Feria de las Flores

What happens

Medellín, in the mountains of Antioquia, has held its Flower Fair since 1957. It lasts about ten days in early August. The event everyone waits for is the Desfile de Silleteros. A silleta is a wooden frame once used to carry goods, and people, down from the hills on a man's back. Farming families from the village of Santa Elena now load these frames with flowers arranged into pictures and patterns, and hundreds of them walk through the city under the weight. Colombia is one of the world's largest exporters of cut flowers.

The flowers

CarnationCarnations, a main Colombian export, fill many silletas.ChrysanthemumUsed for blocks of colour in the picture silletas.Cattleya trianaeThe national flower of Colombia, shown at the orchid exhibition.Common sunflowerA bright favourite of the traditional silleta.