The fragrance of a Noni

Up a Lazy River

An Orchid greeting

Green Fire

Orchids

Lush Life

Waterway

Streams in the Island

Flora2

Flora

Pre-Chocolate

On Tour

It's an incredible opportunity and experience for me to take pictures of the Botanical Gardens. I can't express the pleasure I feel walking the grounds here. So I shoot everything I can find. Each trip I make here is like a 2 week vacation for me. The following shots are from the February tour.

Okinawa College

A few weeks back we brought the students from Okinawa Junior College to the National Botanical Gardens for a tour.

I simply had to show you these majestic and beautiful Banyon trees alongside the river. You can stand inside the roots of these massive formations and feel the strength of this botanical giant envelope you like an enormous cape.

You walk along a solitary path until you come to this statue of a Bhudda sitting by itself in a bamboo grove. Just you and the Bhudda, alone ...in this quiet grove. You can hear the bamboo creaking or slapping against each other. I swear this statue had the feeling that it was alive and contemplating the sound and light surrounding it. It had the feeling of ..."being". I hope you have the opportunity of visiting this place by yourself. Tell your friends to take a short hike to the nearby river so you can be alone with your new friend. ...you will just love the experience.

Reflecting Pool & Lady

Here in the middle of a tropical jungle you will find a quiet reflecting pool accented by a lovely statue gazing into it's soothing cool water.

Within this remarkable garden estate are one or two secluded areas containing statues amongst soft green lawns. Try to imagine a place where you could stroll in peaceful silence save for the sound of the breezes blowing through the trees and the sweet songs of island birds.

I took so many pictures I can't decide which one should go next. The real trick is trying to move from one theme to another.

We walked from one path to another led by a renowned KCC instructor. He decribed one plant after another weaving legends and stories throughout the tour. For a few hours we existed in a world of songbirds and tropical color, cool breezes and gurgling brooks.

Bird of Paradise

I wandered into an area filled with Bird of Paradise. I crawled, leaned, hunched and held my breath to capture as many of these sassy flowers as I could. Here is one.

Orange & Green

Color that resonates it's way to your heart.

Close-Up @ Botanical Garden

What's interesting about the gardens is you don't have to be very good at shooting pictures. All it takes is the push of a button and voila! ..you have instantly captured a picture worthy of framing. You can shoot all day and the plants and trees simply perform their organically celestial magic right before your camera eye.

A stream on Kauai 2006

So, a few weeks back I was escorting a group of Nurses from Okinawa to the National Botanical Gardens on Kauai. I brought along my trusty (old) Sony camera and began shooting everything I could frame. Stunning, brilliant, lush, colorful plants in a dazzling display of sunshine. I thought I would share them with the world-at-large. Hope you enjoy them. -a yankee-in-paradise

Digging the first Post...

So, ...finally,... after all these years I step into the Blog and dig my first post.
I am looking at this post and I want to paint it Black just like the Rolling Stone that I am.

09-14-06