One Enormous Bee!

Sitting outside on our terrace this morning, enjoying a cup of tea, and reading my book in the cool breezes, I was suddenly made aware of a loud, low thrumming noise near my right ear.

When I turned to see what could be making such a din, I was surprised to see this enormous, black, shiny bee having its way with the white flowers growing from vines which cascade down the stone wall. I have no idea what species of bee this is, but I can tell you that the flowers measure about 3" across ... which makes the bee a good 1 1/2" long, and almost as wide! Respect! It wasn't until I uploaded the picture to the computer that I noticed the second, much punier bee on the same blossom.

A lovely, lazy day. The skies have been overcast, so the temperature has been a little cooler than last week, with a few lackadaisical splats of rain from time to time. Tom and Kristin surfaced around 11:30, and we went for a meandering drive through the countryside, stopping at a little place for lunch. A very, very leisurely lunch! Half an hour after we were seated, our orders were taken, and about an hour after that, the food finally arrived! No matter ... we were in no hurry, and having a good time.