Two Ducks in Golden Gate Park
Posted October 1st, 2007 in [hide]In another homage to MC Escher, this time more subtle, here is a photo of two ducks in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. The ducks are just entering the frame, disturbing a dogwood reflection in their small pond near the Japanese Tea Garden. The floating leaves, in particular, make this image Escheresque.
Larger than New York’s Central Park and stretching out across half the city, from the Pacific Ocean almost to Divisidero, Golden Gate Park is a world renowned treasure. With more than a million trees, Dutch windmills, bison, and the city’s heart, it’s hard to imagine this diverse urban wilderness began as wind-blown sand dunes. Today it divides the Sunset and Richmond districts to the city’s west, pointing toward busy downtown with its narrow Panhandle. The park feels local to hippies, college students, and neighborhood residents, who are predominantly Chinese and Russian. The further west you travel, the more you feel like you’ve reached the end of the world.
The Japanese Tea Garden, unsurprisingly, is home to any number of small ponds, statues, native Asian plantlife, sitting on the edge of the Botanical Garden at Strybring Arboretum. Near the 9th Ave ( in the Inner Sunset district ) entrance to the park, and not far from Shakespeare’s Garden, this idyllic spot is a favorite for bird watchers and picnickers.
It’s been years, sadly, since I’ve been able to visit The City by The Bay. I lived in San Francisco from 1998 through 2003, and have been longing to return. At the time, I had far less skill with a camera ( which, at the time, was Olympus’s C-2100 UZ “prosumer” or compact, all-in-one, digital camera ), and would love to return and do the place justice. Stay tuned for new photos, possibly this coming spring, and for previously unpublished images of the Palace of Fine Arts, Golden Gate Bridge, the Financial District, and other hallmarks of America’s most European city.
Wow - this might be your coolest pic yet! Great work.
And here I thought this was just a Seattle blog, huh?
San Francisco got a lot to be proud of in the way of music. But not like Seatown.
What a beautiful photo! I agree on the Escher-like quality of the reflected leaves.
I really like the Google Map that you are showing. I’d like to go to SF at some point.
Thanks! The Google Maps are pretty difficult to set up in Word Press, but I think they add a lot to the images. I’m glad you like them too!
You should definitely visit ‘Esse Effe’ one day. Bring your camera and a tripod. It’s a beautiful city by day and by night.
And thanks to you as well, Jan! You have a pretty incredible collection yourself; your site just convinced me that I need to put in some effort and visit Hell’s Canyon. I wonder what it’s like in the winter?