the getty villa.

D and i hardly do anything cultural, so i took this chance to squeeze in a visit to the getty villa, which was only 15 minutes away from our hotel.

the getty villa is one of two locations of the j. paul getty museum, housing 44,000 greek, roman, and etruscan antiquities. located just up the hill from the getty villa is j. paul getty's original house, where he opened his original gallery in 1954. the getty villa was opened in 1974, but closed for renovations in 1997, and finally reopened again in 2006. the villa design was inspired by the villa dei papiri in herculaneum, italy, which was buried under debris from the mount vesuvius eruption. the funny thing, which was revealed to us by our guide, is that getty never visited herculaneum.

we took a guided garden tour, where we were led through the 4 main gardens of the villa, starting with the herb garden filled with fruits and herbs which were used by the romans for cooking, medicine, and ceremony. the herb i loved was the lemon thyme.

we then circled around to the outer peristyle, the largest garden of the villa, filled with statues, hedges, and numerous plants. the statues are all replicas found in the villa dei papiri.

the narrow reflecting pool in the outer peristyle of the villa.

all the fountain features have been turned off to conserve water.

a blossoming pomegranate tree.

the inner peristyle is a smaller garden at the center of the museum, which includes a narrow reflecting pool, and has five bronze statues of women, but with pedestal for a sixth statue. rumor is that at the original pool found in the villa dei papiri, there are spots for six statues, but perhaps one was never discovered.

the fountain in the east garden is still on to feed the plants.

the final garden, the east garden, is one of the quietest places in the villa. though it's got an intricate mosaic and shell fountain, i found this garden the most uninteresting, since it was surrounded by white walls and safely tucked away.

D and i at the east garden with the mosaic and shell fountain in the background.

overall the visit was pleasant and enjoyable. the location of the villa on a bluff also offered an amazing view of the pacific ocean. we quickly walked through the museum, also learning that romans mummified the dead as well (who knew??) and saw an exhibit on glassmaking in antiquity, which blew my mind. 

next time we have a chance to go to la again, i'd like to go visit the getty center!