April 18, 2015

"P" is for Peacock

When I think of a peacock I visualize a large bird with brightly coloured feathers. A more modest peacock with snowy white plumage lives in the gardens of the Borromeo Palace on Lake Maggiore in northern Italy. And meeting these ethereal creatures was an item on my Bucket List.


White Chinese Peacock of Isola Bella


The Borromeo Palace is located on the aptly-named Isola Bella, beautiful island, where the powerful Borromeo family turned a rocky chunk of land into a lovely oasis of grassy terraces, fanciful sculptures and exotic flowers.


Isola Bella on Lake Maggiore


Borromeo Palace Gardens



Wandering the gravelled pathways are the beautiful white Chinese peacocks of Isola Bella. Some of them were shy, playing hide and seek in the shrubbery. And I was a little disappointed that none of them were willing to display their lacy tail feathers.











Still, I think the elegant white peacocks of Isola Bella are more beautiful than their splashier kin. And you couldn’t choose a more suitable inhabitant for the colourful gardens of the Borromeo Palace.



8 comments:

  1. Beautiful bird and stunning gardens. There used to be white peacock on Kawau Island. Like you I was fascinated by it.

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    1. Until I started planning my trip to Italy I didn't even know they existed.

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  2. I have a healthy respect for peacocks, ever since one flew at me and gave me a few pecks for getting too close while it was walking around displaying its plumage. I think that was in Arizona, as I remember my grandparents urging me to go stand by the peacock so they could snap a photo. Beware!

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    1. I kept a safe distance You never know what a creature will do, even when it seems to be domesticated!

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  3. What an absolutely stunning bird. We have snowy egrets nesting around here, but they are not nearly so exquisite.

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    1. I really wish I'd seen them displaying their tail feathers - that would have been a sight!

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  4. Beautiful! I'd never seen one before! And the pictures are absolutely stunning!

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    1. Thank you. I didn't know there was such a thing until I learned about Isola Bella.

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