Marble Hill House in Twickenham, a stately home open to the public, taken from the other side of the river.

Santana, do your children hold the buttercups under each others chins to see if they like butter? Does that happen wherever there are children and buttercups, or did I just grow up in a neighborhood of strange children?

Ysmay, I thought the bird in the marsh was an egret, and you said heron, so I looked it up and... it could be both. An egret is a heron, but a heron isn't necessarily an egret. But a great egret usually has a yellow bill, and this one looks dark, so that means it's probably a white morph of a great blue heron. My bird knowledge is r-egretfully quite limited, so perhaps someone more bird-brained could chirp up if this is wrong info.

While that bird moved slowly and gracefully, methodically looking for frogs, fish and insects, this little sandpiper skittered all over the place, seeming to never stand still...

Lovely little sandpiper, K, and no you're not part of a select group of unusual youngsters I and my children use buttercups to tell if we like butter or not

Gorgeous pics , all. Oh how lovely to see Marble Hill, David. I lived right near for ages!
Yes all Brit children test if they like butter just the same way!Oh that jasmine
I can smell it from here!

Lots of flowers!

More flowers:

Lovely flowers, Tellywellies.



These trees are guayacans (there is probably another more generic name for them). When they bloom in Panama it signals that rainy season is about to start.

Those trees are beautiful bhs and they look very tall!

Just south of Amelia Island are the Big Talbot and Little Talbot Islands, both home to state parks. Here's some info from the Little Talbot Island State Park web site:

Little Talbot Island, named by English General James Oglethorpe for Lord Baron Talbot, is one of the few remaining undeveloped barrier islands in Northeast Florida. Maritime forests, desert-like dunes, and undisturbed salt marshes on the western side of the island allow for hours of nature study and relaxation. The diverse habitats in the park host a wealth of wildlife for viewing including river otters, marsh rabbits, bobcats, and a variety of native and migratory birds. Little Talbot has one of Florida’s most pristine beaches with over 5 miles of shoreline along the Atlantic Ocean. Visitors can fish, surf, search for seashells, or watch the birds while basking in the Florida sun.
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The Island Trail winds through the maritime hammock, with palmettos, live oaks, and Southern magnolias, and this picture was taken maybe a quarter-mile in from the ocean. The Boyfriend joined in on this ride, so I lent him the trail bike, while I made a go of it on the road bike. It is a little tricky riding on a sand trail covered with pine needles!

What gorgeous pictures everybody!


Kapuskasing, thanks for looking that up - I don't know which it is either, but it reminded me of this guy. The last couple of summers he's has been in this part of the Pond in Central Park. I'm not sure if they are both the same kind of bird, either, but I hope this one is there again this year




I love watching sandpipers running back and forth with the waves. They're so cute in their determination, just going about their daily business really really fast.

Y

Beautiful picture ysmay.

Monterey Bay Aquarium: this is the bottom of the kelp forest display -- it's actually three stories high. There are benches where you can sit and watch -- it's almost hypnotic to see the kelp sway back and forth.

We've been in north Wales since last Friday, and visited the amazing coastal village of Portmeirion which was the set location of the 1960s cult TV series 'The Prisoner' starring the late Patrick McGoohan.
This is a general view of Portmeirion village, with the Bell Tower at the right, and the domed Pantheon building on the left.

Wow, picqero, what a beautiful town!

Y

That looks like a fairytale town! And love the tulips, Tredici

Flower arrangement in the lobby of the Royal Hawaiian, Honolulu

I'm not a photographer but I enjoy looking in on this thread to admire the photography of FTers.

I love flowers! I grew up in Jacksonville, Florida, and the beach we usually went to was Little Talbot Island. It wasn't crowded, the people who did go were nice (Like us! ) and there were sulphur-water showers to rinse the sand off under.

I've been to NYC only once, and never to Central Park. Never would have guessed that was NYC!

Thanks to all for sharing your photos!

Your village, Pic, looks like one of those mini villages you see. I almost expect there to be a full size person in the background

Sunrise one day last week. It was one of those moments that was like I had the whole sunrise to myself .. I was on the road and hadn't passed any cars for over 50kms and was at least 40kms from a house.

WOW! That is one stunning photo, Jill!

Portmeirion village is a zany, stylised collection of colourful and exotic buildings, all built during the early-mid part of the last century. The village was the brainchild of renowned Welsh architect Sir Bertram Clough Williams-Ellis who owned, designed, and supervised the building of Portmeirion.
The buildings on this image show the Bandstand (left foreground), the Town Hall (left background), and the Angel (curved sided building). The bronze statue, in centre foreground, of Hercules holding the world on his shoulders, was sculpted by William Brodie (1815-1881).

Lovely pictures of the town, Piqero.