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ecoorganic · 1 year

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5 Tropical Gardening Ideas That Will Transform Your Outdoor Space

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jillraggett · 1 year

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Plant of the Day

Tuesday 25 April 2023

The path in the tropical glasshouse at Cambridge Botanic Garden, UK, has been temporarily closed to protect the flower buds of Strongylodon macrobotrys (jade vine, emerald vine, emerald creeper). This vigorous evergreen climber has unique blue-green coloured flowers on long pendent racemes reaching up to 90cm in length.

Jill Raggett

#Strongylodon #jadevine #emeraldvine #emeraldcreeper #climber #tropicalglasshouse #tropical #plants #writtledesign #horticulture #cambridge #cambridgebotanicgarden #gardens #botanicgarden #greenflowers

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katiajewelbox · 10 months

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Have you ever tried an Asparagus Pea (Tetragonolobus purpurea)?

This is a relative of peas rather than asparagus. The species is grown all over tropical Southeast Asia and is thought to have come from New Guinea originally. This plant is a novelty crop in western gardens but it has great potential to become a more economically important plant. For example, all parts of the plant are edible (with proper cooking), the seeds can be used in a similar way to soybeans, and it can be processed into feed for domestic animals. It’s very easy to grow in the UK.

We weren’t too impressed with the stringy pods and astringent taste of the pods but we may have not used the optimal cooking style.

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amanufacturedheaven · 1 year

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Study Inspo 🌞

For the first time in my life I’m living in a tropical climate! Which is lovely, but since the Studyblr/academia communities’ aesthetic is (for the most part) very dark a dreary, I’ve felt a bit left out of the romanticisation of rainy UK weather. So for all of us living in the tropics/oceania, these are a few academia-related things I’ve adored doing while studying over here :)

Listening to a podcast/reading by the pool

Making sketches of the all the pretty wildlife & nature

Doing my recommended reading at the beach

Studying underneath a palm tree

Going to galleries and seeing all the local & Indigenous art

Reading outside at sunset in the city when the temperatures cooled off

Getting iced coffee on a study date

Taking a break walking in the botanical gardens/nature reserve

Listening to my lectures at an outdoor space at the library

Drinking coffee and writing on the balcony during the rain

Not having seasonal depression <3 <3 <3

[photos- Pinterest]

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saritawolff · 7 months

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#Archovember Day 11 - Macrospondylus bollensis

The Thalattosuchians were a clade of marine pseudosuchians commonly called “marine crocodiles” or “sea crocodiles”. They were seperated into two groups, the Teleosauroids and the Metriorhynchoids. The metriorhynchoids seemed to be adapted for spending all their time in the water: they had smooth, scale-less skin, tail flukes, and even flippers. Meanwhile, teleosauroids held onto their crocodyliform nature, retaining their osteoderms and probably heading onto land when needed. They inhabited a wide range of habitats: from semi-marine coasts and estuaries, to open-ocean, to freshwater. The Early Jurassic Macrospondylus bollensis was one of these teleosauroids.

Macrospondylus bollensis, long known as “Steneosaurus bollensis” (Steneosaurus being a wastebasket taxon for thalattosuchians) finally had its genus revived in 2020. At 5.5 m (18 ft), it was the largest known Early Jurassic crocodylomorph. Like many other teleosauroids, it had a long, tapering snout, similar to its modern equivalents the gavialids. This snout would have allowed it to quickly maneuver through the water with little resistance, snapping up fish. Oddly enough, like Megalosaurus, Macrospondylus is also represented in the Crystal Palace gardens (though they are simply labeled as Teleosaurus). Modeled after gharials and based on much better preserved fossils than Megalosaurus, the teleosaur statues actually hold up pretty well, other than using a more crocodilian scute pattern.

