Friday, April 18, 2008

the blooming dessert...

It may be hard to believe...but I actually put on my pedometer and running shoes this morning and set out for a nice long walk.

I took my camera along...thinking I might capture some dessert blossoms. I was amazed at all the beautiful blooms in the dessert...

...most of which I couldn't identify, since they are so different than anything that grows in our area. A busy bee was quite enjoying these blooms also!

Vivid oranges...

...whites

pinks...

purples...

...and yellows.

Ranen took great joy in identifying the colours of all the flowers we passed by
when she was here...she quite enjoyed all the flora.

A hummingbird was out having breakfast as I strolled by.

I saw many of these low succulent type of shrubs with red bristly blooms...
they looked quite nice when planted en masse.

The dessert trees are also in full bloom right now....

...pinks and yellows and fernlike leaves.

I have no names to go with most of the plants I passed by, but now I was back at the resort.
Here I found a few flowers that I could identify...


...including my all-time favorite, the ROSE!

It looks every bit as nice growing in the dessert as in our lush gardens of home.

So I walked for almost two hours...stopping to watch birds, bees, and flowers...and getting slightly lost only once! My pedometer registered 14000 steps today...even if I spent most of it lying at the pool.

I was on my own today, since hubby was under-the-weather, and preferred the couch to the hot sun. I started my third book this afternoon...and had fun checking out what everyone else around the pool was reading. Do you ever do that? Here's a few titles that looked quite interesting: You: the owner's manual and What Shamu Taught Me about Life, Love and Marriage. I'm reading A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini.

We're leaving this lovely spot tomorrow...

...so I went for one last walk this evening, just as the sun was setting in the west,

...and the moon glowed above the palms.

It snowed back home today...which makes me all the happier to be in the desert!

Tomorrow we begin our road trip home...next stop Death Valley.

15 comments:

  1. Judy, reading about your walks in the desert and seeing the flowers, is the next best thing to being there. You sure got a good walk in today; that will make up for the next few days, travelling. Safe journey. Dairymary

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  2. En-gedi is an oasis in the middle of a Judean desert. It is a paradise of fragrance & fruitfulness. I trust you have been refreshed by the En-gedi of Palm Springs. Songs of Solomon speaks of Jesus Christ being our En-gedi and bringing to us the refreshing sweetness that we long for.

    I pray you will be well as you travel. Thanks so much for continuing to share of yourselves. We needed to hear from you. Martha

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  3. You captured some beautiful photos. The hummingbird one is lovely and I know what a challenge it can be to get them on film...the moon, too. Of all the flowers and bushes, the one that strikes me most is the feathery, lacy pink blooms on the tree...so feminine and lovely. You've enjoyed your time and have memories to take with you...journey safely. Hope that your dear hubby is feeling better soon!

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  4. Judy...what an absolutely gorgeous place! I think you have this relaxation thing quite figured out..walking...lounging...reading......sounds right to me. So happy you've had such a nice time. Your photos are amazing...Dee Dee

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  5. Thanks for sharing all of the beautiful blooms.

    I read A Thousand Splendid Suns. It was a book that deeply moved me.

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  6. Sounds so relaxing, a real time of rejuvenation!

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  7. You walk in the desert was delightful....and you are so quick to catch that hummingbird! I'm so glad you made that one viewable in large format....it's truly splendid. The last shot with palm tree and moon was also particularly moving to me, very majestic.

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  8. Ha! glad you could get away to the desert. Hope the snow melts by the time you get back home! Good for you with your steps. My biggest day this week was just over 5000. I'm nursing my poor strained painful back and hope to be healed and in my walking shoes again next week. Blessings...

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  9. I really envy that part of the desert because for some reason we just don't get that type of foliage up here! I suppose it's because we're in the high desert and get frost. Who knows! We do have the oleanders here and they are just gorgeous when they bloom. Which is from May until November here.
    Enjoy your trip home and be safe!
    Jan

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  10. What a beautiful walk..with so much to see and admire!

    blessings,
    kari & kijsa

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  11. You take good fotos but I had never zoomed on one - your camera is fantastic! Most of those same flowers grow here so I recognize the oleander, hibiscus, jasmine, lantana - and I can see that the rose is happier there than in our heat here. I wonder why? Have a safe trip home. Hopefully the last of the snow will be gone for this season!

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  12. Yes, we had snow and it's so cold.
    Don't come home. Keep enjoying the warm sun.
    Isn't it fun taking walks by yourself sometimes and exploring?
    Have a safe trip home.

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  13. What wonderful photo's. I wish I was there.

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  14. Judy, the pictures are glorious, and so is the desert! Thanks for sharing
    hugs
    Sandi

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  15. Judy...What a wonderful walk I had this morning viewing this post.

    Sounds like you've been having a wonderful rest. Be safe coming home!

    I wanted to invite you over to my place to join in on my first give away in honor of my B-day! Stop by and check it out!!!

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