June has been a month of many joyful moments with family and friends in Los Angeles and Toronto. We enjoyed all the wonderful things that come with summer: Warm weather, outdoor picnics, walks in beautiful gardens and parks, beach time, art and music festivals, and more. Here’s June in 12 photos.
Week 1: June started with two fun meet-ups. The first one was breakfast at a local café with my sister while we caught up on family news. The second one was a lovely garden walk then tea with a good friend. We enjoyed scent of wild roses in the air, birds singing and many beautiful flowers in bloom.
Week 2: I took a trip to Los Angeles to visit family and meet up with longtime friends. While in Los Angeles, I enjoyed great company, great conversations, fun outings, laughter and delicious meals.
We strolled on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills and enjoyed the new outdoor Follow Your Heart art installation by Mr Brainwash. The vibrant and multi-coloured heart sculptures emphasize the universal similarity that unites us.
We also took walks on different beaches and trails. The weather was mild with typical “June gloom” in southern California (overcast skies in the morning and partly sunny skies in the afternoon).
Week 3: I returned home to hot and humid weather; daytime high temperatures reached 32C, felt like 42C (or 108F) with humidity. I did my outdoor activities earlier in the morning when it was cooler.
Toronto is packed with free outdoor concerts and festivals from June until September. I enjoyed going out with my friends to Luminato Festival Toronto that showcased Canadian and international art and artists.
During the week, a friend and I went to the Toronto Islands. We walked from Hanlan’s Point to Ward’s Island with a stop at Gibraltar Point Beach for swimming and a lunch break at the cute Runaway Café. We had a wonderful time.
Week 4: I continued my outdoor activities early in the morning, in the Toronto ravines and by the lake to stay cool. There’s always something interesting to discover when I go outside. I also prepared for my adventures in July.
I am grateful for a joyful June. How about you? Did June treat you well?
I’d love for you to share your week’s highlights and/ or public art from around the world in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #169 below. Happy July!
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Natalie the Explorer 
What a busy month you had, Natalie. Bur some photos look very quiet. Happy that you had a great month.
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Thank you Teresa. June has been wonderful. I live in a big city so when I go outside, I look for nature and calm places, not more people:) I also start my day early when it’s nice and quiet. I hope June has been good to you.
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Love all the LA pictures. It was hot second half of June. Happy Weekend!
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Thank you. It’s still hot where I am. Have a great weekend.
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Seeing your photos makes me want to take more photos myself (even as I’m trying to clear away having TOO many photos on my phone already). 🙂
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I try to delete old photos regularly to make room for new photos on my cell phone.
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I am not sure if my link went through so here are some public art from my past trip a few months back. https://wanderingteresa.com/edinburgh/
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The link went through. Thank you for your PPAC. Edinburgh looks like a beautiful city. I hope to visit Edinburgh in the near future.
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I am glad to have inspired you to go to Edinburgh at some point. It is a really wonderful city.
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Natalie, a week in California sounds nice, even if it was ‘June gloom.’ I am sure Evanescent has attracted a lot of attention in your city. It is a beautiful piece.
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Suzanne, I had a wonderful time in SoCal catching up with family and friends. June gloom didn’t bother me much as the temperatures were pleasant for outdoor activities. The Luminato Festival in Toronto usually attracts a lot of visitors. The Evanescent sculpture is on display until end of July. People love it.
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Sounds like a great month for you both at home and in California 🙂 I love the Evanescent sculpture!
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Thank you Sarah. I hope June has been good to you. The Evanescent sculpture is beautiful and playful. It makes me think of giant soap bubles.
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It sounds like a fun month but. I hate hot and humid weather
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I modify my activity schedule to avoid when the temperatures and humidity are high. They are usually short-lived so it’s not too bad.
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June has been good for me, my 1st month of retirement. I prefer cloudy days at the beach so it’s not so hot. I always like seeing what’s in bloom around everyone’s place. That’s an interesting true test that the teacups are durable. I’ve been interested in getting a mirrored garden ball but now I’m thinking effervescent.
