Sunday, February 23, 2014

The Awesome Almond Blossom

Vincent van Gogh: Almond Tree in Blossom

Here in the Mediterranean, we are blessed with a temperate
 climate, and the last few weeks have been wonderfully
warm with highs reaching a balmy 22ºC /72ºF.


These pleasant conditions were a sunny invitation for the almond
 blossoms to come out and dazzle us with their pretty petals,

Vincent van Gogh: Blossoming Almond Branch in a Glass with a Book

 in playful, pastel pinks and chiffon, waify whites,
 overshadowed only by their own signature fragrance.


 A few weeks ago, they burst onto the scene,
 demanding our undivided attention,


not that this was necessary,
 as they had it from the moment they arrived.

 

In a splendour of silky softness, 

Vincent van Gogh: Branches of an Almond Tree in Blossom


they sprung from their gnarly, wooden apparatus,
 to dance daintily in the breeze, like weightless trapeze artists, 


  lightly floating to the ground, where the wind 
scattered them sporadically across the land,


unless they were snatched by a travelling talent scout, 
grooming them to gracefully grow, and bloom, and sprout,

Vincent van Gogh: Blossoming Almond Branch in a Glass

 into magical, awesome blossoms, magnificent throughout.


 A big welcome to my new followers and warm hugs to all!
Thanks for visiting! Wishing you a lovely week ahead! 
xo
Poppy

Photos: Poppy View
Van Gogh images: Google   
 

63 comments:

  1. Beautiful and refreshing to see spring there! :)

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  2. Poppy, you are so blessed to live there! Kisses :)

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  3. Such an enjoyable post and lovely photos and painting shares!!! I feel like I've been refreshed and ready to face the day!!

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  4. Poppy, thank you for sending spring my way. I can't wait for our fruit trees to bloom. I think the contrast between the delicate blossoms and the gnarly branches is beautiful.

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  5. Oh, send some of that glorious weather my way, Poppy! Those blooms are brilliant and have me dreaming of spring days, birds chirping and warmer temps! Enjoy it my friend!

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  6. oh so pretty! We do not have almond trees here as they would not survive our harsh winters. We do have apple, pear and plum and they will be blossoming in a few months.

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  7. I thought the flowering almond shrubs here were nice in spring, but the trees you have are breath taking Poppy.
    Judith

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  8. Your photos are beautiful - such wonderful blossom trees, and thank you for a little glimpse of spring in this drab UK weather

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  9. Oh happy sigh.... I can try to imagine, their wonderful fragrance...

    We had a plum tree near the back patio door, for many years. The blooming aroma, was heavenly. And it was simply buzzzzzzzzing with happy bees.

    Another beautifully, beautifully composed post here. -happy sigh- You are an Artist, my Dear... With how you "do up" you blog.

    Thank you!

    Tessa~

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  10. Crete & S Spain have similar climates - we've got lots of almond blossom too!

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  11. Absolutely beautiful! Thank you for sharing!

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  12. Thank you for sharing these awesome images. Beautiful!

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  13. what a beautiful place to live! I'm looking out at a couple feet of snow!! Your pictures are beautiful, and how lovely to have trees in bloom.

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  14. Oh, Poppy, these flowering almonds are so delicately beautiful. You make me wish I was there, walking around the gorgeous trees, drinking in their loveliness on a warm and sunny day.

    I'm not sure what took you from Canada to Greece, but you've found another home with breathtaking views.

    Enjoy your week.

    -Karen

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  15. How pretty! I need some lovely spring images to make me feel warm as it is cold, grey and windy in the uk at the moment. xx

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  16. Poppy... your photos are lovely! I can see van Gogh's fascination with the amazing blossoming almond trees. Enjoy the beauty.. smiles..Susan

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  17. The almond trees . . . the views . . . the Van Gogh's . . . your words . . . a wonderful treat this Sunday morning.

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  18. I'd never seen a blooming almond tree before (well, maybe I'd seen the Van Goghs but I didn't know they were almond trees!) so thank you for sharing. What a pretty post.

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  19. Beautiful trees and a lovely temperature!! Anything hotter I melt, but this sounds wonderful after the cold, dreary Winter we have experienced so far!
    All the best Poppy,

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  20. I have never seen an almond tree before - thanks for the lovely thoughts, pictures and works of art.

