Around the Park ....

Forry and Tom were up and out early. The Wood Shop has an orientation program on Wednesday mornings at 7:45 AM SHARP! (According to the information brochure that says to be there at 7:30 to register before the orientation.) Tom has done some beautiful wood-turning at his home shop in Albuquerque. Forry just went along to keep him company.

After they got back (and Forry had a nap), we took the bikes out and rode over to the post office annex to check for mail. Then we rode over to the main office to check out the Silversmith Shop. Their rules say you have to take a class before you can use the shop. But, they will not have any more classes until January... We did go ahead and sign up for the first class in January. Neither of us had brought our wallets, so we'll have to ride back over tomorrow to pay for it.

These hibiscus are blooming in a pot just outside the door of the shop --

We rode around the back side of the park where the softball field is. On the way back to Auntie Violet we saw this neat helicopter --

The propeller was spinning around -- so cute!

A Spring Walk

We've had a bit of wet and dry today. This morning was fairly clear, then got gusty with big clouds. Then we had a few showers, then a downpour. Then the sun came out. Towards evening when we went for a walk, it was breezy, but sunny. You could look towards the north and see a bank of clouds, but there was nothing where we are.

The trees are really leafing out these days and we're seeing more and more things in bloom. We've seen lots of hibiscus --

This orange one has shades of yellow --

There's a bit of bougainvillaea blooming --

These yellow hibiscus have white and red throats --

How about this golfer?

Does this look like the rat from the movie?

This bottle bush plant is just beginning to bloom --

It looks like it will have lots of  "brushes"

The last one we saw was this double hibiscus --

The flowers are pretty, but I find myself missing all of the blooming cacti we've seen the last couple of years in Arizona...

Bonjour?

The Boardwalk RV Resort here in Homestead is a Mecca for folks from way up north. I think the highest percentage of license plates we have seen here are from Quebec, Canada. I had expected to be hearing lots of Spanish, but instead we are being greeted in French.

We are finally far enough south to be seeing papaya trees! I actually bought one the other day at a fruit stand by Lake Okeechobee. We had half of it for breakfast with lime juice this morning.

Walking around this urban park this afternoon almost felt like being in a florist shop with VERY large foliage plants -- like this split leaf philodendron.

And we saw lots and lots of hibiscus --

This family had pots of orchids hanging from their awnings --

The owner said they had just started blooming --

Another color of hibiscus --

This is another plant that I have seen -- a whole lot smaller -- in florist shops.

I have never seen so many different kinds of palm trees. These young ones were clustered at one end of the park --

Another florist plant in the north --

Most of the sheds around the park had straps like this attached to big screws in the ground -- preparation for hurricane winds?

A gorgeous double hibiscus --

A large banana plant --

I have no idea what this large tree might be. There were about a dozen of these "bulbs" scattered throughout the foliage --

Another gorgeous double -- or triple? -- hibiscus.