When it comes to photography, plants are often my favorite subjects to capture. In the countryside and nature of Western Cuba, there were plenty of opportunities for me to indulge in this passion:
It was incredibly hot and humid, but with this kind of scenery, we barely noticed.
A mango tree. I love the way they grow.
I have never before seen palm trees growing on a mountain. It’s a very cool sight.
Looking up at a Royal Palm, the national tree of Cuba.
Technically, it was called an orchid garden (rather than a botanical garden as I called it in my previous post) so the focus was on the many wonderful varieties of orchids.
A bug eating plant. Note the fly on the left side of the plant. We waited patiently for the plant to eat it, but it refused to give us a show.
The view at the beginning of our hike in the Viñales Valley.
A hefty looking tree that is a type baobab.
Dried tobacco leaves in the warehouse where we had our cigar rolling demonstration.
The postcard image of the Viñales Valley and its mogotes.
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I really enjoy those shots, someday will get there ourselves. So we are inspired by your writings and photos. Thanks!
1) That blug eating plant is unreal!!! 2) That last shot is beyond gorgeous, wow!
I’m a big fan of photographing plants and flowers myself as you know… what a nice day, Ekua. Did you feel all peaceful and contemplative afterwards? Nature always has that effect on me.
The cigar rolling sounds interesting. Did you get to make one yourself?
I could’ve rolled one, but I didn’t. I know cigars are the quintessential Cuban thing, but I’m not really into them! It was interesting to check out the process though. Nights in Vinales were far from peaceful… that’s something I will get into in a future post 😉
LOVE it.
The fruit on the mango tree reminds of baubles on a Christmas tree 🙂
Yes, they definitely reminded me of ornaments.
Cool shots!
@Herb, Andi, Candice & Hal – Thanks for the awesome feedback, I really enjoyed putting these photos together!
At a first glance, I thought those tobacco leaves hanging up resembled pig carcasses in a butcher’s shop. Perhaps I have been a vegetarian for too long. 🙂
Actually, if you’re thinking animal carcasses, it might look a little more like chicken 😛
yea
nice shots but the tobacco one no way
Thanks, but I’m not quite sure it’s a big deal that the tobacco photo may resemble something else at first glance. It is what it is, and in many markets around the world, you’ll find plenty *actual* animal carcasses laid out or hung up for everyone to see. In both this image of the tobacco and in markets like that, I think there is something to be said for seeing the roots of what humans consume as people get more and more disconnected from what they’re putting in their bodies.
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