My friends and family all know that I have an addiction to bamboo. It is an amazing “grass”. Yes, a grass. When I lived in China I saw how much it is loved and used there. Other Asian, South American and South African countries use it more than we do in Australia.
In China, I saw many items made out of bamboo, and it was there that I discovered fabric made from it, and subsequently bought many bamboo things that are dotted throughout my home. I get concerned that Australians have not embraced this renewable, fast growing grass which is really so useful. I can only guess why it is not used so much here.
Today I came across a “camping pod” created in Melbourne, Australia, which I found very interesting. In fact, the website has quite a few interesting items on it.
GIANT GRASS
Until I went to China I had not seen any of the giant species. One weekend the university took us on an expedition to an area to the west of Shanghai. It was very hilly, and we could see bamboo growing everywhere. We had visited a tourist spot during the day, and late in the afternoon arrived at our accommodation for the night. There was no time to explore then.
In the morning I was up early, with camera in hand, and set off along a windy road up through the bamboo. I was able to touch huge “logs” of bamboo – some of it had been harvested, but most was just growing up and down the hills. I was in awe. Perhaps not as much as the local Chinese, who saw this tall, blonde woman walking through their village with a big camera.
Some of them just stopped what they were doing and stared at me.
You can read about the camping pod created by Giant Grass here.