Photos from the Taipei Flora Expo

Taipei, inexplicably, decided to host the international Flora Expo this year. Actually, it’s a strange exhibition to put on in any country – like a small world cup, but with flowers… but holding it in Taipei guarantees that the expo will at least bring in millions of viewers if not cash to cover the expenses. I like flowers. I like trees. I love nature – but when it’s pruned and shaped and cropped, I tend to like it less. I’m still undecided about the flora expo. I went on a bad weather day, and also on an extremely crowded day. It was crowded and cloudy, the sky threatening rain the entire time. Massive lines of what seemed like every student in Taiwan (I think we went on Students and senior citizen day) made the experience far less enjoyable than a flora expo ought to be. But still. I saw some pretty flowers. Some pretty children. And some gorgeous trees that made me wish there was no one around so I could release my inner monkey and climb up. Happily the trees were there long before the expo came and will remain long after the expo closes.

Kiddies at lunch.

Excellent climbing material. Excellent.

Something attractively austere about barren branches. I have many similar photos which I will one day hang in a room alongside all my furtively taken photos of bald men.

A different type of vortex.

Look at those roots.

There was a label stating what kind of flower this is. I didn’t read it.

The flora expo was close to Taipei’s SongShan Airport so airplanes came pretty close to lopping our heads off.

Tomorrow is my last day in Taipei 😦 Hopefully for a short time.