dear child, thank you for the lovely vacation!

[lalbo-81]

It would have been nice if you had actually sponsored my travel costs, though. Still, it was a very nice 3 day jaunt to the Everglades, and I'M BACK. The gators, the pythons, not even the palmetto bugs can keep me away from this lovely board where I have such nice friends. 

  Now, has anyone here been to the Everglades? A fascinating place, even in late fall. Orchids grow from the trees, they're so beautiful it brings tears to your eyes to see them. And during rainy season, it smells nice there. But it's nice to be home with my bats, and back here with my friends. Old ladies, we endure, and we prevail, most of the time. I did. 

[tasfleur]

Hello lalbo-81 ... even though I don't fully understand what your post is about, I hope you realise that you are very welcome here xx

No, I've never been to the Everglades (Florida?) but when I  was in Quebec, we made a plan to go there.  Didn't quite make it, but the sound of those orchids growing from the trees renders thoughts about how beautiful they must be .. xxx

[lalbo-81]

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@tasfleur wrote:

Hello lalbo-81 ... even though I don't fully understand what your post is about, I hope you realise that you are very welcome here xx

No, I've never been to the Everglades (Florida?) but when I  was in Quebec, we made a plan to go there.  Didn't quite make it, but the sound of those orchids growing from the trees renders thoughts about how beautiful they must be .. xxx

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It's an amazing thing, they cling to the trees like lichens, but they don't harm the trees in any way. In shaded areas with lots of humidity like the Glades, the wealth of colors and shapes and smells comes close to overwhelming your senses. It's glorious! (Yes, Southern Florida, sorry) 

   There are little "islands" everywhere with homes and hunting cabins and food shacks,  ,,  it's one of my favorite cool weather places to be, outside of home. If you get to go, I would suggest that you find a good guide with a high side pontoon boat, it's ..a little scary sometimes, lol! And get a good hat with netting, the bugs are gigantic.  

[lalbo-81]

And thank you for the welcome!

[tasfleur]

I don't know if we'll ever get to the Everglades lalbo, I'm living in Australia now.

What an interesting environment the Everglades are though .. alligators, snakes and all kinds of wildlife, and then the beautiful flora everywhere too, most unique.

[lalbo-81]

One of the strangest things I've seen there was a red fox swimming from one hummock to another. I had no idea at the time that they could enjoy swimming! She seemed to like it though, she jumped right back in after eating her frog. Did I mention there are HUGE bullfrogs there too?  It gets loud at night, lol! 

[tasfleur]

Yes, I've heard about the huge frogs there.  I watched a documentary earlier this year about how the Everglades function and it was astonishing.

I had no idea that it could be such a pristine place (even with the invading snakes) where the animals were so diverse.

It looks as though the authorities are having a losing battle with the pythons though?

[lalbo-81]

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@tasfleur wrote:

Yes, I've heard about the huge frogs there.  I watched a documentary earlier this year about how the Everglades function and it was astonishing.

I had no idea that it could be such a pristine place (even with the invading snakes) where the animals were so diverse.

It looks as though the authorities are having a losing battle with the pythons though?

---

It's really a shame , and it's all the fault of people who thought they could handle owning a snake like that when they couldn't. Some escaped, some were let loose, and Florida is a perfect breeding ground for them. There are yearly hunts, but they can't do enough to truly eliminate the problem there. Pythons are not nativelike the gators are, most folks will accept a gator in the pond as long as it stays there, but pythons eat small pets regularly, get into the plumbing and are far scarier than gators to the natives. 

  Other states have the same invasive creature problem, like the Japanese carp and the Zebra mussels invading our rivers and lakes . And it's all due to irresponsible humans, sad to say. 

[tasfleur]

I couldn't agree with you more lalbo.  So many enviromental problems brought about by thoughtlessness and the inability to see the whole picture ... acting without doing the proper homework and investigations first ... 

[domino-710]

Welcome home Lal - sounds like a fabulous time was had.