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Garden Grove Sights and Landmarks Guide, California

Garden Grove is often visited by tourists because of the Crystal Cathedral. This remarkable Protestant Cathedral is the home of the very popular religious program in television, “The Hour of Power.” Its stunning architecture can be appreciated from the outside and the inside. Those who are unable to enter the cathedral could still enjoy the magnificence of the Cathedral even from the outside while those fortunate who can get inside can see the intricate design of the Cathedral. The Crystal Cathedral, as the name suggests, is made of glass - more than 10,000 glasses were installed to build the Cathedral. Aside from the architecture, the pipe organ is also a remarkable sight. The five-manual pipes have amazed its church goers since its first installation in 1962.

But it’s not all Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove. The city is also known for its role in culture. The city has three stage theaters and one of them, the Festival Amphitheater, is well known for its Shakespeare Festival. Every summer, citizens from the neighboring cities visit the Festival Amphitheater where they watch plays written by Shakespeare and interpreted by the locals.

The city is also well known for its ethnic diversity. The city is, in fact, highly identified with Vietnamese immigrants. More than 30% of the citizens in the city are Asians. One of the most popular malls in Garden Grove is the Phuoc Loc Tho. This is a Vietnamese themed mall packed with Asian products that range from food to DVDs. The other “mall” in Garden Grove is The Block. It’s not really a mall but it’s a collection of stores outside with a theater. The place easily gets packed every weekend, as The Block usually becomes the unofficial meeting place of teens and yuppies.

Every weekend after the Memorial Day, the city celebrates the Annual Strawberry Festival. This is in commemoration of the role of strawberries that made the city very popular. It is also a commemoration of the city’s agricultural past which was very pivotal to their development as a city. More than 200,000 tourists come to the city during this festival wherein they enjoy different agricultural products especially strawberries. Although the city is already highly urbanized, there is still one Strawberry field left in Garden Grove. This strawberry field has become the center of attraction during the festival because it is the only strawberry field located within the boundaries of the city.

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