I have become a strange tree for an endemic orchid

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  I have become a strange tree for an endemic orchid | 2011

I had a chance to see many endemic plants and animals in the wild on the island of Taiwan. Epiphytic forest orchids grow on trees and I wanted to have an orchid close to me throughout the whole time of my stay in Taiwan. I bought a small forest orchid called Haraella retrocalla and made a little stand for it which I attached to my backpack. I carried the orchid almost everywhere with me; I left it at home only on extremely hot days or on some exceptional days. I had to protect the orchid from crowds of people in the town, especially in the underground during the rush-hour, every movement might have become fatal for my orchid. I kept thinking how fragile the plant I carried on my backpack was. People in Taiwan move in a different way than I was used to, and I was not able to adapt to their pace. Therefore protecting the plant among the crowds of people in the city became quite stressful for me, whereas when walking with the flower on my back in the country I felt my movement had no restrictions. Before I left Taiwan I planted my orchid on a tree in the Yangmingshan National Park