More Dutch flower fields, Bollenstreek in colours 2013...

 

This post has all pictures featuring me. Usually I do not post many pictures with me...However this time I was lucky to do the flower-fields-tour with a good friend and colleague of mine, who is an amazing photographer (dont miss the chance to enjoy the fantastic gallery of Roland here). It was also him, who asked me what happened with all these amazing flowers we have seen (+photographed of course:-). A lot of my visitors get really shocked (...and some even dont believe me) that these beauties are simply cut and the thrown away, usually next to the fields (thats how I know what happened with them).

 

...and then the next question arrived: why are they planting them at all? Tulips and the other spring flowers reproduce every year. If the bulb is planted not too deep (around 7-8 cm deep than it will grow bublettes. These bublettes (the tulip grows usually 2 till 3 f them) are separted (after the mother bulb is dug out around 1,5 months after the flower dies off) and can be sold. And this is the reason of why so many flowers (tulips, daffodils and hyacinths) are planted  in the low lands :-) The Netherlands exported 3,6 billion flower bulbs in 2010, the biggest customer in the lasty ears has always been the US...

Flight over Zuid-Holland, part 2: Scheveningen, Zandmotor, Monster, den Haag and Delft

 

In the second part of our sightseeing flight with Lionair we flew alongt he coastal line passing by Noordwijk, Scheveningen, Kijkduin (above is the Zandmotor) and Monster.
The Zandmotor is a 2-year-old project to reinforce the costal protection between Kijkduin and Ter Heide. The manmade sand peninsula should support the natural collection of more sand in this part of the coast (and help build bigger dunes),

 
In Westland we went inland and the greenhouses-landscape (see third picture) was all over till the horizon. here a lot of the Dutch fruits&veggies are grown. After we saw some known and unknown places of the Hague and Rijswijk the central square of the Delf Old town charmed me... Simply amazing experience:-) Have a good new week everyone!

 

...and here are the views of den Haag and Delft (last picture).

Flight over Zuid-Holland 2013, part 1: Dutch flower fields& Leiden seen from the air

 

This year we decided to try a flight to the tulp fields starting from Rotterdam airport so we could fly over Leiden, Bollenstreek (the sping flower area), den Haag and Scheveningen...In this post I will take you onboard wth me and will show the fantastic view over the old town of Leiden (first pic), our cute plane (Cessna, four-seater) and the spring colours seen from the air! Enjoy the view+have a good flight:-)))

 

For all the curious ones who want to do the same: we flew with Lionair, I do recommend them for this 1-hour-sightseeing-tulip-flight.

PS: More aerial shots to come in part 2...

 

Spring 2013: Dutch flower fields, lost in daffodils and hyacinths...

 

Every year hundreds of tourists get lost in the Dutch flower fields in search for unique pictures or angles...Due to the long and very chilly winter all Dutch bulb flowers are delayed this year in the low lands. So when my first "flower"-visitors arrived last weekend and we went searching for flower fields, no tulip fields were in sight. However we could literally swim in white-purple-pink-rose-yellow sea of aromatic hyacinths and some daffodils...All pictures are taken in the fields around Lisse&Noordwijkerhout.

"Bon Appetit" with the flower parade Bloemencorso 2013!

 

Even if all flowers are delayed here in the Netherlands with 2-3 weeks this spring due to the cold and longw inter the famous and lovely-smelling flower parade started last night in Noordwijkerhout. The topic this year was "Bon appetit" and as every year I was again impressed how created the artists are...enjoy my pictures, they made me smile even if I was freezing while taking them:-)))

 

On the picture below you can see very well that the "banana" is made from daffodils and the monkey from purple hyacinths.