Seattle Chinese Garden

The Seattle Chinese Garden is adjacent to the Arboretum at South Seattle College. My husband and I visited both during a brief lull in the rainy weather while on our Christmas visit to Seattle.

Pavilions at the Seattle Chinese Garden

Seattle Chinese Garden

The Seattle Chinese Garden represents an ongoing collaboration between designers, architects, artisans, and horticulturists in Seattle and its Sister City, Chongqing, in the Southwestern Province of  Sichuan. The local architectural firm Jones and Jones has been involved at times to coordinate activities.

Intricate lattice work

Plantings in the Knowing the Spring Courtyard

Koi pond

The 4.7 acre garden is designed in the Sichuan style, which includes native Chinese plants, paving stones, and traditional Chinese pavilions. The four elements of Chinese gardens include water, stone, plants, and architecture, which are used symbolically in the garden design.

Portal to the view beyond

Pagoda in a bamboo grove along the path

Reflecting pond

We enjoyed strolling through Knowing the Spring Courtyard and seeing the plantings and rocks and poetry and ponds. We also enjoyed the details of the garden, such as the pagodas, paths, and bamboo groves, and the sweeping views from the hill.

Taihu lake rock donated by People's Government of Suzhou Municipality, China March 2003	Rock edging along path with worn edges, moss, and lichen
Pond details	Terra cotta warrior castings

I find it interesting to visit a garden in winter, to really see its bones, and then visit throughout the year to see it transformed by the seasons.

Charming table and stools	Detail of table and chair
Lichen patterns	More lichen patterns

The garden is still under development, with plans for additional buildings and waterways. I look forward to visiting the garden as the plans materialize, and throughout different seasons.

View of  Seattle and lots of room to expand

On a side note, I was interested to learn that a reciprocal Seattle Garden opened in 2012 in the Municipality of Chongqing in China. It is part of the Chongqing Garden Expo Garden.

South Seattle College Arboretum

After days of rain in Seattle, the clouds finally lifted and the sun peaked out. My husband and I headed for South Seattle College with a mission to walk through the Arboretum, visit the Seattle Chinese Garden.

Blue spruce tree in pale winter sun

South Seattle College Arboretum

The arboretum was established in 1978 after students from the South Seattle College Landscape Horticulture program petitioned for an arboretum to be their laboratory. The five-acre site is located on a bluff at the north end of the campus, with a view of Seattle and Elliott Bay. We saw the best view from the gazebo, although the trees of the West Duwamish Greenbelt are growing up and obscuring the view.

View of Seattle from the gazebo

Maple Garden in the winter

The arboretum serves as a laboratory for courses in plant identification, arboriculture, pruning, irrigation, garden renovation, plant problem diagnostics, landscape management and landscape construction courses.

Coenosium Rock Garden	Unidentified
Pale pink azaleas in winter	Unidentified - great winter interest

With so much rain, the trees and plants were lush and beautiful. I enjoyed seeing the various garden sections, and the moss and lichen dripping off the plants and rocks. I appreciated the many benches and arbors and shelters scattered throughout the park, no doubt student projects that can be enjoyed by all. It made me think of many happy days as a student in the Merritt College Landscape Horticulture program.

Milton Sutton Conifer Garden

Welcome shelter for inclement weather

Another shelter

Later, looking at the walking map, I realized we missed a few sections, and other sections would be enhanced by visiting in other seasons (like the roses and perennials). This is definitely a place to revisit to see what we missed, and to see the trees and plants go through their seasonal cycles.

Alpine garden

Arbor in winter

Path through the arboretum

Holiday Memories from Seattle

My husband and I are back from our road trip to Seattle to celebrate Christmas with our son and his family. Suitcases are unpacked, the pantry is restocked, the laundry is washed and folded, Christmas wrapping paper and gifts are put away. A few thank you notes still need to be written, and the Snow Village needs to be boxed up for storage. But it's a great time to review our trip photos and videos, and savor the memories of our time together.

Mount Shasta in winter light

Sandwiches and authentic cream soda at Tolly's in Oakland, Oregon

Christmas preparations were a fun mix of shopping in favorite Seattle districts, tracking deliveries from online purveyors, and last-minute wrapping. We braved Costco, Fred Meyers, and Uwajimaya for holiday ingredients (with quick stops at coffee shops and the nail salon to renew our strength), and then started cooking.

Shopping near Pioneer Square

Warming up between shops

We kicked off Christmas morning with a breakfast buffet of blueberry scones and biscotti baked by our daughter-in-law, and bagels with smoked salmon, cream cheese, and cucumbers.

Gifts under the Christmas tree

Feast by the fire

Nothing phases Mako

Selfie-stick fun

Family portrait

One of the highlights was introducing our daughter-in-law's mom to a western style Christmas. Mei caught on pretty quickly and enjoyed the silly stocking stuffers and beautiful gifts along with everyone else. Our son played Santa (he's worked out a great system over the years)!

First Christmas stocking

Enjoying the fire

Mother and daughter

Santa Clause preparing the gifts

This year our son took the helm to cook Christmas dinner (a delicious tritip Wellington and all the fixings), and our daughter-in-law and I made the cherry pie. Friends came over for dinner to add to the festivities.

Making cherry pie

Assembling the Wellington

Cute couples

A drenching rain storm passed over the Puget Sound during our visit, so we hunkered down to work on puzzles, read, catch up on each other's lives, and watch the 1964 animation, The Journey West (a classic Chinese tale about the Monkey King). When the weather let up we enjoyed long walks with the dogs, and an outing to the Seattle Chinese Garden and nearby Arboretum. We also enjoyed meals at Loretta's Northwesterner for tavern burgers, a Korean noodle shop for hot soup, Pomodoro's for a delicious New Year's Eve dinner, and The Hangar Cafe for New Year's Day crepes. Yum!

Puzzle fun	More puzzle fun
Air-fried and glazed chicken	Layers of puff pastry
Rare moment of sun light	Dinner at Pomodoro's in East Lake

We first met Mei several years ago in the San Francisco Bay Area, so it was a treat to see her again and learn more about her life and family in Shanghai. Between Mei's growing English skills, our daughter-in-law's translation abilities, the Microsoft Translator app, and a good sense of humor, we were able to carry on some great conversations! Mei brought some family pictures from Shanghai, so we had fun seeing Mei and our daughter-in-law in their youths. Over the course of our visit, everyone pitched in to cook or clean up. Mei made several dishes, including a delicious oxtail soup that is a real delicacy!

Chips and pictures	Mei as a baby
Mei as a child	Mei as a teen

Another treat was meeting our second granddog, Dakota. He is younger than Mako, but the two are forging a good relationship. They enjoy long walks in the neighborhood, and I was pleased to see Dakota sniffing plants along the way, seemingly for their botanical fragrances (and not just to check for P-mail)! The birth story is that he lived in Qatar for his early life and was then abandoned to the streets, so the many plants in the Pacific Northwest may be very interesting!

Mako and Dakota wait for their walk

Draw bridge over the Duwamish River

It was difficult to leave our family, but we had to get back (and they probably wanted their living space back)! My husband and I enjoyed seeing the beautiful winter scenery along Interstate 5, from inside our warm car, while listening to the Matthew Scudder audio book, A Long Line of Dead Men. We were grateful for no snow, and the chance to reflect on the many blessings in our lives, especially the family and friends who travel with us on the bumpy journey of life!

Porter's Restaurant is a favorite stop in Medford, Oregon