Surely you’ve noticed the beautiful phoenix that’s risen from the abandoned Caltrans lot along the Pasadena Avenue in Southwest Pasadena? Arlington Garden opened to the public in 2005, after surveys showed the desire for “passive development” on this state-owned, city-leased three-acre property (until the early 1960s, the site of the swell Durand mansion). Dawn-to-dusk foot [...]
Small enough for a quick stroll but large enough to lose oneself in, this gem is bordered by decomposed granite walkways that get slick when it rains—or so the nervous guards say when they force the grounds into lockdown during a drizzle. (California is not at its best when it rains.) Fragrant patches of lavender, [...]
Originally Wilson Lake in 1875, this 30-acre park was created by the city of San Marino in 1925, when it bought the land and drained the lake. It’s one of the prettiest parks in Southern California, landscaped with grand old oaks, sycamores, palm groves (labeled!) and a pristine rose garden and arbor, as well as [...]
If you are itching to plant your summer garden, or ready to eat from your favorite cook’s, you would do well to hightail it to the Arboretum this Saturday for an event built around a remarkable new book. Co-hosting is the fine Garden Conservancy, not known for hightailing it most places. In honor of my [...]
Seen at the Grocery & Flea Markets If they don’t live here, they’ve hung out here… Jennifer Lopez Judge Lance Ito Dennis Haysbert Dallas Raines Diane Keaton Nora Dunn Kevin Dunn Hector Elizondo Marlee Matlin Oscar de la Hoya Sidney Poitier Charlie Kaufman John C. Reilly Ben Harper Tim Roth Madeline Stowe Jan Kaczmarek Johnny [...]
You know you are close when you see the distinctly Chinese silhouette of the roofline in Pasadena’s Playhouse District. This beautiful site—a replica of a building in Beijing’s Forbidden City—offers up 5,000 years of art and artifacts from Asia and the Pacific Islands, and it is the only museum in Southern California with such a [...]
Just when it feels like summer, one more chilly night appears. Without smirking, now, tell your friends and relations in Chicago and Buffalo that we, too, are knee-deep in winter. But since we don’t have a raging pub culture in Southern California, we celebrate the season with winter-blooming camellias. This regal shrub flowers in shades [...]
Upper Pasadena (or Altadinky) The Facts What It Is: An 8.7-square-mile area in unincorporated L.A County, located between the San Gabriels and Pasadena, seventeen miles northeast of downtown L.A. Elevation: 1,342 ft. Population: 42,610 Ethnic Diversity: 39% Caucasian, 31% African American, 20% Hispanic, 3% Asian, 2 % American Indian Median Household Income: 60,549 Key Players [...]
Gateway to the San Gabriel Valley The Facts What it is: A 7.5-square-mile city eight miles east of downtown L.A; the San Bernadino Freeway (I-10) runs through the south end of town, and the 710 Freeway ends at Valley Blvd. Population: 85,804 Ethnic Diversity: 47% Asian, 35% Hispanic, 30% Caucasian, 2% black or African-American Median [...]
Home of…Homes The Facts What It Is: An eleven-square-mile city due east of Pasadena Population: 55,992 Ethnic Diversity: 46% Caucasian, 45% Asian, 11% Hispanic, 1% African-American Median Household Income: $56,100 Key Player During American statehood, Elias J. “Lucky” Baldwin began developing the area as an agricultural paradise, building himself a Queen Anne mansion and a [...]
