England is making news this summer with images of the Queen’s Jubilee and the Olympic Rings everywhere. Yet for me there is no more definitive image of England than a castle.
Category: Europe
A Natural Palate
Jardin de Cactus, Lanzarote, Spain
Cactus, succulents and rock are familiar features in Southwest gardens. As a desert dweller, I assumed there were no more beautiful cactus gardens than exist here in the Sonoran desert. That idea was turned upside down on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean.
Gardens in Sunny Paris
On Thursday the weather turned fine in Paris. After a cold and very rainy spring the change in sky and temperature made everyone feel hopeful about the future. Both the Parisians and their visitors were outside. The museums of Paris are filled with wonderful art yet this day people were in the gardens.
Monet’s living canvas
In early May in Monet’s Garden the dutch iris are blooming. The bearded iris are in full bud, given a week of warmer weather they will be opening. The scent of wisteria is mixed with the scent of lilacs in the air. There are beds of pink tulips and lavender lobelia just outside the door of the famous pink house with the green shutters.
Celebrating Flora
Celebrating Flora
In ancient times much of the world paused from their work to celebrate flowers. The Roman Goddess Flora was celebrated in the spring. A Maypole was erected,with ribbons streaming down, hands reached up and the dancing began. Young women wore crowns of flowers in their hair. The beauty of life, flowers and fertility was thoroughly celebrated with the hope of a great harvest in the Fall. The celebration lasted several days with games, performances, feasting and drinking.
Lost in a Garden
I became impatient listening to the tour guide explain 700 years of history. Already I calmly sat through a long bus ride from the port of Cadiz to Seville to get to the Royal Palace Gardens of Alcazar. I wanted only to see the garden. So. . . . I slipped away from our tour group.
Landscape art
Painting in plants creates art. This art is the highlight of the Jardin Botanico in Madeira, Portugal. Landscape design is a combination of texture, color, structure, climate and patience. An artist working in oil must allow time for the canvas to completely dry. The garden painter working with a palate of plants must wait for the art to grow.
One minute composition
Once I watched a tourist video the still photos in a hotel lobby. I wondered how those images would be used to relive that moment of the trip. Sometimes it seems the world is looking through a viewfinder and missing the view. I am as guilty of the photo obsession as anyone. Only 24 days into a 35 day journey and Rich and I have shot nearly 6000 images. Scanning through the collection I found my reward in the following images. None of these subjects will last beyond the brief moment when we were there. All were beauty worth capturing.
Jardin De Cactus
We are so accustomed to being just one thing, having one label attached to us, we are a teacher, a welder, a policeman, an artist. When we aren’t afraid of being more than one thing, magic is possible.
Risco Bella Gardens
Love and passion make a powerful combination. A Belgium man deeply in love with his wife and passionate about gardening built a five level garden encompassing eight acres on the island of Tenerife as a gift to his wife. Nearly 40 years ago, in the early 70’s both he and his beloved wife had died and this incredible garden was left in the care of their two daughters.