Floriade

Hi all!

My apologies for the delayed update. Internet connections have been hit and miss in these parts. But here it goes...

We both arrived safe and sound to Amsterdam and were able to navigate the train system to successfully find the city of Venlo!
After 26 hours of no sleep we granted ourselves 15 hours of sleep that night to wake up refreshed and ready to take on Floriade!
The show was quite the sight to see...

For those of you who don't know, Floriade is a "world horticultural expo" that happens once every ten years in this historic town on the border between Holland and Germany. It is a celebration that explores the different ways that various cultures try to push the envelope of design, interpretation and research of all thing horticulturally speaking. This year's theme was 'nature as theatre' which translated into some pretty entertaining themed areas (including healing and relaxing, environment--which you would think would be inherent to the whole event, green education/innovation and a world show) and some fairly bizzare multimedia displays with dancing tulips...

All in all, Laura was most struck by the world culture area, where around ten different countries had produced displays representative of their national style. The US was not represented, so it was interesting to imagine what we would have produced if we had created some sort of garden/landscape. Seems like a cool studio prompt...

Steph was most impressed by, not surprisingly, the relaxing and healing area. Primarily because of the interactive features of it. They had a room of hammocks, yes of hammocks, that was enclosed by an adobe wall with shade trees placed all around. Guiding you into the relax and heal zone was a boardwalk that meandered through a forest. An obstacle course of climbing ropes and logs that cross crossed through the boardwalk created a fun alternative to walking, and she happened to be the first one to notice it and try it out with all the little kids, and some adults following suit. At the end of the trail were other gardens that focused on some aspect related to healing designed with the utmost care and attention to detail.

On a final note, for those of you interested in urban design, primarily focused on transportation systems, Venlo is a place worth researching.
The city center is quite a site to see, it's the only piece of the city that was no bombed during WWII so needless to say the architecture and roads are incredible.

Here are some photos of our time in Venlo...

Photo 1:
The entrance to Floriade included passing through a gate, through a tunnel and over a bridge. Talk about a sense of procession:)

Photo 2:
The winding path in the relax and heal area was quite entertaining. It meandered over a berm and into a sunken area surrounded by cherry trees.

Photo 3:
The aforementioned winding path. Definitely not ADA approved

Photo 4:
The people on stilts who greeted us at the entrance were dressed a little bit like spiders. Stephanie's remark was that it looked like a fun job.
...who wouldn't want to dress up in a costume unrecognizable and tower over people :)

Photo 5:
This is the boardwalk that leads Through the red pine forest to the heal and relax area.

Photo 6:
Steph at the little cafe where we grabbed an espresso back in Venlo

Photo 7:
One of the inside exhibits at Floriade. I'm not sure there are any orchids left in the South American rain forests... But the display was sure stunning.

Photo 8:
Some goof ball who got in the way of our photo

Photo 9:
The entry pavilion with inflatable boulders. Back when I was a kid we had real rocks to sit on:)

Photo 10: One of the many amazing floral displays that made the whole show smell like a perfume shop

Photo 11:
The hammock room

Well, Venlo, tot ziens (see you later). And Paris, salut!! We'll be in touch.