Filoli is a historic house and garden in Woodside, California, and is one of the 28 sites owned by the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP). Read about it's history here, and how Filoli was built for Mr. and Mrs. William Bowers Bourn II, prominent San Franciscans, whose chief source of wealth was the Empire Gold Mine in Grass Valley, California.
The name Filoli is derived from William Bourn's words in 1912:
"Fight for a just cause
Love your fellow man
Live a good life"
The 16-acre garden was in glorious bloom with tulips, fruit trees, daffodils and rhododendrons.
During an afternoon visit during Sunaina's spring break, we lunched at the café, wandered the grounds, walked through the historic house, watched Percy the Peacock as he strutted around, displayed his fine feathers, and picked at tidbits near the ground near the café.
Percy the Peacock was quite captivating, a fact of which he was well aware, as you can see. He posed near a tree in bloom when he wasn't searching for little morsels to enjoy on the cafe patio.
A few years ago, I visited Filoli in the summer, and there was stunning glass sculptures in and around the pool. The first picture still serves as the background on my computer screen. I never tire of it.
