palms and passionfruit

My friend and I went to an open air cebiche place last Sunday. It's a modest place but with a spectacular view. Absolutely spectacular. For miles.
Even though it's high in the Andes, we looked upon tall palm trees-beyond them was the far off valley and beyond, the mountains before the jungle.
I told her their name, and that they produced tiny coconuts.This highland palm itself has fronds like coastal coconut palms, lovely, delicate, refreshing to look at. It's the Quito palm.

I love the coast even though I live in the sierra.
And I remember all the coconut palms. I used to watch them change color as the sun set and I waited for the green flash when I lived in Bahia for a while.

Before that, in Esmeraldas, with J, her kids and mine,we pitched our tents under some tall ones and hoped nothing fell on us at night when we were sleeping. We didn't do more of that than what was necessary- usually at night the kids chased crabs with flashlights and we played canasta.The entire day was spent outside. We ate cebiches and inexpensive fried fish with menestra.

There is so much I love about the tropics. OK, the trees,but more. There's so very much.
Fresh fruit, for instance. Affordable fresh fruit. Coconuts, coconut milk, on the coast....
bananas, mangoes, ovos, grosellas, papaya, pineapple, watermelon ...

In the mountains we have a passionfruit called Taxo here. Then there is the sweet Granadilla whose juice is given to babies; sieved, not blended.
There is the beautiful slightly acid but very fragrant maracuyá I've only seen growing in warmer lower lands, and that I personally picked for lunch juice on J's cattle farm.
I was surprised by the huge and absolutely delicious Badea, though, that I first saw growing in Cantalapiedra, when I went with J and A.
They are all vines, and have gorgeous flowers. Their name indicates Our Lord's passion, because one of their flowers reminds one of His wounds.