Category Archives: nature

Cyprus, nature, Photography

Nature trail in Kakopetria

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The last time we visited Kakopetria – our favorite village as you know by now –  we walked for the  first time in the nature trail ‘Monopati tis Vateris’. It is  located alongside the old town of Kakopetria and the river Klarios.

If you ever find yourself in this charming place, I highly recommend to walk the trail. It’s just a kilometer long with a breathtaking scenery. You can sit on the wooden benches that are placed in various locations, take in the wonderful surroundings and let your imagination run wild.  Walking by the stream you can hear the sound of the running water, the tweeting of the birds and the loud song of the cicadas.

We really enjoyed our walk and the calming effect it had on us. Looking forward to going back soon.

nature, Photography

Spring transforms nature

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Last week, while I was taking my daughter for a walk, I randomly noticed this small offshoot on our pecan tree so I rushed to grab my camera and take photos. At the same time I was playing peekaboo with my daughter to keep her occupied. We both enjoyed the activity!

offshoot of a pecan tree in spring

I have to say, it is amazing how the same object looks so different if you shoot it at a different angle and perspective when combined  with the lighting conditions, the direction of  light, the background and your position.

offshoot of a pecan tree in spring

I think that the photos above are a representative example. All of them were taken on the same day and time.

nature, Photography

A beautiful flower

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It’s really impressive that, this year our garden has more species of  wildflowers than before, such as the Wild Garlic, Allium Ampeloprasum, Muscari Parviflorum, Gladiolus Italicus, Narcissus Tazetta, Cyclamen Persicum and, last but not least, this beautiful flower called Gynandriris Sisyrinchium.

Barbary Nut, Moraea Sisyrinchium, Gynandriris Sisyrinchium

Barbary Nut is the common name of Gynandriris Sisyrinchium (syn. Moraea Sisyrinchium) which  is native to the Mediterranean region. The flowers don’t open unless the day is warm and often not until late afternoon and they do not last very long.

Barbary Nut, Moraea Sisyrinchium, Gynandriris Sisyrinchium
Gynandriris Sisyrinchium (Barbary Nut) | by karafc

Don’t think that I became a flower expert all of a sudden. Quite  recently, I found  a book in my mom’s library called The Medical Flowers of Cyprus. It is a wealth of information about the flora of Cyprus, so finally I can gather information easier 🙂

nature, Photography

Wild garlic

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In a cactus pot in our garden a wild garlic has sprouted and its beautiful white flower drew my attention. I had to shoot it several times because it was windy for a few days but since I knew what I was looking for, I could gather up information easier.

Allium ursinum is a wild relative of chives native to Europe and Asia. It is known as ramsons, buckrams, wild garlic, broad-leaved garlic, wood garlic, bear leek, or bear’s garlic.

Wild garlic leaves are edible and they can be used as salad, herb,  boiled as a vegetable, in soup or as an ingredient for a sauce. The bulbs and flowers are also edible.

The leaves are also used as fodder. Cows that have fed on ramsons give milk that tastes slightly of garlic.

Despite the fact that I don’t like eating or using garlic in my cooking, it is a beautiful plant and beautifies our garden.

nature, Photography

The lake

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Looking recently in my drafts I found it and I decided to publish it. This post was supposed to be the first one on my blog but somehow I never uploaded it.

For a short period of time, in 2014, I lived  in Bratislava and I used to go for long walks around the city to take pictures. Not far away from where I was, there is a small lake called Kuchajda, which I loved visiting  because it’s beautiful and close to the city centre. Since I am a summer person I thought I wouldn’t like it in winter; nothing seems nice to me when it’s cold. I don’t like winter that much and I believed that I wouldn’t find anything interesting to photograph because everything would be covered in snow and the lake would be frozen. My goal was to go there, shoot the landscape with my new camera and not expect anything spectacular. You cannot imagine my surprise when I saw the results. The photos turned out really good, well at least in my opinion!

Here is a small sample of my photos from the lake.

I was satisfied with the whole experience despite of the freezing weather and being unable to move my fingers at the end, even though I was wearing gloves.

nature, Photography, Slovakia

Winter Paths

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On one of my long walks with my camera in Bratislava, I had the opportunity to take photos of the winter scenery; something I can’t do easily in Cyprus.

