Springing into summer

There wasn't much of a spring this year in Beijing. We were teased on several occasions by springlike weather, but temperatures always dipped and the icy chills were made worse by three months of winter air trapped inside our apartments (as you know, central heating has long since been turned off).

But today, I knew for sure that the warm months are here for good. And how? Behold, cottonwood:



The Beijing government went through a period of unreserved tree-planting several years ago, but unfortunately for all us residents, their tree of choice was one that sheds more than a longhair cat around this time of year. It gets so bad that people have been known to choke (to death?) on the snowflake-like pollen. Asthmatics, take note: Beijing's not the time to be for the next month or two.

No complaints here, though.

More pictures of this newly arrived season (i.e. summer):