Macrospondylus bollensis fossils have been found in Germany, the UK, and Luxembourg. It lived in the newly forming Tethys Sea, which was warm and shallow at the time, dotted with small tropical islands where Macrospondylus would have likely emerged to bask in the sun. This area is known for its fossilized crinoids, cephalopods, bivalves, crustaceans, ichthyosaurs, sharks, bony fish, and more, often exquisitely preserved “frozen in time” due to sudden events and nigh perfect fossilization factors. There was an abundance of fish here for Macrospondylus to feast upon, including chimaeras like Acanthorhina, the armoured Dapedium, the long-bodied Euthynotus, pups of the shark-like Hybodus, the herring-like Leptolepis, and many more. It would have lived alongside a variety of icthyosaurs, small plesiosaurs, other teleosauroids such as Mystriosaurus, Pelagosaurus, and Platysuchus, pterosaurs such as Campylognathoides and Dorygnathus, and come across sauropods such as Ohmdenosaurus wandering the shorelines. But Macrospondylus was not the biggest “fish” in the sea, and if it ventured into the open ocean it could have come across the 8–10 metre (26–33 ft) long icthyosaur Temnodontosaurus, the apex predator of the Early Jurassic Tethys Sea (which is also on display at the Crystal Palace!)

#my art #SaritaDrawsPalaeo #Macrospondylus #Macrospondylus bollensis #Teleosauroid #Teleosaur #Thalattosuchians #Crocodyliforms #pseudosuchians #archosaurs #archosauromorphs #reptiles #Archovember #Archovember2023

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todaysbug · 6 months

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December 5th, 2023

Wisley Webspinner (Aposthonia ceylonica)

Distribution: Usually found in tropical regions of Asia and Africa, including Madagascar, Mauritius, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Laos and Thailand.

Habitat: Found on the bark of deciduous and coniferous trees or on the hanging roots of tropical plants; present in forests, parks, plantations and orchards.

Diet: Larvae and female adults are herbivorous; males do not eat.

Description: A. ceylonica is a species belonging to the order Embioptera, better known as webspinners. These insects have silk glands on their forelegs, allowing them to create silk galleries. These nests serve two purposes: protecting the webspinners from predators, and reducing the chance of being swept away by the heavy rains and winds typical of their tropical environment. Despite fasting, males of this species also produce silk.

This species gained some notoriety in 2019, when a small population was found colonizing a warm greenhouse in the Royal Horticulture Society's garden in Surrey, England. Its introduction marked the first new order of insects found in the UK since 1909. Due to their tropical distribution, these webspinners are limited to the greenhouse and would very likely perish if they were to venture outside, meaning there's little risk of them becoming an invasive species in the region.

(Image by Sebastian Büsse)

#today's bug #biology #bugs #ecology #entomology #nature #wildlife #webspinners

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scotianostra · 1 year

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Happy 78th Birthday Kenneth Cranham the Scottish film, television, radio and stage actor.

Kenneth, in my opinion is one of the most recognisable faces in acting, he was born in Dunfermline in 1944 to Margaret McKay Ferguson Cranham spent his early years in Lochgelly, Fife.

He didn’t meet his father, who was in the army, until he was 18-months-old as the country had tried to avoid the mass unemployment that happened after end of the First World War and he was sent off to Africa.

When he was approaching school age the family moved to Camberwell, south London, where he said and shared a bedroom with my parents from the ages of four to 10.

Kenneth started acting at school and was lucky enough to get a paying job before he even left school, with a part in a radio play. His first big break came when he played the part of Noah Claypole on the musical Oliver! in 1966, since then it seems he has hardly been out of work, from Z Cars, Softly, Softly Task force and Danger UXB in the 70’s, Brideshead Revisited, Reilly: Ace of Spies and his most famous part as the title role in Shine on Harvey Moon, Heart of the High Country, Inspector Morse, Boon in the 80’s and Minder, Heartbeat and Kavanagh QC in the 90’s it is fair to say most of his acting credits have been on the small screen.

Cranham however has acted alongside some heavyweight cinema stars including Tom Cruise in Valkyrie, Angelina Jolie in Maleficent and Daniel Craig in Layer Cake. Horror fans will also know him as Dr. Philip Channard in the second Hellraiser film. More up to date he was in Hatton Garden a four-part drama based on the notorious cash and jewellery burglary.

