just lucky to catch the last of the spring blooms and capture their glory.

The Flower Fields is an actual working ranch and is the only ranch that allows tourists to walk around and experience their beauty.  Of course, picking of the flowers are not permitted but you can purchase some freshly picked blooms available at the store.

I was just uber lucky to go and stay in between the flowers.  Doesn’t it look like I’m standing smack dab in the middle of the field?  Well, I thought so.

The weather was a bit overcast when we were there so unfortunately, I didn’t get to shoot blue skies over the field but I think these photos still look great.

The Flower Fields also have a rose garden and a poinsettia greenhouse where they breed different kinds of poinsettias the whole year round.  Imagine seeing yellow poinsettias?  That was the first time I saw one, mind you.

I checked out the sweat pea maze but didn’t get to finish it because they were already wilted.

Another thing that you can do at The Flower Fields is to go on Wagon Rides that circles the field.  This a good way to see the field in it’s entirety while sitting back and relaxing atop the wagon.

The different faces of the ranunculus

You could also walk around the fields at your own pace but tours are also available.

See more of my flower photos here.

The Flower Fields | 5704 Paseo Del Norte, Carlsbad, CA 92008 | Website

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I  have been luckier that most.  See, California is riddled with numerous theme parks and I have already been to four, no five of them.  As someone who loves to go to theme parks, California is the place to be, right?

While growing up, I wasn’t able to go to one aside from the yearly Carnaval that materializes every November during the City Fiesta.  Now, those rides are old at best and dubious at worst.  With all the rust and peeling paint…well, let’s just say it puts scary to an all new meaning!  This isn’t to say I didn’t ride on them rides because I did!  Heck, what choice did we have?  I rode on a rickety and rusty coaster, a scary octopus ride, an enclosed Ferris Wheel, rode numerous Go Carts, been on a Carousel (which I must say was safest ride!), saw numerous magic shows and avoided the “side-show freaks” because I  thought they were demeaning.  I’m sure a few of my friends have been to the Carnaval, yes?  That’s Dumaguete for you.  I did enjoy them, though.

I could just remember our last visit where my cousin’s GF uhhh lost consciousness because she didn’t tell us that she was scared of heights.  We ended up spending the remainder of the evening at the ER, though.  P, well, he was feeling a bit queasy but when the girl collapsed, he couldn’t even think of his queasiness.  Hehehehe

Ahhh, now I’m rambling.  Moving on to California theme parks… The first one that I went to was Universal Studios Hollywood.  The first time that I came here, we got the annual pass for the Universal Theme Park.  This park is about 10 minutes away from where I live and is very accessible to us.  I got to ride The Mummy ride, saw the Waterworld show, and meet familiar characters.  Sadly, I lost most of my photos and I only saved a few.

The next theme park that I went to was Six Flags Magic Mountain.  For the fearless and the coaster addicts, this is the place to be!  From the tallest, scariest, and innovative coasters, you have it here!  I admit that I balked at a few rides.  OMG!  This place is uber scary and for the thrill seeker, paradise!  Their thrill rides are sure to please.  I just checked on their site and I found out that I rode on TWO MAX THRILL RATING rides!  I can’t believe I balked at the lesser thrill rides! Hahaha Now, I want to go back again and check them out!  Unfortunately, I don’t think I have someone to go on the rides with.  Anyway, I rode on the Goliath, one of the fastest coaster which climbs up 26 stories then races down at 85 mph…oh man! I think I felt my stomach leave me! Hehehe after this ride, I refused to get on the others that I thought were scary when in fact, they weren’t as scary as the Goliath!  I did go on Batman The Ride twice because I thought it wasn’t as scary.  Little did I know that it is one of the rides with MAX Thrill Ratings!  Sheesh!  I went on The Ninja which was moderate and Roaring Rapids which was mild two times to cool off because it was uber hot!  They have added a few MAX rating coasters since the last time I went and I want to go on them, scary ride or no scary ride! No photos here because I forgot to scan them and they’re back in the Philippines hehehe.  We brought them old film cams because we didn’t want our techy gadgets to get damaged.

Next, was Disneyland and last week, Disney’s California Adventure Park.  I have been to Disneyland twice and I loved all the rides!  They are mild compared to Six Flags but they were still awesome!  I believe their scariest ride is Space Mountain which I rode the second time I went. The other rides I rode were Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Indiana Jones,  Matterhorn Bobsleds, Splash Mountain, and Star Tours.  These are their scary rides which I thought were not scary at all.

Disney’s California Adventure Park was a different story.  This park is packed with thrill rides that are not for the faint hearted.  They have rides like California Screamin’, Maliboomer, and my all-time favorite The Hollywood Tower of Terror!

The last park that I went to was  Sea World in San Diego.  Yeahp!  I saw Shamu and I got a lunchbox to prove it!  Hahaha too kiddie, I know but I was planning to give it to my hubby’s nephew but I forgot to bring it home with me! Hehehehe  There was only one trill ride Journey to Atlantis, which I obviously went and the MOMster vowed she was scared stiff!  Lucky for us the ride didn’t malfunction when we were on it because a few minutes later, the ride had to stop!  Scary, yeah?  Nahhh it was mild compared to the others that I’ve been on.

Whoooaaaahh!  I didn’t realize that I went on a whole lotta rides!  No wonder I’m starting to get scared! Hehehehe

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The Huntington Library is one the world’s great cultural, research, and educational centers and was founded by Henry E. Huntington in 1919.  The Huntington is located in San Marino, California and is one of the must see places in Southern California.

The Huntington has a library, art collections, and botanical gardens arranged by theme; Japanese, Chinese, Shakespear, Australian, Palm, etc. with over 14,000 different varieties of plans.  Of the 207 acres, 120 are landscaped and are open to visitors. Read the rest of this entry »

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Abbaye de Cluny

The Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge, California is known for its Camellia forest. It was previously owned by E. Manchester Brody, who owned the Los Angeles Daily News, before donating it to the Los Angeles County in 1953. Today, the Descanso Gardens now has an international rosarium, a Japanese garden, a lilac garden, and a bird sanctuary.

Japanese Tea House

If you have a passion for flowers and nature, the Descanso Gardens are for you. You can stroll around the garden at your own pace, join different walking tours and join the narrated tram tour. The kids can also enjoy the Enchanted Railroad, a 1/8th replica of a train which travels around a small section of the garden.

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