Bok Tower Gardens - A Peaceful Corner of Florida

Sitting in the shade of the live oaks draped with Spanish moss and looking at the sun dappled grass is very quiet and relaxing.  Then comes the gentle sound of music from the nearby carillon.

This is Bok Tower Gardens which were created by a gentleman called Edward Bok. He was born in the Netherlands in 1863 and went to the United States at the age of six, eventually becoming a well respected publisher and philanthropist.  Remembering something that his grandmother told him about helping to make the world a more beautiful place he caused the Gardens to be created.  They cover 63.53 hectares, are said to be the highest point of Florida, and are filled with trees, shrubs and fragrant flowers. 

You can stroll along the winding paths enjoying the gentle breeze soughing through the trees, the bird calls, the rustling in the foliage from squirrels or maybe raccoons – or other wild life.  There are many seats located throughout the gardens and, after what seems to be five minutes of relaxing, you discover that time has slipped away.  The perfume from the nearby flowers – gardenia, azalea and other flamboyant blooms – is heady and the butterflies simply gorgeous.  Some are small black and yellow striped tigers and others are large gaudy yellow creations.  Among the trees there are palms of various shapes and sizes, pines and the oaks.

The Carillon Tower is 62.50m high, made of pink and grey marble from Georgia and local coquina (a mix of shell and limestone).  The delicate hues set off by friezes and window decorations showing some of the Florida wild life which includes pelicans, flamingoes, geese and swans.  Higher are the large coloured grilles through which the music of the carillon can be heard.  And, returning to Florida wild life, the finials are of herons.  The door is a brass of the Creation and is made up of thirty panels.

A magnificent edifice for a magnificent instrument with 57 bells, which were struck by John Taylor Bellfounders Ltd., of Loughborough.  They are tuned bronze bells and have a range of nearly five octaves.  The largest (the Bourdon) weighs over 11 tons while the smallest (a treble) is 17 pounds.

Every afternoon at 1pm and 3pm the Carilloneur plays an hour’s recital.  During the rest of the day there are brief selections of music – usually appropriate to the season.

In Bok Tower Gardens you can enjoy a truly peaceful afternoon away from the theme parks, which only half-an-hour to an hour’s drive away.

Let's Go To Brazil!

A friend and I once agreed to take a holiday in Thailand. I had once had a few days in Bangkok and was eager to see more of the country.

One snowy winter she visited me in London and got stranded. To keep from being bored whilst I was at work she read travel brochures. And I set a limit as to how much I was prepared to pay – that reduced her wish list!

We ended up going to Brazil for two weeks and stayed at a resort south of Ipanema. Unfortunately her idea of a holiday was to lie on the beach all day! As I pointed out, it would have been cheaper to go to Benidorm. We had a holiday flat so had to eat out but my friend had some weird ideas.

First let me point out that the rate of exchange was very favourable. The only decent meal we had was three courses, wine, aperitif and coffee - £5 each. We only went once to that restaurant, thereafter it was a ‘cheap’ café or barbecue-type food. (I would have gone to the restaurant every day given the choice.)

Corcovado from a distance!

The holiday included two half-day tours, only one of which I can remember. In to Rio to visit the Sugar Loaf Mountain. We used local buses (even though taxis were dirt cheap – she had an aversion to them). We went to Rio three times: Corcovado, the Carmen Miranda Museum and to take a ferry to a small island where we took a tour in a donkey cart. On that occasion she didn’t fancy anything on the lunch menu.

On another occasion we went to visit the hill town of Petropolis which someone had recommended to her. It is a fabulous town where the Winter Museum is located. Oh, and this time we took a picnic. She had me up at the crack of dawn to take the workmen’s bus to Rio and the bus station where we found that the bus to Petropolis didn’t leave until 1.00 p.m. Time to discover Rio? Nope. She thought if we moved away from the bus station we would get lost so we sat in a small garden – and ate our lunch.

I loved Petropolis. We did go into the Winter Palace but only saw the outside of the Cathedral and missed the Crystal Palace (I lived in Crystal Palace, South London at the time!). Two reasons for this was lack of time and she wanted to shop for her friends.

