Hydrangeas – Valerie's Voice

Medley of Flora and Fauna

During our time in Scotland we were on the lookout for the Highland Cattle, affectionately called Hairy Coos. After a few days we were excited to spot several of them in a field.

They are unique creatures, with shaggy coats and long horns, and they originated in the Scottish Highlands. They are friendly and cute. One of them ate grass from my hand.

Harry Coos are very popular on goods in the Scottish Highlands…from tins and magnets to coasters and towels and shopping bags…they are fun!

Of course we saw sheep…they seemed to be everywhere! Thousands of them…but I didn’t grow tired of seeing them…

They usually were in settings that were pastoral and calming.

Sheep sharing the path along Hadrian’s wall.

And I always like to see horses in a field…

And cattle…

Silhouettes of cattle in a field along Hadrian’s Wall.

We missed the peak season for the bright purple heather on the hillsides. I saw photos of heather in their prime season and it looked stunning…just like when we see the fall color peak in Minnesota.

Heather grows all over the hills and rocks.

But we did see a lot of heather past peak, and it was still pretty. The picturesque Scottish Highlands are a perfect backdrop for the muted colors of the heather.

More than the average colorful hydrangea’s in many places…blues and pinks and deep purples.

Flower pots and window boxes are a bright spot when the weather is overcast and dreary, which they say is a lot of the time.

Rosebay willowherb was another wildflower that was in bloom.

Rosebay Willowherb in the forefront, along Loch Ness.

We also saw many rainbows during our time in Scotland. This full rainbow was taken on our last day, before we boarded our flight home.

Scotland bids us farewell with a beautiful rainbow.

Nature Scenes

Here are a few photos I’ve taken over the past couple of weeks…No particular order, no particular theme…just nature showing off.

A still, quiet morning, with mist lingering over Daggett Lake.

A rainbow… a promise. The bright colors were not captured with my iPhone camera, but it has been awhile since I’ve seen a rainbow, so I kept the photo anyway.

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway and is located on the Hardangerfjord on the southwestern coast. We had a grand welcoming to Bergen after a week of traveling in northern Norway. Three second cousins and their spouses met us at the airport.

Hogne and Britt Astrid met us at the airport. It would be the only time we could see them since they were leaving on vacation the next day. There were two other couples at the airport to greet us.

While in Bergen, we stayed with my second cousin Jomar and his wife, Bente, in their lovely home. We were able to unpack, do some laundry, relax, sightsee and visit other relatives.

My second cousin, Jomar, outside their home in Bergen.

Gary and Jomar chatting in Jomar and Bente’s living room.

The day we toured downtown Bergen it was raining…it’s always raining in Bergen, they say. Not always.

Jomar and Gary visiting while Bente and I shopped.

We parked the car and walked around the harbor area…the area you see in iconic Bergen photos. We walked through old fish market which has turned into a tourist attraction,

and the new fish market which is very nice, and used by locals.

Dried fish hanging in the new fish market.

We shopped on Bryggen street, in old, colorful wooden houses, now shops, along the wharf.

A bright spot in the rain. This hydrangea was outside a shop in Bergen. I had not seen this color of hydrangea before. I love it.

As we were eating lunch, the sky seemed to lighten up so we decided to take the cable car, Fløibanen Funicular, to the top of one of seven mountains that surround Bergen.

However, it started to rain again so the panoramic view wasn’t great…but it was still fun. We had been to the top in 2007.

The misty, panoramic view from the top of Mt. Fløyen.

The best part of Bergen was times spent in the homes of my different cousins…Jomar and Bente, Jarle and Oddlaugh, and Siv. We shared meals together, laughed a lot, learned more about our families, and created memories. They treated us like royalty.

LtoR: Magrethe (Jarle’s daughter), Jarle (my second cousin), Reidun Jane (another second cousin and Jarle’s sister), her husband Rolf, and Jarle’s wife, Oddlaug.

Me, Bente, Siv, Anne Lise, on Siv’s deck overlooking the Bergen harbor.

Dinner at my cousin Siv’s…a beautiful table setting, and a beautiful view.

Prior to our trip into downtown Bergen, we had packed Jomar and Bente’s electric/hybrid car for our roadtrip to Kaldestad.

Bente and Jomar packing the car in the rain…everything fit!

We continued on our journey to the ferry, en route to our destination…Brita’s house in Kaldestad. A blog on Brita’s house is forthcoming.

A Floral Experience at Galleria

Apparently for two years before the 2020 pandemic, Bachman’s sponsored a spring flower show at the Galleria. I didn’t know about it at the time. Now, two years later, after the pandemic, Bachman’s is once again, sponsoring another flower show: A Floral Experience at Galleria ~Sugar Coated.

We happened upon it by accident. We were going out to dinner at the Good Earth in the Galleria, after an interesting play at the Children’s Theatre. We noticed there were a lot of flowers in the mall as we walked toward the restaurant.

Beautiful blooming daffodils adds to the honeycomb display.

The hostess at Good Earth then informed us the Bachman’s spring flower show was opening the next day!

Ice cream cones: must be strawberry flavor.

After dinner we decided to walk around the indoor mall, and we saw a preview of the bright and beautiful show. It was all set up, and ready for the debut.