It’s Bamboo!

Since we have arrived in Hong Kong, I’ve been completely intrigued and even amazed by some of things we have seen just walking around and exploring.  One of the coolest things I’ve noticed is how the Chinese use bamboo to complete construction projects all over the city.  Unlike metal poles used for scaffolding in the U.S., the bamboo structures built in Hong Kong are lighter in weight, more easily assembled and dissembled and much more cost efficient.  But it’s not only the scaffolding used that is amazing, it’s watching the workers put them together!  Nicknamed “spiders”, the construction workers who create these unbelievable bamboo structures must attend a special academy to learn the ancient art of bamboo scaffold construction before joining the team of gravity-defying artists.  You have to see these pictures to believe it…some are just too scary for me to even imagine!

I’ve included some videos on bamboo scaffolding at the end of this post…I just can’t stop saying, “Wow, amazing!”

The other day I looked out our living room window and this is what I saw…

bam1

To give you some context…
It’s a long way down!

bam7bam2bam3bam4

Watching them work all day made me a nervous wreck, but they kept smiling, especially when they spotted me taking pictures!

bam5

The work continues…

bam6

More scaffolding spotted around the city…

bam8bam10bam11bam12bam13bam14

Knotting the plastic ties to connect the bamboo pieces.

bam16bam17

Look at this balance…

bam18

 To learn more…

This entry was posted in General Information, Living in Hong Kong and tagged , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

10 Responses to It’s Bamboo!

  1. Jess says:

    Fascinating! Some of those pictures took my breath away…so high!

  2. BarbM. says:

    Absolutely amazing! Thanks for letting us experience the cultures of other countries; sometimes we forget there are other ways of doing things!

  3. miss b says:

    This is somehting that fascinated me the first time I went to Hong Kong. When I was there again in July I was going to take some pictures of the scaffolding but didn’t – you have a great selection here.
    http://missbbobochic.blogspot.co.uk/

  4. ROXTHEFOX says:

    That looks terrifying :S

  5. Kathy Begun says:

    Thank you for the video on Bamboo scaffolding. I love learning about other countries. I hop you are settled.
    Kathy

  6. Grace says:

    I did see the bamboo construction when I was visiting HK for a month and was amazed at how flimsy it all looked, yet it must have worked because they use it all the time in construction. That picture of the condo and the man perched outside the window looks so scary doesn’t it? They have a lot of faith in that the metal things will hold their weight!

  7. Diana Marks says:

    wow! very interesting!

    I just followed your lovely blog and liked this post on Bloglovin. I hope you’ll do the same for me 😉 Stay in touch 😉

    LA By Diana Live Magazine

  8. wow thats insane! now i know what those bamboo shoots in rush hour 2 were all about. I remember that movie, and always wondered why there would be bamboo on a building like that. thats sooo crazy! amazing photos.

    xO!
    http://www.thehautecookie.com

  9. Kate says:

    Wow that is pretty amazing. I am too scarred of heights to be able to stomach that myself but very impressive. Thanks for sharing :)

  10. Gailiotas says:

    WOW! How amazing! I really enjoyed your blog. So educational!!!!!!