City of Roses

Yesterday, I was looking at my photos of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada,

which I think is one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

Terry and I haven't been there in a few years, and I miss this gorgeous place.

Victoria is known for many cultural and historical things, 

but I think of it at the City of Roses.

I've spent hours and hours in its lovely rose gardens, 

and I return to these gardens each time I visit Victoria.

City of Roses

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

September 12, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Pope John Paul II Hybrid Tea

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

September 12, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Yesterday, I was supposed to be eliminating photos 

that were too similar, poor shots, or blah,

but I find it difficult to trash a photo of a rose.

I'm embarrassed to think of how many rose photos I have in my collection.

One of my favorite rose gardens, the Premier's Rose Garden,

is hidden behind the British Columbia Parliament Buildings

which are home to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia.

Often I wander alone among the rose beds

enjoying the roses from baby buds to lush blowsy blooms.

Buxom Beauty Pink Hybrid Tea

Behind the Parliament Buildings

September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

iAll Rights Reserved

Apricot Pink Grandiflora

Baby Buds to Blowsy Bloom

September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

I love and appreciate it when flowers are labeled in gardens.

I always want to know their names.

Fortunately the roses in Victoria's gardens are named.

Rose Beds Behind the Parliament Buildings

September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Easy Going Yellow Floribunda

September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Rose Beds Behind the Parliament Buildings

Easy Going Yellow Floribunda

September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Souvenir de Baden Baden, Pink/White Hybrid Tea 

September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Buxom Beauty Pink Hybrid Tea

September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Kosmos Fairy Tale White Floribunda 

 September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

One of my favorite memories of Victoria was an unexpected random act of kindness.

I was walking down a street near Beacon Hill Park

and a woman cutting roses in her garden saw me passing her yard.

She snipped a brilliant red rose and gave it to me saying,

"Have a wonderful day!"

Not the Rose, but a Lovely Red One Nonetheless

Amour, Grand Red Hybrid

September 8, 2017
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

In a Rose Garden Somewhere in Victoria

September 8, 2017
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

The theme for my friend Rain's Thursday Art Date this week is Gestures and Movement.

I'm sharing a photo for each.  There was no time for me to create art this week!

A welcoming gesture from a friendly greeter for visitors near the Ogden Point Breakwater.

Along the Waterfront

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

September 11, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

I captured this movement photo with the zoom on my point-and-shoot camera,

braced inside a zodiac raft bouncing on waves.

It may not be my sharpest photo, but certainly it's one of my most dramatic shots.

An Orca Strikes

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

September 15, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

A talented artist, Nicole, who regularly participates in Rain's TAD,

posts Friday Face Off every week.

I thought I'd join in this week and share one of the sweetest faces I've ever photographed,

a darling Cambodian boy in a local market outside Siem Reap.

A Beautiful Cambodian Boy

A Local Market Outside Siem Reap, Cambodia

November 10, 2008

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Have a great weekend! 

Till next time ~
Fundy Blue

  My next post will be on 

Wednesday, September 7, 2022.

On the Bay of Fundy
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

 

The Premier's Rose Garden ~ British Columbia Parliament Buildings, Victoria

Last September I stumbled across a fragrant surprise 
behind the British Columbia Parliament Buildings:
The Premier's Rose Garden.

The Premier's Rose Garden

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

September 10, 2017

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

I've visited this lovely spot
a number of times,
and I rarely see anyone in it.

It's quiet, peaceful, and beautiful,
and I enjoy wandering around
seeing and smelling all the gorgeous roses.

Kosmos Fairy Tale White Floribunda Roses

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Livin' Easy Orange Floribunda Roses

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Buxom Beauty Pink Hybrid Tea Roses

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Julia Child Yellow Floribunda Roses

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Henry Whittaker, Chief Architect for the British Columbia Department of Public Works,
designed the rectangular-shaped garden with its boxwood hedges and central sundial.

Paved paths in the shape of a cross divide the rose garden into four quadrants
featuring different rugosa, tea, floribunda, and grandiflora roses.

Central Sundial

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Central Sundial

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Satellite Imagery of the Premier's Rose Garden

Behind the West Annex of the British Columbia Parliament Buildings

Google Maps

Imagery:  Google

Map Data:  Google 2017

The Premier's Rose Garden was constructed
as a relief project in 1935-36 during the Great Depression.
It sits on the former site of one of the original
parliament buildings known as the "Bird Cages."

The garden was dedicated to British Columbia's Premier Bill Bennett
in 1986 and renamed "The Premier's Rose Garden."

The old parliament buildings ("bird cages") and land office

Source:  City of Vancouver Archives

Reference Code:  AM54-S4-: Out P1027

 Copyright Status Public Domain

Anywhere you walk among the colorful roses,
you can smell their beautiful fragrances
and hear the sound of honeybees buzzing among the blooms.

Apricot/Pink Floribunda Roses

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Easy Going Yellow Floribunda Roses

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Buxom Beauty Pink Hybrid Tea Roses

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Living' Easy Orange Floribunda Roses

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Pink/White Hybrid Tea Roses

The Premier's Rose Garden

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

When you sit on one of the quiet benches in a shady spot in the garden,
it's hard to imagine that Victoria's bustling Inner Harbour is only a few hundred yards away.

If you let your imagination drift, it's easy to imagine that you've
stumbled across Briar Rose's enchanted castle.

The Premier's Rose Garden

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue

All Rights Reserved

Victoria has lovely rose gardens big and small, public and private,
but this is my favorite.

Information Source:  leg.bc.ca