Nature just isn’t beuatiful enough according to the Chinese. Not only do they dye the ears and tails of their dogs, and sometimes, in the year of the tiger, paint stripes on puppies to sell them, but they paint flowers too.
Often you will see beautiful tight rose buds dipped in glitter. What could be more beautiful than a rose bud? This desire to beautify nature reached new ehights when, this weekend I popped into the flower and bird market near FangBang Lu and saw the turtles.
I try not to lok at the animals in these places – turn my head away – but the colours shouted for my attention.