Posted on by David

4-8-19 Holland at Tulip Time

On Sunday, after our train ride from Brussels,

Brussels Midi Station becomes familiar as we catch the 9:52 to Amsterdam twice.
European train travel, comfort at 200 mph.

we boarded the UniWorld River Boat, River Queen for our adventure Holland and Belgium at Tulip Time.

Capt Arthur keeps the Queen floating through canals and rivers.

The River Queen is not a new boat but has all the essentials – clean rooms, nice beds, nice lounge with full bar and of course a dining room with way too much food at all meals. This particular river cruise is only offered 3 or 4 times during the year – always hoping it will be at the height of the tulip bloom and spring in abundance everywhere. Well, we scored a home run. Not only is the weather just about perfect but also spring is underway.

The first off-ship adventure (Monday) was a bus ride to Keukenhof Gardens. Keukenhof means Kitchen Garden in Dutch but is also known as the Garden of Europe. This is one of the world’s largest flower gardens situated in South Holland about 45 minutes from Amsterdam.

This was the first display we saw after entering the Park.
This reminded David of a flower meadow – lovely mix of colors.

The Gardens, which has become a destination and park, is privately owned and covers an area of 32 hectares (that’s about 80 acres for my US readers) and plants approximately 7 million flower bulbs annually. The place is open mid-March to mid-May and we toured the grounds at a beautiful time for sure.

Flower Power!

The Keukenhof features a variety of different garden styles – English landscape, historical garden, water garden, Japanese country garden and a variety of other areas.

Flower Power Citroen surrounded by cut flower arrangements.

Each year a theme is chosen and various displays are created  on that theme. This year it was Flower Power – bright colors, hippies, peace signs and music were all part of a display. Beatrix pavilion dripped with every kind and color of orchids.

Lots of Orchids

In the center of the garden was a large green house – filled with color beyond imagination.

Willem Alexander Pavilion carefully exhibits hybrids, tall, short, striped, gigantic and black..very dark purple.

 

More flowers – planted in old jeans.
One eighth of the beds in Willem-Alexander pavilion that 2 of the 100 gardeners tend daily.
I would not know where to begin to describe the range of tulip eye candy.

Just walking through that space was a thrill of color. Other bulb flowers, such as daffodils, hyacinth, narcissus and crocus spring up through the “lasagna” planting (placing bulbs at different depths so the blooms are staggered) in the gardens keeping each change of season colorful.

A daffodil display worthy or a poem.
Janeen’s favorite lilies graced pots at a pavilion entrance.
“turban” whites next to crazy lily tulips, golden tulips peeping through
Hyacinth and golden narcissis announce Easter is coming.
Forsythia still blooms to greet the pink ladies with purple hyacinth attending.

It is clear this Garden changes day by day and it would be interesting to come back in a week to see what has bloomed.

David might allow this tulip to equal his love of red poppies.
Always a crowd ready for tomorrow.
Lilies and sunflowers spilled sunshine out of carefully tended pots.
Tiptoe through the tulips, or the gardener in the background will have to cut you?
A Valentine bouquet of color hybrid.

After walking around for a few hours it was time to head back to the Boat. Once we returned, it was time to have some lunch and relax for the rest of the day.

2 Replies to “4-8-19 Holland at Tulip Time”

  1. Grand and glorious photos. Lovely journal, J’s jacket is perfect in gardens.

  2. Chocolate, Waffles and Beer, are you ever coming home. I am afraid to show Denise the pictures of all of the flowers, it could be costly to me.

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