Humidity - ugh! But it does amazing things for plants. I was in Singapore a few years back, and while my entourage has haggling over prices for digital cameras, I was always down some sidestreet just gawking at the lotus' for sale, just growing, all casual like, in a big tin on the pavement. The blood, sweat and tears I have invested in trying to grow them here, well, let's move on to another story.
You are right about that first photo, amazing
Cheers,
Mike