Sugar Loaf Mountain

We caught a bus back to Rio and made an amazing discovery – two bus depots and our local bus did not use this one.

Having caught a bus at 7.30 a.m. we finally reached ‘home’ at 11.00 p.m. Exhausted. My friend’s comment?

 ‘We didn’t have lunch with the gauchos.’

‘We didn’t go on the excursion!’

Before going on holiday with a friend make sure you know them well and agree on the type of holiday that you want!

View from the balcony. Yes, she is lying on the beach
 but you have to look hard!

Incidentally, ten days after returning to England she went to Thailand with another friend.

Fort Lauderdale Water Taxis.

Thinking of taking a winter break in Fort Lauderdale? Do use the water taxis – not only as a useful way to commute between the beach and downtown, but a fun excursion as well.

The houses and estates along the way are fantastic, most of them dating back to the 1920s and 1930s.  For example, there are homes apparently owned by people such as the owner of Easy Rider Magazine, the Seltzers, Michael Egan (the owner of Alamo Rent-a-Car), the owner of the Miami Dolphins, and houses purchased by the owner of Blockbuster (remember that company?) for several members of his family.  We were also informed that pianist Roger Williams, Sonny and Cher and the Taco Bell family once lived along the waterway.

And you can also see alligators – in the water (keep your hands inside the boat!!) and basking on walls.

Once we reached downtown I took a stroll along Las Olas Boulevard and admired the architecture, then bought an ice-cream and found somewhere to sit and enjoy it.  And to people watch. Ladies walking their dogs, retired couples strolling arm-in-arm, professionals young and old, ladies of leisure and young ladies tricked out in the latest fashion – mostly showing bare bellies and backs.

Our guide on the return journey gave us some additional information which helped make the return journey even more interesting – especially as some of it contradicted some that we had previously been given. So, I do not accept blame for any ‘misinformation’ on property owners. Blame the guides on the water taxis, please. 

Fort Lauderdale is an amazing place with a long history.  The first white settler established a plantation along the New River in 1793.  The city’s name comes from a fort that was built in 1892 at the mouth of the river by Major William Lauderdale.  It became a city in 1911 with 175 residents, thrived during the Florida Land Boom of the 1920s and now has a population of over 175,000.

 

Now it thrives on tourism with a terrific selection of hotels.

What it is to be rich! 

Henry Ford, Square Dance Caller.

Square Dancing isn’t usually the first thing that comes to mind when hearing the name Henry Ford, but it is true that he was an accomplished caller.

When looking around the living room of The Mangoes, Henry Ford’s winter home in Fort Myers, Florida it is easy to picture it with the furniture either pushed back against the walls or put on the porch, the carpet rolled back, music playing on the phonograph and couples creating the Texas Star or doing the do-si-do.  Among the dancers might be neighbours Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Edison and Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Firestone.

The house, which was built in 1911, was purchased by Ford in 1916.  It has a large shady porch with wickerwork furniture and plants – very typical of the 1920s in Florida.  (One of Ford’s favourite sleeping places was on the sleeping porch that adjoins the master bedroom.)

In the living room most of the armchairs and sofas are also wickerwork set about an open fireplace.  It should be emphasised that the furniture isn’t the original.  When the Ford family sold the property the furniture also went.  The house is now owned by the City of Fort Myers and the furnishings are as much like the originals as possible.

The Fords travelled widely and much of their furniture and other items were purchased during those trips.  In the dining room, for example, there are walnut Queen Anne style chairs set about a table with a delicate lace tablecloth laid with Sheffield silver and Wedgewood china in the Columbia pattern.  As well as the Edison phonograph to produce mechanical music, there is also a pretty piano which was Clara Ford’s; she was an accomplished musician.  As Ford played the violin you can picture them entertaining the neighbours and wonder which of them was a singer. 

