After Cecile returned a dress at Nordstrom's and we had lunch at the Cafe Bistro, we strolled in and around Union Square. We saw the ever present cable cars, colorful flowers like the showy Yellow Trumpet Vine. We also saw the Heart Sculpture exhibit in Union Square Park, including Tony Bennet's America's "Greatest City By The Bay." HEARTS in SF is an annual public art installation that began in 2004 by the San Francisco General Hospital Foundation. The choice of hearts was inspired by the Tony Bennet* song, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco." Each year these sculptures are painted by different artists at various locations around the city including Union Square. They are then auctioned off at the end of the year. As of 2013, Ten million dollars had been raised for the foundation. The one with the Asian motif was our favorite. We feel so blessed to be only 60 miles away from one of the most colorful cities in the world.
*Postscript: Born Antonio Dominick Benedetto, Tony Bennett is a national treasure. He is not only one of the great legends in Jazz and popular music who served his country during the Second World War, but is an accomplished artist. A man of great humility, he admits to having made "mistakes," in his life. He lives joyously in the present and is revered by a younger generation of performers. Cecile and I had the pleasure of seeing him perform in New York after his book: Life Is a Gift: The Zen of Bennet was published in 2012. We have an autographed copy.
