New York the Wonderful

Here we are in the Big Apple. We were such tourists. It truly is a remarkable city just for sheer size and human density. Manhattan is actually very small and is home to some 1.3 (?) million but a whole lot more people pass through. Rockefeller Center was excellent to see because in my head it is the centre of the world. Goes to show the power of media.
Greek gyros on the street. Did we ever have any? Of course not, we were looking for the fancy places. There was so much choice it was ridiculous. Next time I suspect we'll be eating a whole lot more pretzels and gyros. Not such a bad diet if you think about it.
Votives lit in the church opposite World Trade Centre site.
The view of the building outside of our room. The sun was just coming up and hitting the front of the building and turning one side gold and one side silver. The snow just beginning to melt.
We did a lot of this. A lot.

The buildings are beautiful. And each one seems to say, "that's it..I've been here for a long time, I've seen them all come and go. So go your way, live your life, I'll still be here". Humbling, really. I took pictures of lots of churchs- this is St Malachy's and I quote straight from Wikipedia.....In 1920 the Theatre District moved into the area, and actors, dancers, musicians became prominent members. An Actors' Chapel was constructed below the main church in 1920. St. Malachy's became famous as a haven of worship for the entertainment community.

This church has seen notable ceremonies such as the marriage of Douglas Fairbanks to Joan Crawford (for our generation- the actress from Mommy Dearest fame) and Walter O'Malley's marriage to Katherine Elizabeth Hanson, and Rudolph Valentino's funeral.
The Neon Blue Electric Fountain in Rockefeller Center is new and very impressive. It was recently created by Tim Noble and Sue Webster. It is, like everything else in Manhattan, real but not real. I was overwhelmed by the power of image and illusion in this city Everything is digitally projected and coming from an island images like a neon water fountain struck an odd chord.

Below is an extract of a recent New York Times article on the project.
The two, the London artists Tim Noble, 42, and Sue Webster, 40, seemed even more excited than the crowd as they watched two years of work and a decade-long dream finally take shape. “The piece is really about danger,” Ms. Webster warned impishly. “Everyone knows you shouldn’t mix electricity with water.”
Yet the water will be only a simulation. Turned on each day from 6 a.m. to midnight through April 4, the fountain’s blue neon tubing and LED lights will create the illusion of cascading water.

To read the entire article clink on the text above.

Rain in the Dry Season

When it rains in the dry season, it's as if the flowers themselves open to welcome the drops. This morning's early shower was just enough to wash the dust off the blooming orchids and freshen the air. My vandas are really in form this year. But I am ever alert for the batchacs who I know are in the shadows biding their time! This red vanda is particularly attractive to the iguanas and I have seen a baby patiently crawl his way to the top to take a munch. Yes, I could have stopped him but he worked so hard and he was so pretty. I haven't seen any around in a few weeks.
My new Datura. It is a different colour to our regular peach and white ones. This variety is distinctly orange. The smell of Datura is truly intoxicating; a strange mix of ginger and jasmine. It is highly hallucinogenic and in fact, can be poisonous. I didn't allow it in my garden for years. But now that Hayley is older, I've introduced it again.

This alocasia is growing in a basket and has done very well in this environment. I believe that it is Alocasia Frydek but will check this information. Over at Dave's Garden there is an excellent post on how to tell the difference between the alocasias, colocasias and xanthosoma which all fall loosely under the "Elephant Ears" umbrella. I have started growing my more higly srung begonias in hanging baskets as well as I find the combination of being off the ground and being able to drain properly has helped with my problem of fungus and root rot with the begonias.