Indonesia: Seloliman Resort; Minggu; East Java

Our ‘home away from home’ for the next couple of days was Seloliman Resort, an eco styled place with accommodation made up of cabins in a large garden.

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After settling into our cabin, my travelling mate Brian and I went for a bit of a wander around the garden, listening to the cicadas and watching multi-coloured butterflies flit from one brilliantly coloured flower to the next. The only down side was that the area also seems to be a Mecca for motocross bike riding. Their noisy exhausts echoed around the hillsides completely destroying the other-wise very peaceful atmosphere of the place. Never mind… there was much in the garden to enjoy and photograph.

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The front entrance of Seloliman Resort appeared to be nothing special, but…

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… it was a very unusual entrance….through a longish tunnel that had this amazing root growth dangling down from a plant growing above on the roof.

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The older roots were beige / white while the new growth was a brilliant pink.

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The gardens where the chalets were situated were large and laid out in a very natural way. Grassy and earthen paths wound their way through the lush growth.

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Large St Joseph’s spiders spin their webs within the foliage.

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The smaller spider is a male. He’s dicing with death as the larger female will devour him after mating! But what has to be done, has to be done, I guess!

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Butterfly pea (Clitoria ternatea) has a form relating to its Latin name!  It’s an herbaceous perennial found growing in tropical equatorial Asia.  It’s been introduced into Africa, Australia and America where it’s grown as an ornamental. It’s also used as a revegetation species in coal mines in Australia.  It’s a legume, so it enriches the soil with nitrogen.

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This vivid blue flower is the commonly seen colour, compared to the one above.  There are also white forms.

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Parts of the garden were a tangle of cucurbit vines growing through the vegetation…

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A closer look at this delightful flower and it’s pollinator.

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This plant could well have a name referring to ‘fairy floss’, but I don’t know what it is.

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Heliconia sp., members of the genus are often referred to as Lobster-claw. They are closely related to the banana and are widely grown in the tropics as an ornamental.

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Another Heliconia species.

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A Hibiscus flower.  One of many thousands of horticultural forms bred around the world.

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And another one… I really couldn’t decide which one to delete.

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I was not familiar with this flower, so…

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I photographed the name on the plaque beside it… always a good idea.

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I checked it out on the web when I got home and found it named just as the plaque said, Jatropha podagrica hook. The site, ‘World of Succulents”, gave these notes as an addition to their photograph (left): “a tropical, frost-sensitive, succulent shrub, up to 8 feet (2.4 m) tall (usually up to 3 feet / 90 cm). It has a swollen and knobby, grey-skinned stem (large bottle-like caudex) and green, smooth, waxy leaves, up 12 inches (30 cm) in diameter. The flowers are small, coral-like and bright red in colour.”

English common names for this plant include, wait for it…Buddha Belly (the most common name), Petit Baobab, Bottle Plant Shrub, Gouty-stalked Jatropha, Purging-nut, Guatemalan Rhubarb, Goutystalk Nettlespurge, White Rhubarb, Physicnut, Podagrica, Bali Gout Plant, Tartogo nut, Gouty Foot,  Gout plant, Gout Stick, Gout Stalk and last but not least, Coral Plant! So, I’m very thankful that it has but one scientific name.

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Selaginella sp.; moss.

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Allamanda cathartica, bursting with the colour of sunshine. It’s most common name is Golden Trumpet but it also known as Yellow Alamanda and Alamanda Canario!  All parts are poisonous if eaten; its sap causes skin and eye irritation.

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 A horticultural variety of Anthurium.

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A colourful millipede.

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A dragon fly taking a rest on a twig. Just look at those wings! So delicate.

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Peacock Flower (Caesalpinia pulcherrima), a tree widely grown in the tropics.

 

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This brown frog jumped across my path and sat still long enough to be photographed… and I caught the gleam in its eye! The brown ‘patch’ behind the eye is a thin tympanic membrane, or eardrum, that protects the inner ear cavity and helps to transmit sound vibrations… sounds that are essential for the frog’s survival.

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Crepe or Malay ginger (Costus speciosus) occurs throughout Southeast Asia. The name of ‘crepe’ refers to the amazing crinkled crepe effect of the petals.

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Angel’s Trumpet (Brugmansia versicolor) is an evergreen tree growing to about 4m in height. Endemic to Ecuador, it belongs to the Solanaceae family and is often found in tropical gardens. However, I’m not too sure why it’s so popular. It’s known that the flowers, leaves, and seeds of Brugmansia are very toxic and even the perfume can cause hallucinations as well as increasing blood pressure, a dry mouth, muscle weakness and paralysis. Since March 2014, this plant has been listed as Extinct in the Wild … so the only place to see it now is in gardens… and it is attractive.

