There is a popular alternative-country band famous today, well–famous to those who love the genre, not big time famous like Elvis Presley and his mansion, Graceland of Memphis, but famous in the smaller Nashville way.  This band is called the Old Crow Medicine Show and one of the lines in their songs refers to pickin’ a barrel of Dogwood flowers.  I had never known the significance of the line until I booked a room I found on this site, www.hotelsknowxville.com. Now, Nashville isn’t Knoxville, but the vegetation is the same and what I learned, is just what a Dogwood flower is.

In Knoxville, Tennessee the Dogwood tree is celebrated in many ways.  One of those ways is to be found in the Dogwood Arts Festival that runs each year during the last three weeks of April.  This timing of the festivsl is not random.  It coincides with the blooming of these trees.  A few years ago, a tour was added to the calender of events, a calender that includes art, live music shows, and Southern home style, good for the soul kind of cooking.  This tour is called the Granddaddy Dogwood Tour,  and is a celebration of some of the oldest Dogwood trees in the city.  One of the main characters included on the tour is a Champion Black Oak, an oak that was standing before the Civil War and and oak which has a trunk measurement of eighteen feet around.

The tour continues on a trail through the city, noting the different trees on the different street corners.  I took this tour and not only was it a great way to see the city of Knoxville, I understood why the blooms of this tree made it into a Tennessee band’s song lyrics.  This is a fascinating concept for a tour.  New York offers a similar tour, a tour of trees.  In this day and age, when so much of the old is destroyed to build up the new, it is nice to know that, just as trees still stand in Brooklyn, New York…so too, do they still stand in Knoxville, Tennessee.

There is much to see and do in the Australian city of Canberra.  There are many fine resorts and hotels as well as some of the finest in seafood restaurants.  Canberra sites worth noting are the Old and the New Parliament Houses, the Tent Embassy of the Aboriginal communities, the War Memorial and the Burley Griffin Lake.  There is also spectacular architecture located throughout the city, and most have exhibits and museums that are open to the public on a regular basis.  One of the favorite destinations of travelers in Australia, and international tourists is the Burley Griffin Lake.  The lake provides the great respite of fun and water, for those suffering through the intense Australian summers.

The lake was built during 1963.  The Molonglo River Dam was constructed and the name of the lake, is also the designer of the dam.  Burley Griffing grew up in Canberra and his creation now attracts many to the area for recreation and relaxation such as boating and other various water sports.  There is a boardwalk surrounding the almost thirty miles of shore and many will rent roller blades or bicycles, or simply walk and run around the banks.

There is monument located on the southern side of the Lake, honoring Captain Cook and his travels throughout the regions.  Also in honor of the Captain is fountain that shoots more than six tons of water into the air, over one hundreds miles high, and is open to the public on a daily basis.  Many find this a perfect photographic opportunity, must as Old Faithful is in Yellow Stone National Park in the United States.  The National Museum is located at Regatta Point, along side of the lake, and offers tours and information regarding the planning and the development of the entire city as well as information regarding the construction of the dam.  Another interesting site is that of Blundell’s Cottage.  Built during 1860, this is one of the many structures that existed before the entire country existed as we know it today.  Admission is minimal and those visiting will learn of the early farming techniques and about life in Australia throughout history.

The Royal National Park of Sydney, Australia is location in the region of New South Wales, in the city of…Sydney.  This was the first established Park in the country, and the second in the world following the United States park, Yellowstone.  The name was changed from the original, simply National Park, after a visit during 1955 by Queen Elizabeth the II.  The park is conveniently located close to the city, easily accessible to the locals as well as the international tourists staying in the five star hotels.  Sydney is the perfect city to relax in as there are many activities to take part in as well as many locations, such as the Park that located withing a short distance to the center of the action.

