There is no place like Sacramento
The City of Trees
A blog about our city
by Jim & Nida Jackson
(Written in conjunction with and as a companion to a video produced for WOW Airlines)
We live in the Sacramento suburb of Carmichael, California. However, we consider the World to be our home as we feel comfortable in the more than 30 countries and most of the states in the USA that we have traveled to.
There is so much to see and do here, like the State Fair at Cal Expo (above) or a visit to historic Old Town (below).
The iconic Tower Bridge is at the western entrance to Old Town Sacramento and its golden color reflects our rich heritage to the gold rush days of the 1860s.
The Delta King, above, sits on the Sacramento River and is a former paddlewheel boat that now serves as a restaurant and a hotel. Below, in Sacramento's Chinatown are several great restaurants and a unique pagoda-style phone booth.
With our great climate, flowers are blooming all year around. Below, Nida stands among the tall and colorful roses in the famous Capital Rose Garden, just behind the state capital building.
Above, a praying mantis helps roses stay free of pests.
Above, pink dogwoods are among the early blooms just after winter.
Many of the fields and farms that surround Sacramento are usually filled with many varieties of plants and colorful flowers.
Although there are many locations where you can enter Sacramento, the Tower Bridge is the most colorful.
Annual air shows in the Sacramento area typically have a breathtaking demonstration by the world-famous Blue Angels.
The Sacramento Aerospace Museum of California displays a huge variety of airplanes that will delight both young and old.
The food scene in Sacramento is amazing and diverse. If you cannot find something good to eat, you're just not looking.
"Pop" Gunther designed Jugglin' Joe and would tell kids that if Joe ever dropped his scoop of ice cream, they would get one for free! The ice cream may be the best you have ever had.
Above and below, Nida showing her catch-of-the-day, crayfish (freshwater lobster) from the nearby American river.
Farm-to-Fork is a Sacramento program that has a positive impact by stressing healthy food from local farmers.
Experienced chefs as well as budding chefs enjoy cooking with locally sourced, Farm-to-Fork produce.
Here in Sacramento, you can enjoy rafting, kayaking, swimming, fishing, hiking or just relaxing along the river.
You might even get lucky and find a nugget of gold along the riverbanks.
The art scene in Sacramento is stimulating. It traverses a wild range from classical to street art and everything in between.
Above, many colorful murals have been commissioned to brighten our area. Below, former area resident, the talented artist Randall Tillary, sits below one of his many works of fine art.
Above, the quintessential painting of Elvis Presley on velvet. OK, it's not really in an art gallery but you never know what you can find in a Sacramento Goodwill store!
The nightlife in Sacramento is electrifying, where bright, colorful neon signs will help you find a favorite popular hangout.
Below, wildlife viewing in the Sacramento area is amazing! The Ibis below can be seen at the Vic Fazio Wildlife Area along with many resident and migratory birds.
Below, a large male buck takes a casual stroll through the peaceful protected forest at Effie Yeaw Nature Center. Salmon reach the nearby river on their annual migration.
The Sacramento Zoo started in 1927 with just 40 animals, today it has over 500. Located on 14 acres in the southern part of Sacramento, it is a perfect breeding location for many species.
The animals love the openness of this spacious zoo, just ask Valentine the giraffe! (Editors note: The Sacramento Zoo reported that in August of 2019, Val, who recently celebrated her 24th birthday on Valentine’s Day, passed away from age-related complications.)
Clearly one of the biggest attractions of Sacramento is the famous California State Railroad Museum located in Old Town. It offers a unique, up-close view of numerous pieces of pristine railroad equipment. Many tell the early history of how the railroad helped pave the way to California.
Public transportation in Sacramento is quite good and offers several daily trains to the San Francisco Bay Area.
Sacramento is on the forefront to bring high speed rail service between northern California and southern California.
Sacramentians love their cars and the area boasts several custom car shows throughout the year.
Music plays a vital role in our culture, and in Sacramento, it is as varied as our food, art, and people.
Below, Sacramento is where the iconic Tower Records started.
With our wonderful climate, sports play a huge part of our lives. Each year the Amgen Tour of California attracts competitors and fans from all over the world.
Above, the leader of the Tour of California gets to wear the coveted yellow jersey.
Above, the polka dot jersey gets to be worn by the rider who is the king of the mountain.
Above, want to know what it feels like to fall off your bike at 40 MPH in the Tour of California? Take off your clothes, down your shorts, and jump out of a car going 40 MPH!
The California International Marathon is a prestigious race that is a Boston Marathon and US Olympic Trials Marathon qualifier. Above, Sarah Kiptoo of Kenya was the women's winner in 2016.
Below, the beautiful Raley Field, renamed as Sutter Health Park after the 2019 baseball season, is the home stadium for the Sacramento Rivercats, the professional baseball team and minor league affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.
Above, the impressive Golden 1 Arena, home to the NBA's Sacramento Kings basketball team. It has the capacity to expand to 19,000 to accommodate concert audience. The design focused on building with regionally sourced materials and to be the most technologically advanced arena in the country.
Sacramento has a wide variety of tastes in food, art, music, cars, and even sports. But the best thing about Sacramento is our diversity. Our people are what make this a great city!
Above, President Bill Clinton makes a stop in Sacramento. Below, a visit to the state capital may inspire youngsters to get involved.
Above, Kevin Johnson, the 55th Mayor of Sacramento and the first African-American to serve as Mayor of Sacramento.
We hope that you have enjoyed this post about our wonderful city of Sacramento and that this will inspire you to plan a visit here. There is so much to see and do here and we have over 30 miles of bike trails along the magnificent American River. We know that you will not regret adding a visit to Sacramento to your bucket list. A visit here will add many drops in your bucket!
To view a short video about our hometown of Sacramento, please copy and paste the following into your browser:
https://youtu.be/5YyjVv3xKMA
To view a longer, more detailed video, please copy and paste the following into your browser:
https://youtu.be/4DtQpza22ps
All photographs are the copyright of Jim Jackson Photography. Signed copies are available. Permission to use any photographs from this blog, please contact blog owner.
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