To show you how prolific Kenneth Cranham has been, IMDB say he has clocked up at least 200 acting jobs, that’s over different genres, he also finds time to tread the boards and he won a prestigious 2016 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in The Father. His latest roles have been in the UK TV series Scarborough and The Good Karma Hospital another TV series set in a coastal town in tropical South India. 2022 saw him appear in the J K Rowling penned C.B. Strike

Although he moved away from Scotland at a young age Kenneth says:

“I had a whole Scottish existence until we moved to London when I was four.

“I feel at home in Scotland and go back whenever I can.

“I’ve played the Edinburgh Festival twice and I get the train across the Forth Bridge to Lochgelly, just to see it.”

#Scotland #scottish #actor #television #theatre #films #happy birhtday

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passportapproved · 1 year

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4.2.23

LISTEN TO THIS WEEK'S SHOW! THE GOA EXPRESS – “Portrait” (Communion Records, UK)

BROOKE COMBE – “Black Is The New Gold” (Island Records, UK)

TEENAGE DADS – “Midnight Driving” (Chugg Music, Australia)

HUNDRED REASONS – “So So Soon” (Fierce Panda/SO Recordings, UK)

CAITY BAISER – “Pretty Boys” (EMI Records, UK)

3REE – “Out Of My Mind” (Unsigned, Australia)

THE JORDAN – “I’m Not Sorry” (Unsigned, Holland)

TOM A. SMITH – “Little Bits” (Unsigned, UK)

KAMRAD – “Feel Alive” (Sony Music, Germany)

LOVEJOY – “Call Me What You Like” (Anvil Cat Records, UK)

THE ROYSTON CLUB – “Blisters” (Run On Records, UK)

MADYX – “Walking On The Moon” (Unsigned, N. America) THE LUKA STATE – “Two Worlds Apart” (Unsigned, UK)

MASI MASI – “Moaner Lisa” (Shabby Road, UK)

EMMI KING – “Set The Pace” (Unsigned, Germany)

NOBLE – “Lost In You” (Metrosonic Records, Portugal) BELDON HAIGH – “Dumpster Fire” (Unsigned, UK) TALISCO – “Human” (Talisco Music, France)

CIRCA WAVES – “Your Ghost” (Lower Third/[PIAS], UK)

REST FOR THE WICKED – “Fade Away” (EMI/UMG, Australia)

THE ACADEMIC – “My Very Best” (Capitol Records/EMI, UK)

MATTHEW MOLE – “Countryside” (Universal Music, South Africa)

INHALER – “When I Have Her On My Mind” (Polydor, Ireland)

RUM JUNGLE – “Back Home” (Sureshaker, Australia)

THE SHERLOCKS – “Sirens” (Unsigned, UK)

RHETT REPKO – “Tell Me That It’s Not Over” (Unsigned, N. America)

ALEX LAHEY – “Good Time” (Liberation, Australia)

HIGH TROPICS – “Girlfriends” (Unsigned, Australia)

SINGLE BY SUNDAY – “Severed Ties” (Unsigned, Scotland)

HARINA FT. DANNY BALDURSSON – “Done With You” (Aux Family, Germany) FELLY – “Bad Radio” (Unsigned, N. America)

LIME GARDEN – “Bitter” (So Young Records, UK)

PADDY ECHO – “Butterfly Kissing” (Unsigned, New Zealand)

LAUREN WALLER – “3-2-1” (Unsigned, N. America)

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harleyjohnsonbcu · 1 year

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Fas3003 References

Sparke (2020) Althea Mcnish Obituary. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2020/may/04/althea-mcnish-obituary

Liberty London (N.D.) A SPOTLIGHT ON… ALTHEA MCNISH. Available at: https://www.libertylondon.com/uk/features/craft/archive-althea-mcnish.html

John Hall (N.D) About Pattern. Available at: https://www.aboutpattern.com/

Noko (2020) Stylish, sustainable Stella. Available at: https://www.bangkokpost.com/life/social-and-lifestyle/1831729/stylish-sustainable-stella

Les Facons (2019) SHOP THE STELLA MCCARTNEY RESORT 2020 COLLECTION. Available at: https://lesfacons.com/2019/12/12/shop-the-stella-mccartney-resort-2020-collection/

