{"id":1548,"date":"2026-06-08T16:38:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T16:38:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1548"},"modified":"2026-06-08T16:38:36","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T16:38:36","slug":"oaxacan-spirit-guides-grace-sonoma-botanical-garden-for-the-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1548","title":{"rendered":"Oaxacan ‘Spirit Guides’ grace Sonoma Botanical Garden for the summer"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Among the Bay Area\u2019s many fascinating day trips, a botanical garden is a special experience, given our Mediterranean climate. Particularly worth a visit is the 61-acre Sonoma Botanical Garden in Glen Ellen, which showcases the connection between the flora of California and East Asia, two regions divided and united by the Pacific Ocean.<\/p>\n

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Now through Sept. 7, you\u2019ll find in this lush setting eight tall sculptures of alebrijes, or chimera-like beings in the exhibition, \u201cSpirit Guides: Fantastical Creatures from the Workshop of Jacobo and Mar\u00eda \u00c1ngeles.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oaxacan papier-m\u00e2ch\u00e9 artist Pedro Linares first created and named such magical hybrid animals \u201calebrijes\u201d in the 1930s. The \u00c1ngeleses\u2019 fiberglass sculptures were born from this folk tradition, as were the towering artworks in the popular touring outdoor exhibition \u201cFantastic Animals From Mexico: Alebrijes and Nahuales,\u201d which came to San Jose in late summer last year as \u201cAlebrijes en San Jose.\u201d<\/p>\n

The couple also drew inspiration from ancient Zapotec beliefs about \u201ctonas,\u201d or protector animals assigned to individuals at birth, and \u201cnahuales,\u201d spirit animals determined by one\u2019s birth year.<\/p>\n

A lovely, peaceful setting<\/h4>\n

Our drive from the Bay Area to Glen Ellen is soothing as our car barrels through wine Country, evoking both the English countryside and the sweeping, vine-covered vistas of France.<\/p>\n

Once inside Sonoma Botanical Garden, our walk leads to expansive views of Sonoma Valley and peaceful moments by the garden\u2019s ponds and waterfalls. During our walk, a vision of France\u2019s Giverny also floats into my mind as I take in the charm of the water lilies and lily pads in the pond, the gurgle of water below the wooden bridges, and the hanging foliage.<\/p>\n

Protecting endangered plants<\/h4>\n

With its 20,000 plants representing almost 1,500 different species, the botanical garden offers a study of rare flora. The garden maintains detailed records for individual plants, contributes climate-change monitoring data, shares plant material with researchers and propagates threatened species as a safeguard against extinction.<\/p>\n

Endangered plants grown from wild-collected seed are cultivated at the garden, their offspring sent to other botanical gardens. This safety measure protects the species against natural disasters in an area that has lost thousands of acres of greenery to fire.<\/p>\n

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Vines, trees and roses<\/h4>\n

Along with its 13-acre legacy vineyard growing its iconic red wine grape \u2014 cabernet sauvignon \u2014 the garden holds over 50 species of Asian magnolias, ranging from large trees to medium shrubs. Many species of maple trees in the garden are not available commercially. From April to July, roses bloom in a sequential parade, from large climbers to delicate shrubs.<\/p>\n

Inside the premises is also a formal rose garden. The Jiang Entian Chinese Heritage Rose Garden, named after China\u2019s most notable rosarian, features some hundred complex rose hybrids celebrating \u201cthe role Chinese species have played in transforming rose hybridization,\u201d according to the garden.<\/p>\n

Following the \u2018Spirit Guides\u2019<\/h4>\n

We find the \u201cSpirit Guides\u201d along the California Oaks Trail, where Jacobo and Mar\u00eda \u00c1ngeles\u2019 monumental sculptures greet visitors. The couple from\u00a0San Mart\u00edn Tilcajete,\u00a0Oaxaca, are known for their hand-carved and distinctly painted\u00a0alebrijes.<\/p>\n

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The fiberglass artworks built by the \u00c1ngeleses are enormous, measuring nearly 8 feet tall, 9 feet wide and 4 feet deep, and visually stunning against the hills and dales of Sonoma Valley. They are painted with acrylic colors using intricate geometric patterns inspired by Zapotec and other Indigenous designs.<\/p>\n

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The Zapotec, like most ancient cultures, believe in other worlds that influence and inform our current lives on earth. A spirit guide is a nonphysical entity \u2014 such as an angel, ancestor, ascended master or animal spirit \u2014 offering protection, wisdom and intuitive direction throughout a person\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

An Indigenous Mesoamerican ethnic group primarily located in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, the Zapotec people are also known as \u201cCloud People\u201d who built a powerful pre-Columbian society centered at Monte Alb\u00e1n. In Zapotec tradition, animal spirits like tonas and nahuales are linked to the astrological birth chart, acting as a direct reflection of each human\u2019s character, strength and personal traits.<\/p>\n

Building on that tradition, the 20th-century concept of alebrijes combines the strengths of two or more animals, as demonstrated by the names of the works in \u201cSpirit Guides\u201d: \u201cCoyote-Fish,\u201d \u201cJaguar-Eagle,\u201d \u201cCamel-Eagle,\u201d \u201cArmadillo-Insect,\u201d \u201cMonkey-Iguana,\u201d \u201cRabbit-Deer.\u201d<\/p>\n

The mostly flat trail through Sonoma Botanical Garden takes us to each of these spirit guides, allowing us time for reflection, appreciation and, of course, photo opportunities. Along the way are several magnificent lookout points as well as sections full of blooming flowers, ferns and foliage native to California and Asia, with the names of unique flora labeled for our benefit.<\/p>\n

Dining among history<\/h4>\n

After visiting the garden, we stop for lunch at a historic spot from California\u2019s Gold Rush. At the Mill at Glen Ellen restaurant stands a 2.5-story structure, originally built as a sawmill by General Mariano Vallejo in 1839. Seventeen years later, Joseph Chauvet transformed the site into a flour and grist mill.<\/p>\n

When we\u2019re seated at the terraced dining overlook, we almost forget to appreciate the scrumptious meal of a delicate house salad and colorful wood-fired pizza topped off by a chocolate mousse with raspberry and fresh fruit. The idyllic setting casts a spell on us, reminding us of all the beauty possible in the natural world as well as the spiritual traditions contained within it.<\/p>\n

If you go<\/h4>\n

Sonoma Botanical Garden:<\/strong> Open from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, and until 8 p.m. on Wednesdays except for July 1. \u201cSpirit Guides: Fantastical Creatures From the Workshop of Jacobo and Mar\u00eda \u00c1ngeles\u201d will be on display through Sept. 7. General admission is $17, and guided walking tours of the exhibition are available at 10:30 a.m. on certain Saturdays for $10-$20. 12841 Highway 12, Glen Ellen; sonomabg.org<\/p>\n

The Mill at Glen Ellen:<\/strong> Open 11:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays-Sundays. 14301 Arnold Drive, Glen Ellen; themillatglenellen.com<\/p>\n

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Jacobo and Mar\u00eda \u00c1ngeles’ alebrije sculptures stand among the nearly 1,500 different species of plants blooming at the garden through Sept. 7.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1547,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1548","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-things-to-do"],"yoast_head":"\nOaxacan ‘Spirit Guides’ grace Sonoma Botanical Garden for the summer - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1548\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Oaxacan ‘Spirit Guides’ grace Sonoma Botanical Garden for the summer - 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