On the circular path, closer to the exit from the forest and already without expectations of interesting encounters, we felt a sweet smell. It was a mixture of chocolate, vanilla and something else. But definitely an “edible” aroma, as if there was a pastry shop nearby - this was my first association with this smell of Hoya mekongensis. On a large tree overgrown with moss, the trunk of which with expansions down smoothly turned into powerful roots, a cluster of stars, voluminous and as if a little transparent, was white. An intense smell emanated from them, made us stop to understand and remember this delicious aroma. The plant itself, an elegant liana, was fixed on the trunk of the tree, but bloomed only in the lower part, at the roots. Hoyas are quite common, but flowering specimens are not always found at the right time. The forest again pleased us with its treasures, we were happy.

And why wax flowers? In fact, another species of hoya is called “wax ivy”, such is the specificity of its leaves. Hoya mekongensis, when you manage to catch it in bloom, surprises with its flowers, which seem waxy. White, with soft transitions to pinkish and warm yellow tones, they seem artificial in their ideal star-shaped form against the background of more familiar forest colors and shapes.