Tag: gardens

Not Taking Art For Granted

©2021 Snapping the Globe, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Exploration of Chicago’s Grant Park is something that every tourist in Chicago undertakes at some point during their visit.

Me included!

Filled with important sculptural works and wide-open spaces, it is where Chicagoans head to enjoy the great outdoors.

My first full day in the Windy City was a beautiful one! The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and it was definitely not windy! My husband and I decided to head to Grant Park to see the many landmarks that dot the landscape and evoke fervor from its visitors.

Knowing there were many things to see and so many access points to the park, we decided to simply work our way from north to south. Entering from Maggie Daley Park, we walked through the Cancer Survivor’s Garden, with its open metal pavilion flanked by two forty-foot-tall granite columns, set up to greet visitors and invite them to stroll through its beautifully landscaped paths. This garden has spectacular views of Lake Michigan and was designed to be a celebration of life and hope for the survivors and those afflicted with cancer. It is a popular location for weddings and other special events and attracts those interested in ice skating during the winter, to its rink, and children seeking out a place to let off steam, year round, in its well-equipped playground.

To the west, we spied one of the city’s most iconic landmarks…the Cloud Gate in Millennium Park. A piece of fascinating sculpture, affectionately known as “The Bean”, it allows views of the city from its many mirrored sides. The stainless steel piece of artwork was designed by British artist Sir Anish Kapoor and installed in 2004. It is one of the most famous symbols of the city and definitely one of the most photographed.

The Cloud Gate

Not far away, we spied the Crown Fountain through the tree line. Another of the city’s interesting sculptural pieces, it was designed by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa and consists of two 50-foot glass block towers at the end of a shallow reflecting pool. The towers project video images of Chicago citizens with water flowing through an outlet in the proximity of their mouths. It is a great place for cooling off in the hottest months of the year!

The Crown Fountain

Continuing our walk south, we encountered the Clarence F. Buckingham Fountain, one of the park’s art pieces that I was most excited to see. One of the world’s largest fountains, dedicated in 1927, it was inspired by the Latona Fountain at the Palace of Versailles, which I had seen on one of my visits to France. Sadly, it was not operating. Not sure if it was the time of the year or if it was shut off due to Covid, it was a huge disappointment. We were, however, able to see some of the smaller fountains that surround the Buckingham Fountain…Fisher Boy, Crane Girl, Turtle Boy and Dove Girl…one pair north and one pair south. These fountains were designed by Leonard Crunelle and were originally part of an exhibit at Humboldt Park. In 1964, they were installed in their current location.

Buckingham Fountain
Clockwise from top left, Fisher Boy, Crane Girl, Turtle Boy, Dove Girl

Heading west to Congress Plaza, we encountered the Equestrian Indians, two bronze equestrian sculptures which act as gatekeepers to the park. Known as The Bowman and The Spearman, they were created in Zagreb by Croatian sculptor Ivan Meštrović and installed in 1928.

The Bowman and The Spearman

Walking through the Formal Gardens to the southernmost end of the park, we finally ended up at the sculptural group that I most wanted to see, The Agora. Consisting of 106 headless figures, these bronze, steel and iron effigies, designed by Magdalena Abakanowicz, was installed in 2006. The figures are posed as if walking in multiple directions or standing still and seemingly invite visitors to pose with them (which I did, of course). In ancient Greece, the Agora was the central meeting place in its villages and cities…this final piece is the perfect addition to Grant Park. As the ancient Agora attracted people to meet, visit and learn, so does this newest addition to the park.

The Agora
The Agora

Grabbing rental bikes for our exit, we finally had the opportunity to experience the wind in our hair! As we rode past these amazing works of art again, seeing them in a much different light, we realized that although there are so many things to see in Chicago, these ones that people walk past every day, are not ones to be taken for granted!

Other Chicago locations: Navy Pier
Other art and architecture in Chicago

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Maggie Daley Park

The Cloud Gate

  • Address: 201 E. Randolph Street, Chicago, Illinois 60602
  • Hours: daily, 0600-2300
  • Admission: free

Crown Fountain

  • Address: 201 E. Randolph Street, Chicago, Illinois 60601
  • Hours: daily, 0600-2300
  • Admission: free

Clarence F. Buckingham Fountain

The Bowman and The Spearman

  • Address: S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60605
  • Hours: 24 hours, daily
  • Admission: free

The Agora

The Garden of Amalia

© 2018 Snapping the Globe, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

Every beautiful day deserves a walk in a beautiful garden.

