We were disappointed for the second day in a row because the ocean was choppy so they weren’t running the ferries to the channel islands. Ever ready to dispense itinerary wisdom, Lily suggested we go to the Huntington. I had never heard about it, but was so glad I got to go. It was amazing!
The Huntington was founded by a wealthy business owner (Henry Huntington) who wanted to use his wealth for cultural sharing and advancement. Before he died, he turned his estate into a place of cultural learning. He also married his aunt (through marriage) which was interesting.
The first room we visited had amazing books. There was an original Audubon book, a Gutenberg bible, a letter from Abraham Lincoln, a letter from Mary Shelley (which complained about French bread) and more. It was all so fascinating.
Then we saw furniture, tapestries, and amazing paintings.
Lily’s favorite part was sitting in the room of Gainsborough portraits. She remembered sitting in that room with her family as a child, and reliving that experience with such profound art was powerful for her. I also loved this room and got a new entry point into art since I was previously unfamiliar with Gainsborough. We also appreciated the newly commissioned portrait (see below next to the blue boy painting) that was a modern response to the Gainsborough blue boy portrait.
Then went to the children’s garden and the kids had a blast.
Ammon’s favorite part was the magnetic sand and magnets he got to play with. See the video link below.
https://youtube.com/shorts/ddg_SehFONY
Then we had mochi ice cream in the Chinese garden (which was beautiful) and walked through the Chinese garden to get to the Japanese garden. Here are pictures of the Japanese Garden:
We then exited through a beautiful rose garden and drove home to a beautiful sunset. It wasn’t the Channel Islands, but in some ways it was even better.
Back at the resort, we all went swimming. It was chilly outside, but the pool was so warm and we had a blast playing Marco Polo, having the kids do tricks on my shoulders and just paling around. After swimming we ate at the resort restaurant. Dinner was so wonderful. We had such meaningful family conversation which turned into everyone sharing what they think their own strengths are and what the strengths of others in the family are. It was a beautiful conversation. What an awesome day!