Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden

Because we have annual passes to the Descanso Gardens we get in the L.A. Arboretum for free! It was a great day to say hello to Peacocks, smell flowers in their greenhouses, sit by pools and explore the different plants of the world from Australia to Africa. Main attractions are the train station, the Victorian house by the lake and a beautiful water fountain in the middle of the park. The peacock cafe serves burgers, hotdogs and sandwiches. But don't feed the wildlife! There's a lot of flowers in the video because--it's an Arboretum. These are the flowers you will see there.

Why is this important to writing? Because to set the mood for a romantic scene, the writer has to draw upon their experience to recreate it on paper. "Red lilies reached for their daily quota of sun, blackbirds hopped from branch to branch between the pink blooms of cheery trees, fountain sprays shot up and misted down upon the backs of green and brown Mallard ducks." is way better than, "There were lots of flowers, and ducks and a fountain." I can write about these places in my books, and you get to see where these "vivid imaginings" come from. Enjoy!