Pt. 5; Sculpture Gardens

With only a half hour left I decided to go directly to the Sculpture Gardens, my other favorite place where I usually sit on the grass and relax as I view the statues and see if they're in the mood to converse with me. On the way I cruised through the Rose Garden.
The Sculpture Garden was mostly sunny like most everywhere else today so I stayed in the shady side. The heat was again interferring with the mood/atmosphere so I strolled a little too quickly passed the sculptures, pausing at the fountain near the end. Would have loved to sit in the shade and write but I knew the place was closing any minute. There's always next time. Took the sunny route back to the main entrance and stopped in the museum store to cool off before getting into my hot car.
Instead of hanging out in Pasadena, all I cared about was to find a shady place for my car while I relaxed at a cafe with air conditioning. I prefer to support independent coffeehouses to chain establishments. Lucky for me, I found one.

Part 4; Japanese Gardens - Huntington Library/Gardens

Moved throught the Subtropical Gardens rather quickly, anxious to get to the Japanese Gardens -- one of my two favorite gardens to linger in. The entrance was marked by two lions and a narrow path over a stream through more bamboo trees. A steady winding climb in shade was welcomed.
I first came upon the Seven Meditation Stones where I usually take my time with each one but the sun pushed me forward in hopes of shade. The bonsai section was even sunner then onto the Zen Garden. There I sit for a while and write or create a mandala but today it was far too sunny. I hadn't seen too many other people who braved this heat like me, mostly couples with a stroller but the Japanese Gardens, especially the Zen was very busy. Walked through it more quickly than I thought I would but I was now on a mission to find that shade.
The next section was the Japanese house, simple and elegant. The views from there were by far the best of all the gardens, in my opinion. I took quite a few photos of the bridge, waterfalls, sculptures and fountain. Time was running out and the heat pushed me forward once again. I did stop at a shaded bench near a babbling stream to catch my breath and review the map for my next stop.

Lily Ponds at Huntington Library vs Monet's Giverny

At tea I mapped out my garden viewing plan because I only had about two hours. Armed with camera and extra batteries, the first stop were the Lily Ponds. The sun was intense, I heard someone say it was 107 but I don't know. Taking pictures of the Lily Ponds got me thinking about Giverny and Monet's water gardens. Would I dare compare? Fear not. Walking through Monet's water gardens in Giverny France is like entering a sacred spiritual retreat. As much as I like the Huntington, they just don't come close to compare.
With the sun beating down, I was relieved to find the pond was not as far as it looked on the map. It was simple and pretty. I imagined the water lilies in bloom were similar to visiting Giverny in the summer, something I have yet to do. When I go in the fall, there are no blossoms among the lily pads. So I pretended for a moment I was there.
I've included a photo of Monet's water garden and a shot of the Lily Pond at the Huntington. Can you tell which is which?
There was very little shade except for the bamboo trees nearby. The scent of the bamboo permeated the air, the stalk-like trees were fascinating to examine. Hope the photos I took captured their essences.