After leaving the road we went down hill and came across a strange looking palm. Well it looked like a palm if all you saw were the leaves,
but when I looked at the low trunk where the leaves started I saw this:
And let me tell you there is NO palm with a flower stalk like that. Closer examination revealed flower/fruit that were ripe and "peeling"
I found out the next day after posting pictures on the internet that
indeed this is not a palm but a "palm look-a-like known scientifically as Carludovica
palmata. It's common name is "Panama hat palm" but
as I said it is not a palm. The genera was named after Carlos IV. of Spain, whose second name was Ludovic.