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  21. Good Evening Poppy, The almond trees with their delicate blossom are breathtaking and such a joy to see at this time of the year.
    The blue skies, the gentle breeze and the sunshine.....are so very very beautiful.
    Best Wishes
    Daphne

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  22. i absolutely love the paintings you chose for this post. for years i owned a beautiful print of starry night ... and the café. cliché perhaps... but i didn't care. it thrilled me.
    i'm thinking you live in a very wonderful magical place poppy.
    thank you for sharing it with us! xoxo♥

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  23. What a wonderful way to start my week. These beautiful images of spring soon to arrive will sustain me through another dreary and snowy week. I truly enjoyed the images of the beautiful art work and your lovely photographs depicting the grace and beauty of the flowering almond trees.

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  24. Oh my Poppy, beautiful. Have a wonderful week. hugs, Jen

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  25. So lovely. Mr. van Gogh certainly loved almond blossoms and his paintings are wonderful. The photo of the road with the yellow flowers and almond trees in bloom is so pretty. It makes one wonder where the road leads. It is -18 C here in Calgary today but the sun is shining beautifully. Your photos gave me much needed spring cheer. Have a beautiful week Poppy!

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  26. Poppy, your almond blossom post is simply wonderful.. I love the pretty flowers. You are so lucky to have such warm weather.. It makes me wish I was there enjoying the warm sun and these lovely blossoms.. Have a happy week ahead!

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  27. What a lovely post and the mosaic is just beautiful as well. Such soft, gentle and inspiring colors to close my Sunday afternoon with-
    xoxo-
    Jemma

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  28. Almond trees certainly have a luscious pink blossom. Do they have a scent? The view of the winding road is just spectacular, what a wonderful place to call home.
    Ann

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  29. Oh Poppy, so poetic and creative with colour as well. Have a wonderful week - Cindy

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  30. These are such lovely images. I love almonds in bloom.

    Yael from Home Garden Diggers

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  31. Wow, what a contrast to our world! And very beautiful pictures.

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  32. weightless trapeze artists...lovely post as always. But now I REALLY WANT SPRING! :)

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  33. Your photos have me imagining myself in a flowing white dress running through the fields with almond blossoms whirling all around. Sigh. Such loveliness.
    Enjoy the blossoms this week, Poppy.

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  34. So beautiful!!

    A couple of years ago while visiting my daughter in Singapore I went to the most amazing museum I've ever seen and it was exhibiting Van Gogh's paintings in a very unique and entertaining way. Along with the actual paintings, they super imposed them onto huge walls in what can best be described as a slide show of sorts, but what truly made the experience unique was the accompanying music. They picked appropriate music for each painting and it truly filled your senses...just like your posts!

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  35. Hello Poppy:

    What a delightful post full of the promise of spring. What particularly appeals to us here is the way in which you have interspersed your own photographs with reproductions of Van Gogh's paintings which illustrate a similar theme.

    Spring with us is emerging slowly after a particularly mild winter. Where, we ask, is the snow which should be with us at this time of the year.

    We have discovered your blog through our friend, Helen Tilston, and have signed ourselves as Followers. If you wish to know more about us, then we are simply a click away.

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  36. What a warming post - I can feel the heat from here, where the snowdrops are still in bloom. Lovely pictures and I enjoyed the way you presented them!

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  37. Hi Poppy, sorry it's been a while since I've popped over to your blog. It is so nice the temps by where you live and the tree that is in bloom is so pretty! We still have cold rather here and the snow still has not melted! Do take care and have a nice day and week.
    Julie

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  38. Oh I could do with a few days in your country ... Beautiful photos Poppy ... Thanks for sharing at Our Beautiful World!

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  39. Those almond blossoms are amazing! I don't think I have ever seen any! Lovely Mosaic!

    Rainey @ The Project Table

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  40. It's spring here today at your blog Poppy! So many lovely pink petals and the paintings are gorgeous. We are still in the midst of winter and will be grey for a couple months.. so thanks for all the spring beauty on this cold Monday:) xxleslie

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  41. I believe Van Gogh liked the almond blooms as much as you do!
    They are such a welcome sign of Spring. Oh, and that warm weather...
    I'm so jealous!

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  42. 72F and blossoms...sigh. I can only dream! I'm sitting here looking out at bare tree branches and my neighbor's snow covered roof. The sun is shining but it's still frigidly cold out there.

