The history of tulips is clouded and unclear, however their eventual introduction into Europe in the 15th Century led to a “Tulip era” or “Tulip frenzy”. To have a successful growing season, the bulbs require a frost winter, and so they are perfectly suited to the Northern European climate. The Netherlands was particularly affected by this new mania on Tulips, and in university-town of Leiden there was a famous Tulip breeding ground which was often the victim of theft. Near to that town lies Keukenhof gardens, one of the major tourist attractions in Holland. A massive Tulip garden among the tulip fields, it’s the must-see for every Japanese and Chinese tourist with a camera.
We start our day a little late, but finally emerge from the hostel to go buy directions to the garden, and hire some bikes. It had been at least a year if not more since I was on a bike, but as they say, you never forget. I entrust Rickard with our directions (since he found the bike shop whereas I nearly got us lost), and we’re off. The bike lanes in the Netherlands are wonderful, paved and smooth, flat, and free from cars. We bike along horses, sand dunes, canals, and fields of tulips. We quickly realize however we’re just too late, most of the bulbs have dropped.Keukenhof however advertises itself as open until mid-may, and so through their efforts we are still treated to the sight of dozens of types of Tulips. We spend a couple hours in the garden before biking back to Nordwijk to return our bikes. After a desperate and short-tempered hunt for a place for dinner, we return to the hostel to rest and play UNO. At night a few of the brave of us do a pub crawl of the town’s establishments, rocking on until the lights are turned on.
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