A Promise of a Rose Garden

I am finally back from my not~so~brief sabbatical from posting on Italian Girl in Georgia.  Summer Arts Camp was a total success last month and now I am making up for lost time here with a promise of a rose garden.  

So sit back and relax ~ I've got dozens of photographs to share with you!


Late in May and early June my son and I cooled off in the Pacific Northwest with a visit to my family.


The highlight of the trip, other than seeing them of course, was an afternoon in the City of Roses ~ Portland, Oregon ~ and a visit to the magnificent Rose Gardens.  


It has been more than ten years since I was last walking under these arbors of roses and through the terraced gardens,


and it was more beautiful and breathtaking than I remember.  


It did not hurt that the Portland skies were crystal clear blue and the warmth of the summer sun welcomed us.


Fields of flowers and trellised tea roses were in full bloom throughout the park ~ one rose bed was prettier than the next.


The vista from the gardens through the evergreens to the city and snow capped mountains beyond was a surprise each time we turned a corner or walked along a brick pathway through the heavenly scent of blooming roses.




And we were not the only ones in the gardens enjoying Mother Nature's gift just one week before the annual Portland Rose Parade.  The gardens were full of visitors from all over.




Meandering along the garden paths, I never got enough of the pretty petals.



Each and every one was perfection.


Blush pink...




Pink peppermint...




Old English roses...


{My favorite!}


...tangled with gorgeous hot pink dogwood blooms and wrapped around lanterns.


{This pink dogwood variety does not grow in my neck of the woods ~ the blooms are much paler here in Georgia.}


Enchantingbless it's heart...


...some natural lovin' displayed on its petal.


A sweet farewell and a wonderful afternoon in the City of Roses.


Then it was time to go home.

Hope you all will take a moment to stop and smell the roses, appreciate all of Mother Nature's gifts, and the beauty our country has to offer.

Happy Independence Day!

Ciao amici,
Suzanne

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Reconnecting with some of these friends this week.

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