Well, That Was Fun

Indeed, it was a fun time while our London family was here for a much, and I stress much, anticipated visit. Following three previous cancelations due to Covid, it finally happened. You know how sometimes you wait and wait for something and then it lets you down? This was not one of those times. Except for the dismal weather on a bunch of days. Where did the rain come from after months of dry weather? Where were our brilliant blue skies? I sound greedy, don't I? To be fair, we did have some of that, but not nearly as much as I was hoping for given that they were in serious need of clear and sunny skies following a long, dreary London winter. 

Nevertheless we did some very fun activities including, but not limited to, introducing Matt and Tom to pickleball!! Matt joined our Saturday morning group to first see it in action, and then give it a go, which is when he took the photo below of his folks. An impressive outing given that he was still jet-lagged. 

Tom, on the other hand, remained at the condo in order to do some writing. His work on the novel continues and is best done in a quiet environment. As it turns out, we never got back to the courts for one reason or another which was a shame but, in the words of my late Mother, "we had other fish to fry."

When we weren't gallivanting, they spent part of each day doing ridiculously hard crossword puzzles.

Because on previous trips we have taken them to Lake Apopka, on Sunday we went to Orlando Wetlands Park instead. Since Jonathan and Alissa enjoyed it so much, I figured they would as well because they are both nature lovers, and champion walkers. Friends had posted pictures of the newly hatched Sandhill Cranes and it did not take long before we came across the beautiful birds and their "colts".

Had that been all that we saw, the trip would have been successful, but it was just the beginning. The birding loop is about 2 1/2 miles and much of it is wetland with birds in the distance, or hidden amongst the reeds. 

Sometimes I am shooting photos straight into the sun and can barely see what is in the frame as was the case with the photo below.

Nearly trashing it because it is not very good, all of a sudden I saw one duck that does not look like the others. What could it be?? By golly, I think the second duck on the top row (l) is a first time sighting for me. Pretty sure it is a Green-winged Teal.  News, no doubt, that only excites me.

Using their binoculars, Tom had fun tracking the birds and watching them land.

Moseying along, we made way for horse back riders who shared the trail with us. Actually we saw two sets of them on this day which is more than I've seen in countless trips there.

We had sun, we had a few drops of rain, and then we had some bright blue skies with birds flying overhead and an excellent cloud that I keep thinking looks like a Seahorse.

And we saw gators, more than Bruce or I have ever seen before at this location.  By now, having visited Florida many times, Tom is accustomed to alligators, although growing up in England it took his first trip here to see one for the first time in the wild. Some were in the water, while others were warming themselves in the sun on the banks.

Not far from here we were treated to a Great Blue Heron on her nest.

While it may seem ho-hum to some, I find it miraculous every time one encounters new life out and about!

Continuing our walk, Bruce, Matt and Tom had a discussion about the water levels in the park.

Returning to the corner where we began our walk, Matt was staring at a gator on the bank, thinking it was a prop to illustrate the sign, that is, until it sprang to life and crossed the road in front of us!!

Returning to the car, hot and sweaty as the humidity had risen with the cloud cover, we stopped for lunch at Mellow Mushroom on Colonial Drive near Alfaya Trail. Having never eaten there before, it was a nice surprise. Because they began in Atlanta, one of the places Matt has lived in the past, he was familiar with them and as it turns out, his suggestion was a good one.

Monday morning, per my suggestion we headed over to Leu Gardens for what I'd told them was free Monday. Unfortunately we discovered that was not the case, so instead of paying the $60 for a place we've been to many times before, we drove just down the road to Mead Gardens where I was hoping we could find the owls that have nested there in the past.

In spite of our best efforts, the closest we came to wildlife was seeing a whole scad of turtles sunning themselves. The exact number escapes me, but there were loads of them.

We made our way over to the vastly improved gardens. At one time they were kind of sad, but these days they are being lovingly cared for.

A super cool bromeliad in bloom.

If you've been there before you know that it is not all that big, but given the heat, that was just fine. Making our way on most of the paths, we came across this baby waterfall where Tom and I played a little game of throwing a stick over the bridge and seeing whose came out the other side first. According to him there is a special name for this game which he first read about in Winnie the Pooh. Have you heard of it? In our case neither stick was first.

Crossing paths under the bridge, they turned around from whence they came causing a tie between us.

Sometimes the back side of a plant is as interesting as the front, especially with the sun shining through it.

Lunch that day was P.F. Changs. Lack of servers along with a lack of supplies made that one of our least favorite stops for the week. 

If we did anything else that day, it has been forgotten by this blogger!

Switching to the big picture, what is unforgettable at the moment is the hideousness occurring in Ukraine.  While I am happily shooting photographs of birds and family, the Associated Press photographers are making these increasingly horrible images of war.  The bravery of the Ukrainian people is so to be admired, whether it is the women fleeing the country with their small children in tow, or the soldiers fighting. To think that President Zelensky is one year younger than Matt just blows my mind.

Please God, let this madness end! This is a wearying time in the world what with a pandemic winding down and then a madman killing innocent people....everyone could do with a break. :(

I almost feel guilty sharing our adventures, but expect another installment soon.

your friend,

Gail