The Gardens of Sarasota

I mentioned in an earlier post that there was so much to see in Sarasota that I decided to divide my photos into separate sections, and today I'm featuring the gardens of Sarasota. As usual, click each photo for a better view.

Sarasota has a humid subtropical climate and is lush with all types of foliage. You can understand why John Ringling covered the grounds of his mansion with every type of plant one could imagine. Above is a shot of the gardens in the Ringling Art Museum.

The rose garden for the mansion is huge as you can see from this shot. There was every kind of rose plant you could imagine, but the one below called "Double Blush" I thought was particularly beautiful.

And, especially interesting were the Banyan trees that doted the grounds. the guide told us that Thomas Edison gave Ringling nine trees and this is what they have now become. They are a sight to marvel at because the tree grows so high and then the branches begin to send out roots that make their way to the ground and appear almost like stalactites in a cave somewhere.

This statue in the tree is a major feature of the tour.

There is something to be said for being nice to the people you encounter during an adventure. We went by the Sarasota Garden club on Sunday only to discover it was closed. But an officer of the club drove up to make some copies and gave us a personal tour. I found these "Pitcher plants" quite curious. I later learned it is in the Fly Trap family!! And, the Purple Pitcher Plant is the floral emblem of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

The back view is just as other worldly!

For those of you in the area considering a wedding, the courtyard resembles a tropical island that would make a great setting.

These shots give a real sense of just how tranquil the location is.

And next, the Selby Botanical Gardens. they are noted for their extensive Orchid and Bromeliad collections.

I particularly like this shot below because the Spanish Moss (which is in the Bromeliad family I found out) almost appears to be water flowing from the fountain.

And finally, as our day came to a close we spent a little time having a bite to eat sitting by the inter coastal. But have no fear, there are still photos from the Ringling Art Museum for a later date...

Sarasota And The House Of John

No trip to Sarasota Florida would be complete without visiting the Ringling Museum and Mansion.

John and Mable Ringling wintered in Sarasota beginning in 1909 and in 1927 moved his circus to the Sarasota area during the off season. The Ringling Museum looms large in the city. As usual click each photo for a better view.

The grounds are divided into exhibits that highlight the Ringling Brothers Circus, John and Mable's mansion, and the Ringling Art Museum which houses the couple's art collection. There is so much to see that I decided to divide the photos into to two parts: the Circus followed by the Ca'D'Zan mansion and grounds.

The exhibits of the circus cover such items as costumes, colorful trailers,



and the mobile cannon(the one the man was shot out of under the "big top.")

There is a special section for one of my childhood favorite clowns, Emmet Kelly. I never liked clowns but Kelly was different. "Weary Willie" based on the hobos of the depression was somehow lovable and sad at the same time.

His popularity spanned generations and that lovable sadness is evident in the picture shown here.

The circus could almost be considered a traveling city because there were so many people involved in producing "The Greatest Show on Earth."

Ringling developed train travel into almost an art form in terms of the organization that was required to pack up and arrive at the next city. So much so that during WWII the army came to study how they organized the transport!

On a personal level, John Ringling was able to bring sheer opulence to his own travel by train as he followed the circus. His personal car measured 79 ft long, 14 ft high, and 10 ft wide, which allowed him to include all the amenities of a traveling millionaire.

The pictures of his bathroom (with a full size tub)...

and lounge car illustrate that he wanted for nothing and had all the comforts of home, just on rails!

John Ringling was a man who lived large! And, we will see just how large when we view the mansion Ca'D'Zan...