From Cornfields to Deserts, Iowa Music Teacher's Visit to the Middle East: February 2020

Tulip Time in Amsterdam

I know this really dates me, but I remember sitting in front of our old black and white tv watching an episode of Captain Kangaroo. One of my favorite parts of the show was a little craft segment they would feature from time to time. One day Captain Kangaroo was cutting out a tulip shape from construction paper. I guess it didn’t take that much to entertain me at the time! But anyway, I think that is where my fascination with the humble tulip began. And when my daughter and her husband took a trip to Amsterdam and posted pictures of Keukenhof Gardens, I knew that somehow I would have to find a way to see this wonderful place for myself. So in the spring of 2019 I booked a trip to the Netherlands and met my daughter in Amsterdam. I don’t mind traveling alone, it has many advantages, but when you can travel with someone you love it is so much sweeter. It was magical.

An explosion of color. Seven million tulips and over 2,000 varieties. Splendor as far as the eye can see.

Keukenhof Gardens

No one can truly appreciate the absolute beauty of the most famous flower garden in the world more than someone who lives in a desert. I don’t mean to dis my little corner of Kuwait, but my daily walk across a somewhat disgusting sandy dirt parking lot is light years away from this world famous flower park. In my seven years living in Kuwait, I have never even seen someone using a lawn mower. I’m sure they do occasionally, but it’s not a common sight. They do plant flowers in the winter when the weather is more like early fall back in Iowa. Kuwait isn’t completely devoid of color. You just have to know where to look.

“Keukenhof” literally means kitchen garden. According to Wikipedia, these gardens were the location of the 15th century hunting ground of the Dutch castle Slot Teylingen and was also the kitchen garden of that estate. In 1638, governor Adriaen Block purchased the estate and in 1641 he built a large manor home which is now known as the Castle Keukenhof. In 1857, the owners of the estate at that time hired designers to restructure the grounds around the castle. The parks that were created were designed in the English style and are the foundation of the park as you see it today. It is located on nearly eighty acres of ground and I’m pretty sure my daughter, Stacia and I tramped over about every inch of it!

You can’t visit Amsterdam without seeing at least one windmill!

The obligatory picture in the oversized wooden shoes.

About 40 gardeners are tasked with the job of planting those seven million tulips that are donated by over a hundred growers. When the growing season is over the old bulbs are completely removed. Design artists from around the world are hired to create completely new designs each year.

This picture was taken in one of the seven indoor pavilions. If you have the unfortunate luck of visiting Keukenhof before or after the tulips are in bloom, you can still see thousands of tulips and other flowers grown in containers.

All the trees were just beginning to blossom

They say that the Keukenhof Gardens are one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. I’m inclined to believe it. It’s certainly the ultimate destination for anyone who loves to garden. I would love to go back someday.

National Day

A few of my preschoolers all dressed up for National Day mugging for the camera

A group of happy first graders on the last day of school before the National Day celebrations. As I sit here in my apartment on February 28,2020, the Education Ministry in Kuwait has cancelled school for two weeks along with all National Day celebrations due to the Carona virus outbreak. My school will be exploring online education during the interim. I pray for the people of this small country. It’s only a very small dot on the map. I pray that this virus can be be contained and the people of the world be spared from the ravages of this frightening pandemic.

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am you God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:10

A Safari in Kruger Park

Ok, ok....there is a little clickbait going on here. When I think of a safari, images from the old Tarzan movies come into my head. I picture myself dressed in khakis tramping along through the African bush with native tribesmen carrying my gear and big rifles to protect me from a charging rhino or a leopard who has been stalking our caravan for hours. That sounds pretty exciting and very brave of me, but that’s probably stretching the truth. A lot.

You’ve got to love zebras!

A family of elephants checking out the local watering hole.

