Tennis in a Rose Garden

To play tennis surrounded by roses sounds like something one might only experience in England. That said, it might come as no surprise for aficionados familiar with Portland, Oregon and its “International Rose Test Garden” to experience this extra perk. Located next to a parking lot that also serves (no pun intended) the Washington Park and the famous Portland Japanese Garden (rated the best outside of Japan), where else does one need to go?

Portland's impressive, almost overwhelming public rose garden dates back from World War I. As its name, the International Rose Test Garden, implies it was created not only for ornamental and education purposes such as the lovely Shakespeare Garden, but also for botanical research. In 1917, rose hybridists from around the world sent their specimens to Portland. This may have been thanks not only to its mild climate but also traditions of private rose gardens. Today, there are more than 10,000 individual roses blooming from May to October with over 610 different varieties. The primary purpose of the Garden continues to serve as a testing ground for new rose varieties. In my own, personal experience it serves in more ways than this. First however, are a few close-up shots of roses and then our surprise experience.

Like playing tennis, it also provided for a fancy quinceañera photo shoot. Marking the transition from childhood to young womanhood, the quinceañera, a tradition with Spanish roots, is a celebration of a girl’s 15th birthday. This rite of passage is still alive and well in Latin America particularly in Mexico where I’ve also been lucky to attend the church ceremony and later fiesta for our neighbors’ daughter. (Here, I couldn’t help but think how her dress could compete with the roses although it’s blue, a color I haven’t seen in any specimens - yet!)