Floriade 2024: Canberra, AUSTRALIA

Spring is here in the land down under... and with it, the yearly flower celebration in Canberra (the capital of Australia...)... namely Floriade! Held yearly in Commonwealth Park, along the artificial Lake Burley Griffon, it is a big tourist draw for the little capital territory. In addition to the flower show, there is also the little rides and carnival, lots of shops, and street food, and entertainment from local organisations.

This year, the tulips and bulbs were starting to bloom a bit before the event started... so, there was a bit of a rush from the gardeners to try and slow their growth down so that they didn't flower early, and then get caught out by a sudden cold snap. Speaking of cold snaps... this day that we went... well, it looks warm enough in the photos, but it was windy and pretty bloody cold because of the wind that would just cut through your layers of clothing!

... but the tulips were out in full bloom, and we were here early enough so that we didn't get the end dregs like we did in previous years.

Although the beds and designs of the Floriade are pretty impressive.... they really aren't a patch on the Dutch Keukenhof displays... of course, that has been going for much longer and has a larger surface area for displays.

What did catch my attention was the agpipe system that they have installed under the beds... something quite similar to the wicking system that water our veggie beds!

... and the kids are always drawn to the rides... and seeing as we had a friend of one of the girls along, we did allow them to hop on a couple of rides. But it isn't really the point of coming to these things!

The three kids and I popped up on the Ferris wheel... my wife hates heights, so she stayed down on the ground. Actually, it was probably a good idea, seeing as it was quite windy... and freezing, and that combined with the fear of heights would have made for a pretty horrible experience for her!

But the displays looked much more impressive when viewed from above!

Ooooh... and from the gardener's materials area... I can imagine how much work would have gone into preparing all this area... weeks and weeks of work, and some pretty heavy machinery mixed with the last smaller final touches. Quite artistic...

Yep... definitely less impressive from close up, you don't quite get the full scale and impression of the design that they are aiming for. I remember in Netherlands, they would have raised viewing platforms... that would have helped.

A magician and street entertainer... and on the main stages there were dancers, bands, orchestras, and all manner of entertainment. From memory, much of it was community groups that would use the Floriade festival to showcase their skills and work.

Weirdly... the main Floriade sign is on the opposite side well, away from the main entrance....

When we had a chat about the experience, the girls and and my wife seemed to enjoy Floriade better than the competing Tulip Top... they liked the crowds, and the food stalls, and the entertainment...

... personally, I preferred the quieter Tulip Top... less of the other stuff, but I liked the flower displays there better.

But, Keukenhof kicks them all in the arse!