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  43. Such lovely blossoms. I read somewhere that they are cutting down almond trees in California because of the drought. Isn't that sad.

    Big Texas Hugs,
    Susan and Bentley

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  44. The photos and the images are beautiful. I love Van Gogh's painting of the blossom tree with the blue background, it's planted a little seed in my head for something for my house. Thank you for inspiring me today !

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  45. If we were able to print out a post....this would be one to print and keep! I love the beautiful art you've shown us and your photos, too. You are so artistic yourself! What a joy you are to our blog world! Sweet hugs, Diane

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  46. Thank you for that glimpse of sun and blossom from the land of snow and ice!

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  47. Having the images of the paintings along side the real deal, was a wonderful way of sharing the beauty. I enjoyed the visit very much, as always~

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  48. What beautiful photos! Thanks for sharing...

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  49. So, so pretty Poppy! Thank you for sharing a bit of your warm spring sunshine and flowers with us still being strangled in the grips of a long, long winter. Your blossoms are so cheery and uplifting.
    Cindy

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  50. I've never seen almond blossoms, so this was a real treat. I envy that you have things blooming already. We are stuck in a winter rut, with more snow coming this weekend. Seeing your photos reminds me that there is the promise of Spring! I love how you paired the real bushes with paintings. Brilliant!

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  51. Ο χειμώνας φέτος ήταν τόσο ήπιος ώστε μαζί με τις αμυγδαλιές άνθισαν και οι βερικοκιές.Δε θυμάμαι, τα τελευταία χρόνια,ανθισμένες βερικοκιές το Φλεβάρη.Μάλλον ήρθε η άνοιξη.
    ΥΠΕΡΟΧΑ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  52. Hi! new to your blog from Jen Rizzo. Love this post on almond trees. My parents were born & raised in Northern California, and we have much family there. This area is abundant in almond orchards. On our visits there we are gifted with the sight of frilly white & pink blossoms when the trees are in bloom. What a fantastic sight! Shari

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    1. Hi Shari,

      Thanks so much for visiting! The beautiful and mesmerizing state of California is on my bucket list! I can imagine all the different fruit orchards, infused with such heavenly fragrances! Hope you get to visit your family and all the brilliance of this most sunny state often!

      Have a lovely weekend and hope you see this as this was the only space I could reply to your comment.

      Poppy

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  53. This seriously made me wish for spring. I love almond blossoms!

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  54. quite the difference from our -33C week !
    posted HERE !

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  55. Très joli post !
    It seems like in my country (lol) !!!!!!
    Bon weekend.

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  56. I don't think that I have ever seen an Almond tree before..... this is beautiful! What a fun post. :)
    Thank you for joining in for FCF! :)
    I'm so glad you did!
    ~Liz

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  57. I can't even begin to tell you how much I appreciate this post….complete with Van Gogh masterpieces! I love his almond blossoms, and thanks for sharing the pretty almond trees in bloom with us. Happy Spring!

    Linking from Rose Vignettes,
    Ricki Jill

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  58. Hi Poppy, what a pretty post. We have more snow here, so the burst of spring color was a welcome reprieve. The almond blossoms remind me of cherry blossoms with their pale pink color. Have a wonderful day. Heather

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  59. Wow Poppy - such a treat to walk with you and see the beautiful almond trees in all their glory! I could almost smell the almond blossoms from here, and wish I could! I love your poetic style of writing, and how you mix your photos with those of van Gogh's paintings - just a very special post! Hugs to you today!

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  60. Oh Poppy, can I come for a visit? It looks so beautiful, peaceful, and calm where you live :) Your photos are full of beauty and they have me yearning for Spring and Summer.

    Thank you so much, sweet friend, for sharing with Roses of Inspiration - I am truly grateful to have you link up. Hugs!

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  61. Lovely pictures and paintings Poppy! I have always loved Van Gogh from a young girl and the pinks you shared are as beautiful as the artwork! Thank you for linking up with the Art of Home-Making Mondays this week :)

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  62. Hi and wow Poppy it is so beautiful and pretty there right now. Thanks for sharing these gorgeous photos with us. I love the painting too. We still have cold and snowy weather right now. So looking forward to the arrival of spring. Take care and have a lovely Friday and weekend.
    Julie

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Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment. I really appreciate hearing from all of you! Have a great day!