Snowbirds Living in the Philippines : The Three Most Beautiful Gardens that Macrine and I had Visited

Thursday, September 10, 2020

The Three Most Beautiful Gardens that Macrine and I had Visited

The other day I just finished my 6-part series on Coping with Grief: Today, I decided to write on a subject that Macrine and I enjoyed-Gardens. Macrine and I had visited several gardens in US and in the Philippines. But today's article is devoted to the three most beautiful gardens that we have visited in US and Canada.

Macrine and I visited Butchart Gardens, Victoria, BC, Canada, in 2005

The Buchart Garden (Macrine reading garden sign-left on bottom of picture)

So it is time for a virtual tour of the three most beautiful gardens that Macrine and I had visited several years ago.

Perhaps in the near future when this Covid-19 is controlled you may be able to visit in person the following three gardens as follows: Buchart ( Victoria, British Columbia), Filoli ( Woodside, CA) and Longwood Gardens( Kenneth Square, PA-suburb of Philadelphia).

Macrine and I have visited Longwood Gardens twice but visited the other two only once. The gardens looked different during the various seasons, but for us spring time was our favorite season. It is the time when the gardens are most colorful.

The following are some of the photos I took of the three gardens. I hope you enjoy the photos as much as we did.

Buchart Gardens, Victoria, BC

https://www.butchartgardens.com/
Filoli Sunken Gardens, Woodside, CA

https://filoli.org/

Longwood Gardens, Kenneth Square, PA

https://longwoodgardens.org/

Honorable Mention: Brookside Gardens, Wheaton, Maryland

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g41434-d536488-Reviews-Brookside_Gardens-Wheaton_Montgomery_County_Maryland.html

Meanwhile enjoy this short video -Carlos Avila in the Piano( Macrine's nephew).

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Joys of Retirement

I have been retired from USFDA since 2002. At first, I feel I have lost my identity as an individual or have lost my contribution to society. However, within a few weeks all these feelings were gone. It started when my wife and I started baby sitting one of our grandchildren. As some economics professor states: "Your children are your capital investments, but your grandchildren are your profits. That is why you love your grandchildren more than your children". I really agree with the statement. Retirement also gives you lots of time to do things you like to do, such as your hobbies and of course travel. In my case, I turned my hobby of gardening and landscaping into a small business in the Philippines. This endeavor was planned about five years before 2002. That year my wife and I started construction of our retirement home in Boac, Marinduque , Philippines. The next year we built a beach house, followed by a Conference Hall two years later. Needless to say, planning and executing the landscaping was a challenge and very enjoyable. With the help of local labor, I not only enjoy the time gardening and landscaping, but also help improved the economic situation of the province by providing work and jobs to the local residents. With plenty of time, I have engaged into two specific activities as follows: First, I created a website for my small business. By trial and error, I created and design the website, www.chateaudumer.com I have never been a computer nerd or expert. But with plenty of time and patience, the fruits of my labor could be enjoyed if you visit the website above. The second activity, I have not done before was to utilize on-line activities, such as shopping, paying bills ( save you stamps) and playing computer games in the Internet. I really enjoyed playing duplicate bridge on line. You play with players all over the world and can chat in between games. But be careful, you are not spending too much time in the computer. It is very addictive. With a lots of time, my wife and I devoted more time on our favorite humanitarian project. For the last 15 years, we have been involved with medical mission to the province of Marinduque. For details please visit the website: www.marinduqueinternational.org As a summary, the joy one gets on retirement is very specific for an individual. Some enjoy their free time by learning new activities, getting involved with humanitarian projects or spending more time with their grandchildren. Others hate it, since they missed their former jobs and co-workers. Others with no children still enjoy retirement by traveling, turning their hobbies into business or more community involvement. Of course those that retire and hate it, is believe to die earlier than those that enjoy their retirement years. So, plan your retirement as early as you can. The happier you are on retirement, the longer you will live.