If you have been following my humble adventures, you know I have been teaching elementary music in Kuwait for seven years now. During that time I have met many interesting people from all over the world. In the fall of 2016, I met Jenny from South Africa. As it turned out, we had quite a bit in common. Our children were about the same age and we were both looking forward to the birth of a grandchild. As most grandmas know, you have to be careful who you talk to about your grandchildren. Single friends will politely listen to your fascinating stories regarding potty training and obvious mental acuity. But a fellow grandma has to listen to you with rapt attention so she can in turn regale you with stories about HER her gorgeous grandchildren and their unique accomplishments. We spent quite a bit of time together. We found this wonderful hole in the wall restaurant that had the best chicken shwarma for just about $1.75. We would take turns treating each other to chicken shawarma once a week. About a year ago I was hungry for chicken shawarma again so I returned to that same place with another friend. This is a place where the customers eat outside and it is not unusual to see a feral cat or two hoping for a hand out. So I was sitting there with my friend and thought I saw a cat out of the corner of my eye. Upon closer inspection, I could see that it was actually a rat. Suffice it to say, I have not returned!

A lion cub relaxing on the side of the road.

Back to my African safari story. Jenny invited me to visit her in South Africa. I did not hesitate to tell her yes. I never dreamed I would ever visit the continent of Africa. It wasn’t on my radar at all. South Africa is not a place I would choose to visit unless there was someone I knew who could show me the sights. We planned the trip for the summer of 2018. I would have to wait an entire year before I could go. It was definitely worth the wait.

Sunrise in Kruger Park

Kruger National Park

Roughly the size of New Jersey, Kruger National Park is one of the largest parks in the world. The area was first established as a national park in 1926 in an effort to prevent overhunting and to protect the animals in the one of the last frontiers in South Africa.

Great photo of a leopard taken by Jenny Jackson.

We spent the first night of our stay in a very nice private residence outside of the park in Nelspruit. The next day we crossed the Crocodile Bridge on our way to our first rest stop at Skukuza where we spent the first two nights. Each day we would get up early, have a quick breakfast and morning tea, of course, and be on our way. I still remember the sight of a giraffe casually walking across the road. It seemed surreal. They are really tall animals! Everywhere I looked it was if creation had suddenly come alive. What a wonder to see zebras and impalas casually grazing in their natural habitat, a pride of elephants enjoying the local waterhole and a family of warthogs fighting over some tasty tidbit.

A very tall animal indeed!

Rondavel houses in Skukuza where we spent our first night. We had to chase away a bat that first night. That wasn’t the kind of wildlife I flew to Africa to see!

A couple of lions enjoying the shade along the side of the road.

This young hyena was hanging out right next to a culvert near our encampment. I guess a culvert serves as a very nice den!

Crocodile Bridge built over the Crocodile River

A pair of waterbucks grazing in the afternoon sun.

A very friendly park ranger who was happy to pose for a picture.

I was lucky to get a shot of a pair of wild dogs. They are an endangered species and not easily spotted.

An extremely handsome kudu buck

A warthog and her young feeding on a carcass

This interesting fellow is a ground hornbill

Everywhere we went I was intrigued by the diversity of vegetation. One moment you are struck by the sight of rocky outcrops reminiscent of Rafiki’s presentation of Simba in The Lion King and around the next bend in the road you see thick underbrush or gentle rolling hills. I remember one of the last days in the park when we finally spotted some rhinos. It felt like I was in a scene from Jurassic Park. I was half expecting to see a velociraptor come crashing through the underbrush. I couldn’t believe I was seeing a rhinoceros in its natural habitat living the life it was meant to live. I’m afraid I’ll never look at animals in the zoo in quite the same way as before my “safari” in Kruger Park.

Friends forever!

A great pic of a rhino taken by Jenny Jackson.

One morning we had a breakfast picnic at a wonderful spot at Tshokwane. Roger rented a skottle, which is a type of outdoor grill, and we enjoyed a very hearty breakfast that morning. We had to keep one eye on our food and another on a pair of very naughty monkeys who would swoop down on unsuspecting tourists looking for an easy meal!

All too soon it was time to pack up and go home. What a glorious experience! I never was a person who longed to travel the world. Compared to most of my colleagues here in Kuwait, I have barely scratched the surface. I take one or two major trips a year and I’m fine with that. I really never expected to travel outside the American Midwest, let alone step foot on the continent of Africa. I will be forever grateful to my dear friend Jenny and her husband Roger for sharing their love for South Africa with this small-town girl from Iowa. Your hospitality will never be forgotten and memories of your beautiful corner of the world will live forever in my heart.