This and That ... perhaps of interest ...

Snowfall Blossoms
The Algarve's winter love story that keeps on blooming.

It's that fairytale time of year again. The floral fiesta is in full bloom, with the Algarve’s almond trees once again taking the limelight - or, should I say, given these glorious sunny days we are having at the time of writing - the sunlight.

Almond trees have been grown in the Algarve for centuries, and these beautiful buds are, according to the Lenda das Amendoeiras (the legend of the almond trees), the snow of the Algarve.

Once upon a time

The story dates back to the Moorish occupation and tells of how, once upon a time, the Arab king fell in love with a beautiful, golden-haired, Nordic princess. They married in the summer, but when winter rolled around, the queen began to pine for her snow-covered homeland. The king saw how upset she was and, in what could be said to be the ultimate romantic gesture (just in time for St. Valentine's Day), ordered almond trees to be planted throughout the kingdom

His team of diligent botanists followed his royal decree, and on a sunny day in February, when the sky was its deepest Algarve blue, the king took his queen to the top of the castle where they were able to look out onto the fields of trees in bloom. The wind blew some of the petals off the branches, and as they whirled and swirled around them, the queen couldn’t help but be reminded of the snow-covered land of her childhood. She began to feel more at home, and they lived happily ever after.

 

maenan sehabis hujan? (Video pertama setelah bisa berdiri tegak) . . . . #kartun #muslimahkartun #catlovers #hujan #hujansore #raincity #kucing | Ayong Ronie | ayongronie_life · Original audio

 

National Geographic Wild Planet ·
Suggested for you · Jenna Powell · ·



STRANGE FLOWERS - Calceolaria uniflora, native in cold weather of Tierra del Fuego, South America. It’s also known as Happy alien or Darwin’s slipper.
Calceolaria uniflora is an evergreen, perennial plant with darkish-green leaves and erect to ascending stems. It has a shallow root system and grow tight to the ground, up to 5 inches (13 cm) tall. The unique flowers almost look like little penguins marching over the rocks. They are orange-yellow with varying amounts of deep garnet-red to bright chestnut freckling or shading in the throat and on the outside of the vertical lower lip. Each bloom has a white band across an open “mouth”, with burgundy markings above and below it.
It comes from Central and South America in the cooler plains areas where water and bright sunlight aren’t so abundant.

 

Oh Vicky ...I'm not on FB...please tell me what happened to mummy cat...did she live?????

 

What Mummy Cat?

 

When I clicked on Jenna powell ....there was a video of a dead looking cat with 3 kittens licking at her. Obviously someone had been called out . The cat was quite lifeless . The kittens and mum were taker to a vet . Mum was still unresponsive but ,unless my eyes deceived me,I think I noted very shallow breathing.Her temp was taken and they were setting up some intravenous fluids.....but then I was informed I had to join FB !!! Just want to know if she pulled through please.

 

I haven't a clue. She is just another person like me. I clicked on her name and just got other interesting posts ... no sad cat video thankfully.

 

Oh how strange ,I don't even get the video clip anymore now.
Oops...just had another go and it worked.



Facebook

 

Does it work for you??

 

Got it this time. Yes, Momma survived to enjoy those darling babes. They went to great effort to save her. Bless.

 

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We used to holiday in the Serra da Arrábida Natural Park for years, but never encountered the boars ...

Wild boars bathe on this award winning Portuguese beach

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For bathers who regularly visit this beach, the possibility of having to share the sand with wild boars is no longer strange. The wild boars that live among the vegetation of the Serra da Arrábida Natural Park, so the beach is just a stone's throw from their 'home'.

In 2017, Praia dos Galapinhos won the title of Best European Beach, however, the difficult access to it means that some people give up visiting this little piece of paradise.

But, it's not just humans who are attracted to the crystal clear waters of Praia dos Galapinhos, located in the middle of the Serra da Arrábida Natural Park. There, the cliffs that define the limits of the sand protect the place from strong winds and prevent the formation of waves, so the waters are ideal for wild boars to cool off. The presence of people, especially in the summer, doesn't even prevents them from swimming at Galapinhos.

 

About 6mths ago by the look of it.

 

We are in Orange Country here ...