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
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