Amsterdam
2004
We
took ourselves off to Amsterdam for Easter - principal reason to see the
bulb fields and displays.
While
we there we spent some time with Colin and Wendy-Jo (Colin was living
out there at the time). They looked after us tourists very well.
As
expected, there were loads of bikes. Sometimes, we didn't know where the
traffic was coming from with bikes, trams, cars, buses etc all seemingly
coming from different directions!
It's
a very relaxing City to walk around but I made JC walk quickly the first
couple of days as it was very cold. The weather improved towards the end
of our stay.
We
went on our usual boat trip - how else would you get round to see everything
in Amsterdam?
As
with many cities, there were some very interesting tops of buildings.
Even
the tops of the lampposts were ornate and there were a few statues around.
Our
hotel was a Botel (boat made into a hotel) which was different. Ideal
location near to Nemo (see left) and the station (right and below)
Moving
on to the bulbs, we spent a whole day at the Keukenhof and ordered some
bulbs for planting this Autumn while we were there - hyacinths, tulips,
narcissi and fritillaria.
Lots
of different suppliers each have a space to lay out in beds. The plants
are labelled and you get some good ideas for colour combinations etc.
We
particularly liked the "saucers" as per the pictures on the
left but haven't been able to find any in the UK - any ideas would be
welcome.
As
well as flowers, there were other attractions such as the fountains, arty
tulips, statues and a big lake with stepping stones over - yes, we did
go over them and no, we didn't fall in.
As
well as bikes, you expect to see windmills in Holland - we didn't see
many but this one was in the gardens for people to explore.
Finally,
a couple of tulip pictures - what lovely flowers they are!
