Last Friday, It was a gorgeous, sunny day with the perfect amount of breeze and my best friend and I thought, what better way to spend it than at a beautiful estate here in the Bay Area. What we really went there for was to see its huge and gorgeous country garden.
Filoli Gardens - it reminded me so much of The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett! Flowers, trees, and plants everywhere, cobblestones, chickens and roosters everywhere, and of course, secret passages and doors. I tried to pretend I was Mary Lennox! The place even inspired me to start reading Villette by Jane Eyre for some reason. Perhaps
it was just the gothic-like the house/mansion itself had - I don't know! Needless to say, it was a great place and we had a great afternoon.
Have you ever been anywhere that has inspired you to pick up a certain book? Or maybe like me, you found a place that reminded you of a favorite. Do share!
Such a pretty picture! When I first read The Secret Garden as a kid, I used to always fantasize about owning a garden like that.
ReplyDeleteI love Villette and Jane Eyre - which is why Charlotte Bronte is my favorite of the Bronte sisters.
I don't know if this counts but I love visiting Savannah, GA so if a book is set there I am more likely to read it. That is why I read Saving CeeCee Honeycutt and I am so glad I did!
ReplyDeleteThat picture is beautiful! I loved The Secret Garden and read it multiple times when I was a kid.
Gosh, that's SO beautiful! I hardly travel anywhere (not even local places :-S) so I cannot really answer your question there. But I do love googling places that I think will closely resemble the setting of the book I'm reading.
ReplyDeleteThat garden's amazing! Old, tall houses and large, flat rocks always make me think of Madeleine L'Engle's Time Quintet.
ReplyDeleteOh, it looks lovely! I can totally see how it reminded you of The Secret Garden :)
ReplyDeleteThat place looks amazing! I love reading books about or set in areas I'm going to travel to. It always makes the atmosphere in the book come alive. I re-read Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil while visiting Savannah and I could see the Spanish moss dripping from every tree.
ReplyDeleteMisha - I still fantasize about owning a garden like that! Although I have to be honest, I am a lazy gardener. I don't have a green thumb sadly, haha. Oh and Jane Eyre is my favorite as well. I think Charlotte Bronte would be my favorite too.
ReplyDeleteChristina T - ooohh I'm not sure about this but isn't 'The Complete Stories' by Flannery O' Connor set there? I loved that book. I would love to visit where you're from! And the Secret Garden is a favorite childhood book of mine.
Shy - I figured since I can't travel around the world just yet, I will cure my need to explore different places by visiting local ones first! :)
Jenna - Ohhh I have not read Quinter before - would you recommend it? I do love Madeleine L' Engle.
danya - It's the perfect place. It even had a swing similar from the book.
Melissa - You're very lucky you get to travel around the world :) Someday for me. But I agree - there's something so satisfying about visiting real-life settings from books! Now if only there was one that's similar to Rivendell or Hogsmeade huh..
Misha - I still fantasize about owning a garden like that! Although I have to be honest, I am a lazy gardener. I don't have a green thumb sadly, haha. Oh and Jane Eyre is my favorite as well. I think Charlotte Bronte would be my favorite too.
ReplyDeleteChristina T - ooohh I'm not sure about this but isn't 'The Complete Stories' by Flannery O' Connor set there? I loved that book. I would love to visit where you're from! And the Secret Garden is a favorite childhood book of mine.
Shy - I figured since I can't travel around the world just yet, I will cure my need to explore different places by visiting local ones first! :)
Jenna - Ohhh I have not read Quinter before - would you recommend it? I do love Madeleine L' Engle.
danya - It's the perfect place. It even had a swing similar from the book.
Melissa - You're very lucky you get to travel around the world :) Someday for me. But I agree - there's something so satisfying about visiting real-life settings from books! Now if only there was one that's similar to Rivendell or Hogsmeade huh..
Beautiful!! I am a gardener and this is now on my 'to see' list for SF when I get out there to visit my brother. Wish I could go now-- cool foggy SF weather would be so pleasant for my creepy eye-- but I fear the pressure changes in a jet might make my eye explode!!
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if a place has ever inspired me to read a certain book but places do remind me of certain books. I did think of reading Shepherd of the Hills while in the Ozarks sometime-- might be fun to match a book to a locale.
Lesa - You must let me know if you ever go to SF! :) And right now it's not as foggy. It's actually very hot nowadays, which is nice for a change.
ReplyDeleteawww pretty photo. The garden sounds beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWhenever we visit the botanical gardens and stroll through enjoying the view, I am inspired to pick up Austen. The gardens remind of Austens countryside settings in her books.
naida - Oh gardens remind me of anything by Jane Austen as well. Actually, everytime I'm having tea, I think of her. haha
ReplyDeleteO I love it. How cute and clever.
ReplyDelete