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A young tree of Maniltoa sp. that we had seen before at another garden. Finding this tree was a delightful end to a very pleasant walk.  More anon.

David

All photographs copyright © DY  of  jtdytravels

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Thailand: Morning Mist Resort

Our accommodation at the ‘Morning Mist Resort’ was at the edge of the Khao Sok National Park.

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We were to stay in small cabins that are scattered around the complex.  As I dropped my bag in the room, Number 13, I noticed that there was no AC but there was a fan and mosquito nets were dangling above the beds.  Perhaps I could have a good night’s sleep!

I opted to do nothing in the afternoon except explore and enjoy the flowers in the natural tropical gardens that surround the resort.  How often, when travelling, do we drop our bags at the place where we’re to stay and not explore its surroundings?  We just go off to explore somewhere else.  Seems a waste to me.

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The main entrance to the Morning Mist Resort, rather rustic, very tropical.

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Red Passion-flower (Passiflora coccinea).  This plant is a native of the Amazon Basin but is widely grown in tropical regions.  The fruit is orange or yellow and good eating.

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Butterfly bush (Turnera diffusa)

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This Thunbergia grandiflora has many common names such as Blue Skyflower, Bengal Trumpet and Clockvine.  It is native to China, India, Nepal, Indochina and Burma.  Broken pieces of plant float down watercourses and establish easily.  The large flowers are followed by pods which eject seeds several metres on ripening.  It is a declared noxious weed in Queensland.  By the same token it has been given an Award of Garden Merit by the Royal Horticultural Society (UK).  A climbing plant, it can reach 20m in height.

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The shrub Vinca (Kopsia fruticosa) occurs in India and on the Malay Peninsula.  It has important traditional medicinal properties and is used in treating sores and syphilis.

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Ixora sp. come from Africa and Asia.

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Costus babatus is a plant closely related to the gingers and heliconias.

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The Blue Butterrfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) is a widely grown annual vine.  It originally comes from Tropical Africa and South America.

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Hanging Lobster-claw (Heliconia rostrata).

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An especially long inflorescence on a Hanging Lobster-claw plant (Heliconia rostrata).

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There are over a 1,000 species of Anthurium from tropical America.  Many more 1,000’s of cultivars have been bred from the original species.

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A white-flowered member of the potato family (Solanum sp.).

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There are approximately 40 species of water-lily (Nymphaea) widely spread throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world.

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Sometimes called Spider Lily (Hymenocallis littoralis), this plant is very salt tolerant.

After this delightful, if hot, wander in the gardens, Brian and I went for a walk down the local road to see what we could find. More of that anon.

David

All photographs copyright © DY  of  jtdytravels

If you enjoy these armchair travels, please pass our site onto others

www.dymusings.com

more of our travel stories and photos can be found on

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More of our travel photos are on

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Fiji # 7 : Orchids of the Garden of the Sleeping Giant

The Orchid Garden of the Sleeping Giant was a complete contrast from the experiences we had been enjoying on our island hopping journey on ‘MV Reef Endeavour’.  Here, in a plantation of some 20 hectares, over 2,000 orchids are grown. Not all were on display, because the garden was still recovering from the cyclone, but there were enough to make for a magical walk through a lush green forest at the foot of the mountain of the Sleeping Giant.

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While predominately a show place for orchids, these gardens also contain many native Fijian plants,

as well as plants from other tropical areas.

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A welcome site at the garden entrance is this stunning Bismarckia Palm, endemic to Madagascar.

It really enjoys the hot wet summers and less wet winters of Fiji.

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The gardens were begun in the 1970’s by the late Canadian born actor, Raymond Burr, famous for his acting personas of Ironside and Perry Mason.  For Burr, Fiji was his second home, away from the Hollywood spotlight.  Apart from enjoying time on his secluded ‘hideaway’ on a small Fijian island, Burr and his partner, Robert Benevides, bought this plantation to house their private collection of orchids.

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Burr hybridised an estimated 1,500 varieties of orchids before he left Fiji in 1983.

Fortunately for visitors to Fiji, this garden has not only been maintained

but has been developed into one of the major orchid gardens of the world.

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The paths through this botanic wonderland enter through a mesh-covered walkway.

It’s lined with cultivated orchids growing in pots perched on rock walls.

They are surrounded by perennial epiphytes and other plants such as low growing ferns and gingers.

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While not all of the orchids were on show, there were indeed many to enjoy.

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They come in an amazing variety of colours and shapes and sizes – all beautiful.

 I’ll add a selection so that you can wander along this path with us.

We hope that you enjoy them as we did.

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The orchids also had a  large ‘supporting cast’ of delightful plants bedded amongst the rocks.

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The bright red flowers of Anthurium added a dash of colour amongst the greenery of ferns.

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Bromeliads were well represented too.

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Butterflies added to the delightful experience of wandering in this orchid rockery.