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Isn’t retirement the best gig? I found that tea cup suporting the race car display interesting, too. Have a great weekend!
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Lovely pictures and it sounds like you had some very nice outings! Makes me want to look up art installations near me!
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Thank you Sharon. Perhaps you plan a ‘public art discovery’ outing near you and see what you’ll discover.
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The runaway cafe looks like a place I’d like to visit! It seems like June was a fantastic month for you Natalie. I wish you the same happiness for the new month to come. Thank you for the coffee!
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Maria, Thank you for your good wishes. I hope you have a wonderful summer break.
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Sounds like you made the best of June, Natalie. Love Evanescent!
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Jo, I hope June has been good to you. I tried and still couldn’t leave a comment on your blog.
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Our settings must not be compatible, Natalie, and I don’t know what to change without upsetting everything. Sorry!
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I just click “ like” to let you know I read your blog and like it 🙂
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Such a fun and busy month! I am loving all the time spent along the water and at the beach as well as all the beautiful art installations.
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The weather in the last two weeks of June here has been warm and great for water and beach activities. There are also lots of cultural events happenning in the city. I hope June has been good to you. Have a great weekend!
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Looks likeca great month! That last picture of the car on the cups made me look twice….
Hope you have a great July!
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I thought the display of the race car on the teacups was fun and creative. I hope you have a wonderful July.
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Love the hearts and the Runaway cafe. Too cute!! You always get all over the place!! Love to see the results!
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Summer brings on so many fun outdoor events and activities. Now to have time and energy to enjoy them all 🙂
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My favourite is
“Evanescent by Atelier Sisu, is an immersive piece of ‘art-chitecture’ which appeals to our universal playfulness and childlike wonder.“
And mine!
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I’m pleased you like the artwork and my photo. Keep playing and having fun 🙂
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Hi, Natalie – What a great month you had in both Southern California and Toronto. Your positive attitude and joy for life continues to shine through in your posts.
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Welcome back, Donna. Thank you for your kind comment. I hope your Portuguese Camino went well and you have a wonderful July.
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We had crazy hot weather in June. We had fun even though it felt like August.
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I’m glad you had fun, Dawn. It’s summertime so we make the most of it.
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Wonderful photos again Natalie. It’s great that you were able to follow your passion for art while away. June looks like it was very kind to you. I had to look very hard at the car on the teacups. It’s great art.
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Thank you Jennifer for your kind comment. I enjoy public art and sort of look for them wherever I am. I hope you have a wonderful July.
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What a great month for you Natalie, lots of travel and explorations!
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Hi Debbie, It’s summertime here and usually good weather for travel and outdoor activities. Thank you for linking up.
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What a busy yet hopefully relaxing month you’ve had. Such summery photos!
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June has been relaxing and enjoyable. I didn’t do anything that I didn’t like 🙂
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Result! How lovely.
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Runaway Cafe sound good, I haven’t been to the Islands in a couple of years, so I will add it to my summer bucket list.
I remember that Indy display when Williams and Ashley were in the Manulife Centre.
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The Runaway café has outdoor, casual seating. I go to the Toronto islands on weekdays to avoid the ferry crowds.
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Sounds like a great month despite the heat (it was hot here as well!) I haven’t been to California since I was a kid. Glad you had a good time.
I hope you enjoy your weekend and have a wonderful week ahead! Also that you have a great July 🙂
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I go to California for family and friends. LA is so car-dependent that it is not my top choice to travel there as a tourist. Have a great July, Trent.
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I don’t think LA would be my top choice, but I do want to go to the “left/west” coast sometime in the not too distant future, perhaps Monterey…
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Yes, the towns or cities along the Pacific Coast are nice. I visited Monterey a long time ago.
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Hi, Natalie . Rodeo Drive looks lovely. It sounds like June was quite enjoyable. Thanks for sharing!
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It was fun to window shop on Rodeo Drive. Happy July to you, Pam.
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Someone had a great June. I so love everything but really loved that last pic. So very cool. Thanks for hoping and I hope that weather cools down for you.
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That car and teacup display was cool. I’m glad you liked it. Happy July to you, Patrick.
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