The garden surrounding the Ford house is filled with plants such as palm trees, over 150 citrus trees, colourful flowers and a kitchen garden.  The garden is alongside the Caloosahatchee River where Ford like to go fishing in his boat which was kept tied up at the dock.

What is incredible is that the Fords only spent a couple of weeks each winter in this beautiful house.

www.edisonfordwinterestates.org

Picnicking in style!

Update

Sorry I haven't posted much this year but I have been on the sick list. Had surgery a few weeks ago and am gradually getting my act together. Promise you some more travel blogs soon! 

Regents Park in London

Regents Park was the last to become a public park in the 19^th century. In the 1780s various local leases terminated and in 1793 the Prince Regent approved a plan for a high-class residential development. John Nash planned a circular park with a lake, terraces and, in the park, 56 detached villas.  It didn’t quite work out that way. Only some of Nash’s terraces were built. There was to have been a boulevard from Portland Place through Regent Street to Carlton House on The Mall. The reason why the plans weren’t fulfilled is because of the Napoleonic War.  That was an expensive project and more important than the Prince’s dreams. 

What there is now is a beautiful and large park in which to stroll, relax, play games and get away from the traffic. Along the north side is the Regents Canal with colourful longboats passing slowly to and fro. Further round is the London Zoo (opened in 1828).

And there are gorgeous gardens on display plus Queen Mary’s Gardens which were laid out in 1838. These are fabulous with over 12,000 rose plants. Go there in the summer and it is like stepping into a rose bower. This is London’s largest collection of fabulous roses of every hue and many highly perfumed - and seats on which to relax and enjoy the atmosphere. 

Hyde Park, London

Hyde Park which goes from Hyde Park Corner up to Marble Arch and stretches across from Park Lane to Kensington Gardens is probably best known for its lake, the Serpentine. It was George II’s wife, Caroline, who was responsible for its creation. Originally the River Westbourne, she had William Kent plan and supervise the more ornamental lake.  During the great frosts of the 18^th c. the lake would freeze over and people used it as a skating rink. The statues about the park have been there since the 19^th c, but the one of Peter Pan (by the Long Water) and was placed there in 1912. 

Achilles

With the Serpentine for boating and swimming, Rotten Row for horse-riding, Speakers Corner, vast expanses, trees, shrubs and flowers, it lacks nothing for a beautiful park. It first became a public park in 1637 and had a racecourse called The Ring. In 1642 the Parliamentarians requisitioned it and dug trench defences against the King’s forces. Oliver Cromwell sold it in 1653 for £17,000. The new owner recouped his money by charging for admission. 

 

Queen Mother's 90th Birthday gates.

Hyde Park really gained fame during Georgian times as the place for High Society to promenade – showing off gowns and gathering gossip.  Some people strolled while others rode or were conveyed in their carriages – even now people ride along the tan.  And the Household Cavalry exercise their horses along there. 

Separated from Hyde Park by the West Carriage Drive is Kensington Gardens.  It was the private grounds of the Earl of Nottingham's until 1689 when William III took up residence in Nottingham House which was transformed by Wren, Hawksmoor, Vanbrugh and Kent to become Kensington Palace. Queen Anne expanded the gardens and had the Round Pond constructed. A favourite corner for children to sail their boats. And, of course, was the home of the late Princess Diana.

Sunken Gardens at Kensington Palace.

St. James's Park in London

Looking at the tourists feeding the greedy geese, quacking ducks and bossy pigeons in St. James’s Park it is hard to imagine a time when a burgundy-drinking elephant was kept there.  True. King James I had a menagerie in the park which housed the animals too large to be kept at the Tower of London (then a zoo). The elephant was given a gallon of burgundy a day to keep its spirits high. An alcoholic pachyderm?

As visitors to London know, most of the wonderful green spaces are the Royal Parks: St. James’s, Regents, Green, Hyde and Kensington Gardens. What many don’t know is that the land was originally owned by the church - in one form or another. St. James’s belonged to the Abbey of Westminster and was a leper colony. Hyde Park, originally known as the Manor of Hyde, also belonged to the Abbey of Westminster. Regents Park was owned by the Abbey of Barking. 