Vouge (N.D) Versace SPRING 2000 READY-TO-WEAR. Available at: https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/spring-2000-ready-to-wear/versace/slideshow/collection?redirectURL=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vogue.com%2Ffashion-shows%2Fspring-2000-ready-to-wear%2Fversace%2Fslideshow%2Fcollection#13

Lopez (2020) Jennifer Lopez on Why That Green Versace Dress Is So Important. Available at: https://www.glamour.com/story/jennifer-lopez-on-why-that-green-versace-dress-is-so-important

Cary (2020) Alexander McQueen’s Most Spectacular Nature-Inspired Collections. Available at: https://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/gallery/alexander-mcqueen-nature-collections

White (2020) Alexander McQueen celebrate their fascination with the rose. Available at: https://i-d.vice.com/en/article/evjyjm/alexander-mcqueen-celebrate-their-fascination-with-the-rose

Duncan (2018) Trinidad Pride. Available at: https://newsday.co.tt/2018/12/16/trinidad-pride/

Auckland Botanic Gardens (N.D) Hibiscus rosa-sinensis. Available at: https://www.aucklandbotanicgardens.co.nz/plants-for-auckland/plants/hibiscus-rosa-sinensis/

Zoo New England (N.D.) Scarlet Ibis. Available at: https://zoonewengland.org/stone-zoo/our-animals/birds/scarlet-ibis/

Maria Lim (2020) Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (Eighth Day) – THE SACRED HEART HELPS US. Available at:

Huey (N.D) Tropical vegetation along the Gilpin Trail in the Tobago Forest Reserve, Trinidad. Available at: https://www.georgehhhuey.com/image/I0000l.rnce0YO8w

Tripelio (2023) 6 SIGNS YOU’VE SURVIVED A TRIP TO TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO. Available at: https://jessieonajourney.com/trinidad-and-tobago-survival-guide/

Harlequin (N.D) Wallpapers. Available at: https://harlequin.sandersondesigngroup.com/search/wallpaper?q=wallpaper&linksrc=nav

Designers Guild (N.D) Designer Wallpapers. Available at: https://www.designersguild.com/uk/wallpaper/l1115

Morby (2017) Iris van Herpen explores the contrasts between water and air for Aeriform couture collection. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2017/07/05/iris-van-herpen-explores-contrasts-between-water-air-aeriform-couture-collection-design-fashion/

Diderich (2017) Iris van Herpen Couture Fall 2017. Available at: https://wwd.com/runway/fall-couture-2017/paris/iris-van-herpen/review/

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whatgaviiformes · 1 year

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Can I have♦️for the ask game please?

Any character of your choosing.

You can, you can. Of course!

♦ - quirks/hobbies headcanon

It's kind of you to choose any character. How about by hobby:

Gaming: Alan, Gordon, and John are the video gamers, but they all have different types of games they like to play. Alan has Cavern Quest, a bit of the role play become a hero kind of thing, and John always has a resource management game going - something like building a factory, which for him is pretty mindless. I see Gordon as somewhere in the middle - he uses games to decompress if he needs to, or for distraction on days where his pain flares, so he's either playing something with an immense amount of action or something that's more on the relaxing side - no in between. But those are their preferences and the three of them connect often to coordinate raids in Cavern Quest, or just chill together between rescues. Virgil finds his fun in other things, and Scott prefers a solid board game or card game over video games, but knows well not to play with John.

Plants: This one is a Virgil, John, and Gordon thing for the most part. Virgil finds inspiration in nature so he has a HUGE monstera in his art studio. John likes hoya in my headcanons since they are hardy for extended durations, especially in the tropics, and Gordon prefers his outdoor garden and the plants that will best help his aquariums. None of those plastic landscapes. His feeeesh get the best.

Music/Art: Virgil, obviously. But Gordon plays uke, dabbling slightly with the guitar. I do like the headcanon of John having a good voice too. For art - I imagine Scott likes to do those adult coloring books while listening in on important TI meetings :)

Crafts: I won't let this one go, sorry. Virgil learned knitting and crochet from their mom, and he taught Gordon while he was healing from his accident.

I think most of these have made it into my writing at some point, so hopefully there's something new in there for you. Thanks for the ask!!