Blessed with agreeable weather year round, there’s always opportunity to visit many outdoors places in Athens.  One such place, is indeed, a beautiful garden.

The Athens National Gardens.

The National Garden was created between 1838 and 1840 by the first queen of Greece, Queen Amalia.

Queen Amalia, wife of king Otto, was rumored to have spent so much time (at least three hours a day) taking care of the garden, that the garden was originally named for her.  When you enter the garden from Vasilissis Amalias Avenue, you can see the impressively tall Washingtonia palm trees that the queen planted, one of the highlights of the garden.

After leaving the Temple of Olympian Zeus, I crossed the road and entered the garden from Leof. Vasilissis Olgas Street, walking along the fountains leading up to the impressive structure of the Zappeion.

The Zappeion’s construction was started in 1874 and designed by Danish architect Theophil Hansen.  Opened on October 20, 1888, it’s main purpose was to serve as  building for the Olympic games, first acting as a venue for the fencing competitions, during the 1896 Summer Olympics.  Later, the building was used as the Olympic Village (1906) and then served as the first host for the organizing committee (ATHOC) for the 2004 Olympic Games from 1998 to 1999.  It also served as the press center during the 2004 games.

Historically, the building has some significance besides it original purpose.  In 1938, the Athens Radio Station, the country’s first national broadcaster, began operating on the premises and later continued to house the National Radio Foundation until the inauguration of the House of Radio in 1970. In 1940, it was converted into a hospital and during the following year, it was commandeered by the German army to become a storehouse and barracks.   In 1979, documents were signed at the Zappeion formalizing Greece’s accession to the European Community.

Today the Zappeion is mainly used for official and private meetings and ceremonies as well as art exhibitions and occasional concerts.  It is not open for tours.

Just outside the Zappeion, be sure to look for the statue of Evangelos Zappas.  Buried underneath this statue is his head.  There are approximately 70 other statues and works of art in the gardens immediately surrounding the Zappeion, including statues of Lord Byron and the Zappas cousins, who funded the construction of the building.

After walking around the building and through its own park, I finally entered the Athen’s National Garden, a peaceful oasis within the hustle and bustle of the ancient city.

One of the first things I encountered were the massive palms planted by the Queen Amalia.  It was quite thrilling to walk between these imposing trees towering into the impossibly blue sky and think about how long ago they were planted and how they have endured.

Walking along, I encountered vine-covered walkways, which must be astonishing when in bloom and massive eucalyptus trees which provide shade during the intense heat experienced in Athens’s summer.  The garden is home to 7,000 trees, 40,000 bushes and other plants which include 519 species and varieties, with 102 of them being Greek.  There are Judas trees, oleanders, carob trees and foreign born Australian pines and Chinese trees-of-heaven.  You can also find Centenarian Holm oaks, cypress trees and Canary Island date palms as well as plants that were introduced into the garden at its inception.

There are six lakes within the premises, one with a picturesque bridge and hundreds of ducks and fish that reside there.  It is evident that these birds and amphibious creatures enjoy a well-provided-for lifestyle at the lake, as there were many small children,  bag of bread in hand, eagerly obliging their requests for a hand-out.  Children will also enjoy a small zoo-like collection of animals located within the park.

While exploring the gardens near the Vasilissis Sophias Avenue entrance make sure to look for the remains of the Roman floor.  Uncovered during nineteenth century excavations at a depth of one meter, the well-preserved floor belonged to a the courtyard of a Roman villa.

Another popular attraction is the sun dial located near the main entrance and the Washingtonia palms.  Once the primary method of telling time, visitors to the sight can be seen gazing at the sun dial and then checking their observations against their modern day timepieces for accuracy.

Other attractions within the gardens are a conservatory, where plants are cultivated before being planted in the garden, a children’s library and a small cafe where you can grab a drink or snack and refresh in the green surroundings. The entrance is located on Irodou Attikou Street.  There is also a library containing two reading rooms, a fairy tale room, a music room and a film room.  The library’s collections boasts 6,000 publications.

A walk in the Athens National Garden is truly a magical experience and one to include while exploring the city.  Adjacent to other important attractions, this oasis beckons and protects during the sweltering parts of the day.  Exercise here, meet others or just bask in its beauty.

I know…I did.

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Athens National Gardens