Sad Janka Kráľa Park, Bratislava, Slovakia
Sad Janka Kráľa Park, Bratislava | by karafc

I found the paths that were created by the snow very fascinating,  so whenever I spotted them I took a shot.

Hviezdoslavovo Namestie, Bratislava, Slovakia
Hviezdoslavovo Namestie, Bratislava | by karafc

With the snow blanketing the landscape it’s very easy to find these wintry paths and walk through them. But the thorn in the roads of this beautiful scene, was the cold temperatures that made it impossible for me to stay out longer.

winter at Sad Janka Kráľa Park, Bratislava
Sad Janka Kráľa Park, Bratislava | by karafc

 

This post is part of the Daily Post’s Weekly Photo Challenge:  Path

nature, Photography

Wildflowers in our garden

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We have a garden full of seasonal and non seasonal plants and flowers and I still get surprised with the random flowers that happen to sprout – courtesy of the birds, I am sure. This fall I was intrigued with these small wildflowers that bloomed in different places throughout our back yard. Don’t be misled from the close up photo below, they are so small that someone might not even notice them.

Muscari Parviflorum, Autumn Grape Hyacinth - wildflower

I had a hard time, not only shooting them because they are so tiny, but also figuring out what they are called.

Muscari Parviflorum, Autumn Grape Hyacinth - wildflower

Autumn Grape Hyacinth is the common name of Muscari Parviflorum which is a very fragile and delicate plant that moves with the slightest breeze. I tried several times to photograph them but with no success. At first it was my fault; I was always in a hurry or occupied with other things and I wasn’t able to focus on them.

Muscari Parviflorum, Autumn Grape Hyacinth - wildflower
This time was different. I decided to devote my attention to them, but  even though I was at it for two days, few photos came out well. Despite my disappointment, I won’t give up. I will  try again another day!
nature, Photography

Garden stories

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Every afternoon I take my daughter outdoors in her stroller for a walk in the garden. She enjoys it very much.  I usually take my camera with us so I can take some photos of the flowers, plants and, needless to say, my daughter. While we were enjoying the fresh air and the birds tweeting, I noticed this pink flower, called Tulbaghia violacea (or society garlic or pink agapanthus), sprawled on a stone wall and underneath it there was an old plank. The composition was so beautiful that even though I didn’t have my camera with me, I decided to use my mobile.

ulbaghia violacea, society garlic or pink agapanthus

As you can imagine, I returned there to shoot it again…twice! My poor little baby was very patient. At the end she fell asleep so I took her home and quickly grabbed my camera to go get some proper pictures of what held my fascination.

Tulbaghia violacea, society garlic or pink agapanthus

Even though I shot this flower several times before, this time it seemed different, so, being the inquisitive person I am, I looked closer to try and figure out why! And there it was, on the flower there was a creeper all over it which caused the pink agapanthus to sprawl on the stone wall, making it look like a pink jasmine.

Tulbaghia violacea, society garlic or pink agapanthus

The pictures below are from another shooting day and that it’s how it should look like.

Tulbaghia violacea, society garlic, pink agapanthus | by karafc
Tulbaghia violacea, society garlic, pink agapanthus | by karafc
Tulbaghia violacea, society garlic, pink agapanthus | by karafc
Tulbaghia violacea, society garlic, pink agapanthus | by karafc

nature, Photography

Virginia creeper

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Quite recently, on our trip to Kakopetria village, I spotted this creeper on a house wall.

Leaves of Virginia creeper
Virginia creeper | by karafc

I have to say that, as much as I love shooting plants and flowers, I don’t know much about them besides the common ones. I thought it would be hard to find information about this creeper because I only had a picture and no clue what is called. So I searched for it  as a red creeper in the web and I found it quickly.

Parthenocissus quinquefolia, known as Virginia creeper, Victoria creeper, five-leaved ivy, or five-finger. It is a prolific deciduous climber. It is grown as an ornamental plant, because of its ability to rapidly cover walls and buildings, and its deep red to burgundy fall (autumn) foliage.

Virginia creeper
Virginia creeper | by karafc

An important information is that its berries are highly toxic to humans. On the other hand they are not toxic to birds, which provide an important winter food source for many bird species.

source: Wikipedia