Cristina Neves

I trained as a gardener before I started guiding, and Monserrate's grounds are where I put that training to use on camera. I follow the paths through the botanical collection slowly, naming plants brought from across the world by the estate's 19th-century owner. I keep the phone steady on individual specimens rather than sweeping across the whole garden, since the detail is what makes a plant worth pointing out. I explain the palace's Moorish-revival architecture from outside its grounds, since the building itself is best seen from a distance across the lawns. I answer questions about the garden's history and its plants with equal enthusiasm.