Then along came Henry VIII and the Dissolution. Henry enclosed the areas and had some of them made into hunting grounds. It was King Charles II who opened the parks to the public. He loved flora and fauna and had Andre le Notre advise with the redesigning of the layout of St. James’s Park. This is when The Mall made its appearance. Not as an approach road to Buckingham Palace which didn’t then exist. Pall-mall was a game similar to croquet which the King enjoyed playing and had the ground laid out here. 

It wasn’t unusual to see the King in the park – walking his dogs and feeding the ducks. It was he who stocked the lake with the more exotic species. I don’t know if the pelicans are direct descendants, but in 1666 the Russian Ambassador gave the King a pair. 

And Samuel Pepys is reputed to have done what many of us do today. He would lie on the grass by the lake and have a snooze. One thing which I am sure the King didn’t do when the general public was around is to swim in the nude. Oh yes, he did! 

As St. James’s Park was open to the public Charles II enclosed Green Park so that it could be used for royal picnics.  And Green Park is the place where Handel’s Music for the Royal Fireworks was first played. In 1749 the Temple of Peace was constructed to celebrate the end of the War of Succession. It was destroyed by the fireworks as Handel’s music was playing. A celebratory night that went with a bang. [Sorry!!!]

Jurong Bird Park, Singapore

Cockatoos greet you on arrival.

Penguins in Singapore!  My friends didn't believe it either.  But at the park there they are - in a specially built cold house.  Safely behind thick glass they are happy to be in snow and water.  The great thing was that I could see them swimming under water - exactly as in television wild life programmes.

The monorail is a good way to get an idea of the layout of the park and whilst waiting for the train we were royally entertained by the brilliantly coloured macaws in a nearby enclosure.  I was particularly taken with one who was showing off by sliding down a slope (the roof of a feeding tray).  He went feet first, then tail first, on his back – yes, really – and finally fell off in a great flutter of wings and noise.  Teach him to show off!

The great joys for me were the walk-through aviaries with their bird-feeding points.  By being very patient and standing still, birds eventually arrive and are almost within touching distance.  I couldn't begin to name them all, but in the African Waterfall Aviary they included parrots of every colour and size: bright greens and reds, yellows and blues.  There are also other birds of every combination of colours.  These included Turacos, Carmine Bee Eaters, Red and Yellow Barbets and Weavers.

The man-made waterfall (over 30 metres,) is set among the tropical vegetation.  Apparently there are over 1,300 birds flying free in here.

In the South-East Asian Birds Aviary there are some stupendous birds in royal blue and black which I discovered are called the Asian Fairy Blue.  There was also a very dull looking brown kingfisher - until he turned around.  He has a beautiful turquoise back.  There are also some Bali Mynahs.

 

A keeper told me that these Mynahs, which are white with black tips and patches of blue round the eyes, are very shy.  He said that I would have to look very carefully for them.  Would you believe that they came close enough to photograph?  You do have to look very carefully for some of the birds as they are very tiny and their colours blend well with the flowers and foliage.

The Jungle Jewels Aviary – named for the Hummingbirds in their jewel-like colours.  As they dart about from flower to flower and their wings flap at an incredible rate of knots it is difficult sometimes to see them but I did see a few, particularly the rubies and one called a Sparkling Violet.  To add colour to the streams in the aviary there were colourful Teals and Pintail ducks.

Strolling around the grounds I heard myself being accosted and looked around.  No one in sight.  Another whistle.  I looked up into the trees.  A pair of Toucans.

In an enclosure was a very proud looking mama, showing off her baby.  Ever seen a baby ostrich?  Fluffy, grey, gorgeous eyes, long curly lashes - and larger than mum.

Safely caged are the magnificent and haughty birds of prey.  Then there are corners where I found Birds of Paradise, kingfishers, owls and more parrots.  The water birds are, predictably, on Swan and Flamingo Lakes.

Jurong has over 7,000 birds representing 600 different species from around the world and specialises in breeding programmes and conservation, for which I salute them.