#ask box answers

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notwiselybuttoowell · 2 years

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As summer fires continue to devastate huge areas of woodland in Spain, France and Portugal, and drought plagues Europe and the UK leaving tens of thousands of acres at risk of desertification, some scientists are busy collecting fog.

The EU-backed Life Nieblas project (niebla is Spanish for fog) is using fog collectors in Gran Canaria in Spain’s Canary Islands, and Portugal, to improve degraded landscape and fuel reforestation.

Fog collectors – sheets of plastic mesh erected in the path of the wind – already exist but have never been used efficiently, says Vicenç Carabassa, the project’s head scientist, who works for the Centre for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (Creaf), a public research institute at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. As wind blows fog through the mesh, water droplets collect and fall into the containers below.

Fog collection is particularly applicable in restoring the Canary Islands’ laurisilva [laurel forests], which themselves exist by collecting fog water,” says Carabassa. The water droplets from the fog condense on the trees’ shiny, waxy leaves. “The system allows saplings to flourish until they are mature enough to capture water themselves,” he adds. Laurisilva is sub-tropical rainforest populated by evergreen species, though not necessarily the familiar laurel trees found in parks and gardens.

To operate well, fog collectors need both fog and wind, conditions that exist in the Canaries and Portugal, but less so in the Mediterranean, where forest fires and desertification are a growing problem.

“We’re still trying to discover what are the optimal conditions for fog collectors to work,” says Carabassa, who adds that laurisilva restoration can help to replenish the aquifers that are under constant strain in the Canaries.

As well as the Canary Islands, where Creaf is working with the Gran Canaria local authority, the public company Gesplan, which manages the project, and several other research institutes and public organisations, the technique will be tested in maritime areas around Barcelona and the El Bruc municipality in northern Catalonia, which was ravaged by a huge fire in 2015.

#fog #fog collection #water scarcity #drought #canary islands #Portugal #laurel forests #desertification #Mediterranean #wildfires

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jillraggett · 1 year

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Plant of the Day

Saturday 21 January 2023

The impressive fern Cibotium schiedei (Mexican tree fern) is found growing in the damp cloud and montane forests of southeastern Mexico. This tropical species slowly reaches a height of 3–5 metres with a trunk covered with hairs. Here it is a feature of the Cambridge Botanic Garden Fern House, UK.

Jill Raggett

#Cibotium #Mexicantreefern #treefern #tropicalplant #glasshouse #fernhouse #fronds #plants #writtledesign #horticulture #cambridge #cambridgebotanicgarden #botanicgarden #botanic #reflection

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katiajewelbox · 6 months

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Merry Christmas from our home to yours! This is a beautiful handmade wreath featuring three notable plant species.

The green and white marbled leaves belong to a variegated spineless European Holly (Ilex aquifolium). This is the iconic species we associate with Yuletide decor and the sole Holly species native to Europe. In the Americas and Asia, there are hundreds of species of Hollies growing in tropical and subtropical habitats.

The spiky cones are Teasels (Dipsacus fullonum) seed heads. The Teasel is an annual wildflower found across Eurasia and North Africa. The cones are covered with minuscule lavender coloured flowers in summer which are a great food source for bees and butterflies. Later on, the teasel seeds provide winter food for wild birds like the decorative goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis). They are a "pain" to cut down in the late autumn garden due to their spiky leaves and stems, but worth it for the local wildlife.

The red berries are not Holly berries, they are Wild Rosehips (Rosa canina). This wild relative of the garden rose bears simple pale pink flowers with a single layer of petals and grows in Europe, Northwest Africa, and Western Asia. The scarlet rosehips are visible in winter hedgerows in the UK, like "nature's Christmas decorations". The rosehips are edible and contain high concentrations of vitamin C. Don't pop one in your mouth and start chewing! The rosehips contain irritating plant hairs (trichomes) inside that will cause digestive system issues and mouth sores. To safely eat rosehips, they must be cooked and strained to make syrup and jelly. I asked Santa for a jelly strainer to make these foraged treats.

I don't actually know what the fourth plant in the wreath is, but it has leathery dark green leaves and umbels of pale pink flowers. If anyone knows this plant please tell me in the comments!