When one wants to escape the hustle and bustle, the National Park is the best spot, as the walking and hiking trails are numerous and offer something for every level of fitness buff and outdoor explorer.  There are ten different walks, that make up more than one hundred and fifty miles of trails and hikes.  The times also very, from the short little breath of a thirty minute walk to two day treks through the rain-forest jungles.  Weather conditions should always be checked on the day one sets out, and maps, maps are a very good addition to ones pack, especially on the longer hikes.

One of the shorter walks offers those with just a few minutes to spare, stunning views and lush landscapes is the Bungoona Track.  One will see views of the Hacking River and of the entire park, on this short thirty minute excursion.  If one is looking for a bit more of a work out and has the time, the five hour walk on the Palm Jungle Loop Track will serve that purpose.  This is a longer hike, rated on the upper end of the scale of difficulty.  However this excursion will offer one with the panoramic, expansive views of the entire coast of New South Wales.  One can choose at this point to continue on through the wooded forests, or to another stunning platform titled the Otford Lookout.

Tenerife is a beautiful island off the coast of Africa. It constitutes the largest of the Canary Islands with a total area of over 2,000 square kilometers. It is also the most heavily populated of these popular islands. Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the second largest city on the island, though it is its capital. There are many luxury hotels Tenerife in Santa Cruz and throughout the island to accommodate the large number of tourists hit plays host to every year. Vacationers are attracted to the island not only for its spectacular scenic elements, great beaches and romantic hideaways, but also for its dynamic culture and arts scene.

There are also many natural and human constructed landmarks in Santa Cruz and other cities on the island. El Teide is one of the naturally occurring landmarks and is designated as a World Heritage Site. It is an active volcano that last erupted in 1909, which also makes it dormant. The surrounding area, as well as the volcano, forms the Teide National Park. The volcanic mountain is the 13th highest in all of Europe and reaches the highest altitude of those found in the Atlantic Ocean.

The eruption history of the volcano has been incorporated into legend. In 1492, on Christopher Columbus’ journey, which led to the discovery of the Americas, he is reported to have witnessed a great fire as passed by the island. This is believed to have been an eruption. The creation of the Las Canadas caldera is attributed to a major eruption that occurred approximately 150,000 years ago. A caldera is a collapsed area of land that is the result of volcanic activity. They are shaped like cauldrons, which accounts for the name. There is one of these at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, USA. Though the volcano is currently dormant, future eruptions are possible and seismic activity was recorded in 2003. This is generally considered to be an occurrence of magma rising within.

This morning I took a walk outside of one of the 5 Star Singapore Hotels where I stay when visiting the city and I noticed that the  Saga Tree was in bloom. I remember as a child, I loved the Saga trees when in bloom because of their bright red seeds.

Now as a biologist, I have a better appreciation and a best understanding of the Saga Tree. The leaves have 2 to 6 pairs of side stalks, each with 9 to 15 pairs of leaflets. ‘Pavo’ I’ve found means peacock and I think the leaves are rather pretty. The tree sheds its leaves seasonally. In Singapore, they shed their leaves every 6 to 8 months, so it’s leafless period is very short. After the leaves fall a flower will appear on the long stalks shooting out the end tips. These are the faintly scented blossoms which reminds me of the scent of orange blossoms back home. The flowers will open gradually from the base upwards and the petals are a nice creamy yellow and then they turn to a dull orange.

The pods of the Saga tree are curved and green, but don’t coil until they begin to split whereupon they also turn blackish.  The seeds are bright red, hard and heart-shaped. The word ‘Saga’ has been traced to the Arabic for goldsmith.  In India and Sri Lanka, the seeds of this tree have been used as units of weight for fine measures, of gold for instance. It’s been suggested that the seeds of the tree were the basis of the very earliest of such systems. What more delightful counters for the primitive and bloody mind than these hard, red, heart-shaped seeds.

The red seeds are considered intoxicants. I found records that in Java, the seeds are roasted, shelled and eaten with rice and said to taste like soybeans. In India, the seeds are also used in medicine. And everywhere, the seed are also used to make necklaces. As I walked back from my nostalgic leisure stroll and noticed I had a smile on my face.