You might recall that just before we left for our trip we were busy doing yard-work, getting things ready for the cold snowy winter ahead. This involved the raking of fallen leaves, pruning of branches and covering of more sensitive plants in a protective layer of mulch. Garden flowers are not to be seen here again for another five months or so.
While I like 3/4 of our seasons here in Canada (the 4th being winter), it was nice to experience a climate where beautiful blossoms are on display all year ’round.
Here is what occurred as I was getting the shot of this next flower, which I now know is called an Alamanda (the same name as our hotel) ….
It was a tricky picture to get and I had to bend right over and twist to get the right angle. I wasn’t overly concerned about how this might all look, perched precariously as I was, with my arse in the air, because I was certain I was alone.
Until suddenly, right behind me, I heard a heavily accented man’s voice …
“Zat flower eez called Alamanda. Ze leaves are poisonous.”
Doink!! I quickly turned my head to see an impeccably dressed, handsome Frenchman, standing a mere 10 feet away watching what I was doing. Thank goodness I didn’t lose my balance and fall into the poisonous plant. I straightened, smoothed down my dress and fixed my hat, that had tilted itself to a very rakish angle.
Turns out he was as interested in the plants on the island as I was, so we had a quick conversation about them, before I flip-flopped my way down the path.
The yellow one is also an Alamanda.
On the two trips we took away from the beach and to the cities, we rode past the most charming homes along the road. Our means of transportation were taxis, which in St. Martin all seemed to be roomy comfortable vans with rows of seats and wide windows, giving an excellent view of everything we passed. I took these pictures as we were riding by these places, and wish I had taken way more photos this way. I didn’t think taking shots through a window of a moving vehicle would work out well, so only snapped a few. But in addition to these green homes there were also many different coloured ones like pink, turquoise and sky blue.
Wishing you the happiest of Wednesdays!
xo loulou