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But the real stars of this garden were the orchids. And there many more still to discover.

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Occasionally something unusual like this wasp takes the attention away from the orchids.

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After a leisurely wander through the orchid rockery, the path came to the top of a rise with an open vista towards the hills. Here there’s a delightful feeling of wildness, with the forested foothills of the Nausori Highlands in the distance. It’s these hills that give the garden its unusual name, as the corrugated ridge above the gardens is said to resemble the body of a sleeping giant.

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And from here, a boardwalk leads down into the cooler shade of the valley.

And we’ll explore that part of the gardens in the next episode.

Jennie

All Photography ©  JT and DY  of jtdytravels

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Burma / Myanmar #7; Heho to Pindaya

Leaving Yangon behind, we looked forward to experiencing some of the Shan State countryside, a very different experience from a large, busy city. It was quite exciting to look down and see our first farms.

First view of Shan State countryside (P1020257 © DY of jtdytravels)

These small farms and ploughed fields looked good to us after the big city.

Farms and a village near Heho (P1020261 © DY of jtdytravels)

As we flew lower towards Heho, the patchwork of farms became more obvious and it was also obvious how farms are set up around small villages. There are no houses on farms. Farmers live in communities.

Monastery and Pagodas in the fields   (P1020266 © DY of jtdytravels)

A large monastery complex below reminded us just how important Buddhism is throughout the country.

Regional map of Burma / Myanmar

Now that we have landed in Heho and are waiting for our bags, it’s probably a good time to have a look at a map of this large, stretched out country and realise just what a small part of it we were actually able to visit.  The country covers an area of 677,000 square kms (261,228 square miles). At its widest point it’s 936 kms (581 miles) from east to west and at its longest, 2,051 kms (1,275 miles) from north to south. To the north, east and west there are mountain ranges that form a giant ‘horseshoe’ around the flat lands of the Chindwin, Ayeyarwaddy and Sittaung River valleys. It’s in those fertile valleys of agricultural land that most of the population is concentrated.

Our total journey of fourteen days took us first to Yangon; then a flight to Heho (near Taunggyi in the blue coloured Shan State) where we explored 47 kms north west to Pindaya (not marked) and 36 miles south to Inle Lake;  another flight took us to Mandalay (at the top of the buff coloured state) followed by an 80km cruise down the river to Bagan and back again.  That’s a very small part of a big country; there is so much more to explore. But most of this fascinating country is still not open to tourists, partly because of ethnic problems in various districts but mainly because of the state of roads and the lack of suitable tourist hotels and eating places.

So,for now, let’s enjoy what we were able to see and experience – and what we did see, we really enjoyed.

Google road map to Pindaya from Heho

When we plan a road journey in Australia, and in many other countries, we tend to check out Google maps and have some faith in the times given for the length of a journey. That is not a good idea here. The journey length to Pindaya from Heho airport is 47 kms. The time Google gives is 44 minutes! NOT SO! 120 minutes is closer to the mark… and that’s without stopping along the way to take photos of farming activities, or visit a toilet, or have a snack, or visit a market. We did none of those things as we were already late for lunch in Pindaya.

The following photos were taken from the bus as we bounced our way over a rutted, narrow dirt road. As David had the window seat, they are mostly his photos with a few of mine taken through the front window. So, settle in and enjoy the scenery, places and people we saw along the way.

A Eucalyptus plantation! (P1020274 © DY of jtdytravels)

Amazingly, one of the first things we saw, was a plantation of Eucalyptus. Is there anywhere in the world that doesn’t have the good old Australian gum tree somewhere in its landscape? A reminder of home!

Women with their hoes in the fields (P1020291  © DY of jtdytravels)

Women work together to hoe and weed the fields. It’s a real community effort, and, I would guess, a sociable way to get the work done.

We think they were heading back to their village  (P1020295  © DY of jtdytravels)

It’s likely that these women had finished their hoeing for the day and were heading on the long walk back to their village to have lunch and do jobs at home. It’s best to work in the morning in this hot humid climate.

Others rested from their work. (P1020302  © DY of jtdytravels)

Umbrellas are a very important part of a farmer’s kit here – both for shade and for rain. These are lacquered to make them shower proof. We would visit the local umbrella makers next day to watch how they are made.

Water buffalo and farmer – a good team  (P1020307  © DY of jtdytravels)

Farmers here use water buffalo and oxen to do much of the work on the farm. Each farmer and his animal become a team, good mates that rely on each other. The animals are well cared for and, we were told, farmers rarely eat beef because of this special relationship.  The farmer’s umbrella stands at the ready in the field!

The soil looks extremely rich and fertile. (P1020311  © DY of jtdytravels)

A variety of crops are grown in the area but the most productive here are cabbages and cauliflowers.