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ijustpressthebutton · 2 years

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Today I went to a tropical garden in the UK. It has a special microclimate that doesnt get frost in the winter so Tropical plants can be grown there without them dying in the winter! Here’s my dad enjoying the view of the estuary.

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isabelladtejada · 3 days

Video

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Sending Flowers to the Love of your Life – Top Tips for Getting it Right

Flowers are such a great gift for every occasion, but so easy to get wrong, and pretty easy to get right. Here’s our hints and tips, do's and don'ts, to avoid the cold shoulder visit site here and putting yourself back into the doghouse. Firstly, what not to do.

Don’t buy flowers at the garage or the supermarket.

Especially not the cheap, reduced to clear ones, and particularly ones that have bright blue flowers in them. I mean come on, have you ever seen Mother Nature produce anything that colour? With cheap flowers, you may almost be better off not bothering at all. It may well not be the thought that counts.

If budget is top of mind, then how about picking some wild flowers instead? If you do go with the garage version then our top tip is buy two bunches, take them out the wrappings and rewrap them. If you’re at a garage in the UK, buy the Financial Times, as that salmon pink newsprint makes a pretty funky wrapping paper, and will transform even the saddest looking set of flowers into something beautiful.

Don't be mean.

It’s the equivalent of the quarter pound box of chocolates. Buy the most stylish bunch you can afford, or buy more of a cheaper flower.

You’d be amazed at how stunning masses of something simple like daffodils are together, and often in the spring you’ll get 3 bunches for £1. So for less than the cost of a pint of beer in London, you could get 9 bunches, which will look spectacular.

Don’t assume flowers are just for the girls.

For any ladies hunting down tips for their other halves, we’re talking to you! If you choose the right version then the man in your life could be very surprised and secretly pleased to receive some great looking blooms. Although probably best not to send them to his workplace.

Do it with style

If you're the type who avoids sending red roses because they just seem such a cliché, don’t think the romantic gesture is beyond you. Most florists have moved into the 21st century and can offer stunning modern bouquets with no sign of red roses or gypsophilia. Don’t be afraid to tell them what you want to avoid, as well as what you think your other half might like.

Do It Yourself

Well, not so much you as the love of your life. If they fancy themselves as a world class florist, then get them a box of flowers from a wholesalers and let them unleash their creative talents.

If you’re in the London area, then make an early morning trip to the legendary New Covent Garden Flower Market, and buy in a bucket load. Most stalls have done the bulk of their business by 6am, but you’ll find some great places for a bacon sandwich to restore you afterwards. Most big cities have wholesale markets and most are open to the early-rising public.

Do Choose Unusual Flowers

If you’re not going for quantity, then go for quality, and unusual ones at that. Whether you are shopping online or at the florists, if it’s something you’ve not seen before and it takes your fancy, then that will add to the surprise when your beloved receives it.

Do Choose Local, Seasonal Flowers

This is almost the contradiction of the previous tip, but if you’re living with your own green goddess, then this will probably be a very positive thing to do in her eyes. Many flowers are flown thousands of miles, having been intensively grown in far off places. Whilst you might not get tropical blooms, you’ll get sustainably grown flowers that will probably last longer as they will be fresher, and you’ll be contributing to your local economy.

#youtube

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gkathleenk · 20 days

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NEW ZEALAND

DAY ONE

My adventure in New Zealand actually started 3 months prior to visiting because I needed to validate my US Passport to be able to go. But today, I actually arrived in the country. You do not need any vaccinations, but you do need to get either a New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority or a visa to travel.

After landing and getting off my plane, I checked into my Airbnb. I decided to splurge while in New Zealand and stay at Lakefront, which is a one bedroom, one bath located in Queenstown. Lakefront rental is on Lake Wakatipu. The Airbnb costs $470 USD a night (New Zealand uses the New Zealand Dollar, making it $767 NZD), and since I will be staying 2 nights, my total is $1,534 NZD.

