Like last year I made it to the Independence Day Flower Show on the inaugural day. The time was 11.30 am, and the CM of Karnataka Siddaramaiah had just arrived to cut the ribbon. Once the CM entered the gates, the guards were instructed to not let anyone enter till the VIP left. So that left me along with many others to bake in the sun. Even a noisy group of Congress party supporters weren’t let in. If only I had been a little early I wouldn’t have had to face this ordeal. A lot of those waiting outside left the place out of frustration. A couple of kids started wailing. The Congress supporters most of whom were sporting Siddaramaiah masks started getting restless. Somewhere a band started playing. The crowds started swelling and that left me wondering whether to wait or leave. I finally decided to wait; after all I had travelled a long way. The wait ended after a quarter past noon. There was another wait though a smaller one outside the ticket counters. Apparently, the tickets hadn’t arrived at all the counters. And at the only counter that was functional, an old man was training a nervous newbie. The old man was getting irritated as much as the newbie was getting confused. I was feeling amused and at the same time sorry for both of them.
When I reached the Glass House, the venue of the show, the sight of the floral replica of the Mysore Palace made me forget all the happenings of the last one hour. To say that I was mesmerised would be an understatement. And there was a Dasara procession too complete with caparisoned elephants. My jaws dropped. The floral representation was as beautiful as the original palace. Kudos to the makers!
Like always the flowers looked awesome and without doubt the roses were the show stealers. A huge floral replica of a pineapple was a favourite with children. Have a look at the pretty flowers:
The show is on till the 17th of August. Don’t miss!
Potpourri 