Carts and baskets are much used by farmers. (P1020304  © DY of jtdytravels)

We had arrived at harvest time for both cauliflowers and cabbages. We saw the farmers working together to harvest the crops. The bamboo baskets are filled and then transferred to a wooden wheeled cart. This one is waiting for another load.

A cart load waiting at the pick-up point (P1090980  © DY of jtdytravels)

When full,  the cart is hitched to an oxen and taken to one of the various pick up points along the road. There, the farmers await a truck which comes along to collect all of the vegetables to take the crop to market.

Loading a truck with cabbages (P1020310  © DY of jtdytravels)

Each village group of farmers who work together decide on the price they want for the crop. That’s the price they ask of the ‘middle man’ on the truck and, if he agrees, the crop is loaded onto the trucks to be taken to the markets in the bigger towns and cities. It seems to be a fair system.

Taking a breather after a hard day’s work! (P1020312  © DY of jtdytravels)

After emptying the carts, the farmer’s can take a bit of a breather. But there are lots more vegetables to pick!

Our lunch restaurant (P1090992  © JT of jtdytravels)

Finally we arrived at the delightfully rustic ‘Green Tea Restaurant’ beside the lake in the village of Pindaya.  We felt sure that cabbage and / or cauliflower would feature on the menu!  But, it seems, the locals are so sick of the sight of this two vegetables by the end of a day of harvest, that they gladly send them all off to market!  I was glad, too. They are not my favourites!  

And then the rain came tumbling down (P1100001 © JT of jtdytravels)

The food, our first delicious Shan meal, and the setting, on the verandah beside a lovely lake, were perfect – until the heavens opened and heavy rain began to fall. The verandah is not quite the place to be in rain. Fortunately, there were plenty of other tables to move to.

We hoped the farm ladies had made it home before they had a drenching. Not even good umbrellas would keep one dry in this tropical downpour. As with most such downpours in the tropics, it didn’t last long.

The view across the lake   (P1100006  © JT of jtdytravels)

As the rain lifted, we could once more see the view of golden stupas and pagodas across the other side of the lake from the restaurant. Our hotel was over there somewhere too. It was time to be reunited with our bags!

Our cottage at the rustic Inle Inn Hotel   (P1100018  © JT of jtdytravels)

We had been warned that our accommodation in Pindaya would be ‘comfortable but far from elaborate’. To us, the Inle Inn Hotel was delightful. We ‘d been travelling through a gentle time warp all day and this was more than we had expected. I’m sure the farmers didn’t have such comforts as we had. Many of them didn’t even have electricity let alone hot and cold running water, showers, and a comfy bed – and a flower garden at the door. We were astonished when we heard some of our group grumbling about the rooms. Where were we?  Why travel to such destinations if you expect the same luxuries you may have at home?

Our large, rustic bedroom (P1100017  © JT of jtdytravels)

This was our bedroom – larger than some farmer’s cottages!  It was lined with teak and traditional bamboo weavings and the decoration was a piece of local weaving hung over a hand carved railing. Real Burma.

A hand crafted marionette wall hanging  (P1100016  © JT of jtdytravels)

Marionette puppets are a favourite with Burmese people and are often used as room decorations.

The bed looked inviting for a bit of a ‘nana nap’  after a long day of travelling; and David had booked in for a massage; but we hadn’t finished our exploring just yet. The rain was clearing and time was getting away on us to fit in a visit to the famous Pindaya Caves, home to over 8,000 Buddhas. So we ventured back out to walk through the garden and back to the waiting bus.

Down the garden path  (P1100110  © JT of jtdytravels)

Frangipani line the garden path along with many plants familiar to those who live in the tropics.

Pink Crucifix Orchid; Epidendrum sp.  (P1020377 © DY of jtdytravels)

After the rain, there were drops of water to enhance the flowers like this lovely orchid.

Crown of Thorns; Euphorbia milii cultivar   (P1100121  © JT of jtdytravels)

A beautiful flower but with rather nasty spines along the stem.

Lovely red Anthurium (P1100127  © JT of jtdytravels)

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Another dash of red; Hibiscus (P1100119  © JT of jtdytravels)

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Satellite dishes in the garden (P1100114 © JT of jtdytravels)

And for those who could not possibly do without their fix of TV every day, there was even satellite coverage!  To me that was pretty amazing, not that we even turned our TV on. There was too much else to do!

Hand painted hotel sign (P1100128

While we waited for the bus to take us on the short trip up a steep hill to the Pindaya Caves, we noticed the hotel sign – not done with a stencil, but each one hand painted. This graphic design represented the famous boat rowers on Inle Lake  – we’d see them in reality next day. But now, we were off to the caves and I’ll write about that amazing experience in our next journal entry.

Jennie and David

Photography  © DY and JT of jtdytravels

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