The first thing I wanted to see in New Zealand is the Milford Sound, located a 4-hour drive away from my Airbnb. Milford Sound is a fjord stretching across 15 kilometers with waterfalls reaching as high as 1000 meters. When you're in Milford Sound, you can go on a cruise tour, go kayaking, go diving, or hike. I chose to take the boat cruise, so I could see the aquatic wildlife, but not as close as the diving adventure. The price range for an adult taking the cruise is $135 to $219 NZD ($82.63 to $134.05 USD). Milford Sound has very heavy rainfall and the temperature is 64 °F during the summer and 41 °F during the winter. The cruise usually lasts between an hour and 45 minutes to 3 hours. Mine was 2 hours long.

DAY TWO

Between 1280 and 1350, Polynesians settled into the 600 New Zealand islands, making it the last large chunk of land to be settled into. Soon after they arrived to New Zealand, they developed a Māori culture. In 1642, a Dutch man saw New Zealand and recorded its existence to the world. In 1769, a British man set foot onto New Zealand, and 71 years later in 1840, representatives from the UK and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which gave all control of the country to Britain. They remained under control of the British until 1947, when they gained back full control of their islands. The majority of New Zealand's population now is still European, and the main language is English and not Māori.

There is no recognized main religion in New Zealand, the biggest religion is Christianity, with only 38% of the population (5 million) identifying as Christian. 8% of the country believe in another religion, such as Islam, Buddhism Hinduism, etc. and 49% of the population do not affiliate themselves with any religion at all. Some Māori people around New Zealand still follow the traditional Māori religion, but once England swooped in, many of them converted to Christianity.

I started my day off by getting something to eat. The national dish of New Zealand is Fish and chips, or meat pie. Neither of those sounded particularly appetizing, so I decided to get Pavlova, the nation's dessert. Pavlova is a meringue dessert that hails from Australia and New Zealand.

After eating some of the nation's greatest food, I wanted to visit the Hamilton Gardens, located 3 hours and 15 minutes away by plane. I used my private jet and landed exactly at the garden. Admissions have been free since they opened, but starting spring 2024, admissions will become $20 NZD ($12.24 USD). Luckily for me, I am travelling in May, and spring in New Zealand is September-November due to being in the Southern Hemisphere. You can get a tour guide for the gardens, those tickets costing $25 NZD ($15.30 USD). With the tour guide, you are taken on a journey and get told about hidden stories, secret symbols, and insights. There are different gardens you can visit, and people recommend spending 2–3 hours thoroughly exploring each one. Hamilton Gardens take the different influences other cultures have in New Zealand and connects them all, showcasing nature and artwork from each. The different gardens include:

Ancient Egyptian Garden

Mansfield Garden

Picturesque Garden

Chinoiserie Garden

Te Parapara

Tropical Garden

Japanese Garden of Contemplation

Modernist Garden

Chinese Scholars' Garden

Surrealist Garden

Indian Char Bagh Garden

Rogers Rose Garden

You can get married at Hamilton Gardens, but there are varying prices.

From July 1–December 31

Up to 2 hours and the park remains open to the public: $653.49 NZD ($400 USD)

Up to 2 hours and the park is closed to the public: $1772.59 NZD ($1085 USD)

From January 1-June 30

Wedding in outdoor garden up to 2 hours and the park remains open: $653.49 NZD ($400 USD)

Wedding Photoshoot: $163.37 NZD ($100 USD)

Wedding in enclosed gardens up to 2 hours and park is open for public: $1306.98 NZD ($800 USD)

Garden is closed to the public and no time limit: $2426.07 NZD ($1485 USD)

After visiting the Hamilton Gardens, I flew back to Queenstown. In Queenstown, I did the Tiki Trail, a challenging hike due to the fact it's mostly uphill. The hike lasts around 1 hour, and you are hiking 2.1 km. After hiking up the hill for an hour, you take the Skyline gondola back down. People recommend taking walking sticks with you, so it is a little easier. The elevation you are climbing is 404 meters.

After hiking the Tiki Trail and getting married, I needed to head to my Airbnb and go to sleep, wrapping up my New Zealand adventure.

I very much enjoyed New Zealand. Compared to Guam, New Zealand is lacking in traditional culture, but it has way more natural beauty than Guam. Even though I spent less time here, I preferred it here than in Guam.

#new zealand #travel #milford sound #fjord #taika waititi #marriage

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