Tulip Time River Cruise
“I will not be another flower, picked for my beauty and left to die. I will be wild, difficult to find, and impossible to forget” – Erin Van Vuren
Tulips in the Netherlands are not difficult to find though indeed the patchwork quilt of blooming color that surrounds the roads and highways are impossible to forget as are the 7 million plus bulbs that color the air at the Keukenhof Gardens for 8 weeks every year.
I had missed accompanying my friends to the Keukenhof several years ago when they stopped in Amsterdam to see the tulips while I had to return home. After reading a post about the tulips in Skagit Valley in Washington State, USA, I made a trip there last year as I was unable to make it to Europe at that time.
Enchanted by the color and beauty, I was determined to make it to the Netherlands and the Keukenhof this year. What better way to accomplish this than to experience my first river cruise and team it with windmills, Dutch Villages and tulips. A taste of Belgium of course just adds to the flavor.
This year the cold has held on a little longer than usual and we had a few windy days with some rain in a week that is touted to be the peak week for tulips. Fortunately, we got to visit the windmills before the tulips because it was indeed wet and windy when we made it there. A silver lining to this of course is that we saw the wheels moving and got a whole different flavor of what Kinderdijk is like.
From Amsterdam to Antwerp and back to Amsterdam, the river itself is not the most beautiful being mostly industrial but I found a group of kindred spirits and we became bosom friends as we enjoyed the onboard activities as well as the offshore excursions. The team on the Monarch Queen, Danny our activities director, Martin our cruise director and the reception and hotel staff were outstanding. Please stay tuned I think the forecast is for more river cruising in my future.
Our first port of call was Antwerp. We walked off the ship and stopped at Het Steen and the statue of the Lange Wapper who is a Flemish folkloric character, a bit of a trickster getting people drunk on beer, etc. We spent half a day exploring the city of Antwerp, walking with a local expert through the major sites before being left to our own devices so we could walk around and soak in the atmosphere as well as experience the Flemish fare of frites with mayonnaise and waffles.
These are not French fries my fellow Americans, in the words of our local expert the French do not know who to make fries or frites quite like the Belgians do. I’m not sure which are better, but I will say that I definitely enjoyed what I sampled here.
The next day was Easter Sunday and some of us were headed to Ghent and others to Bruges. It was an absolutely gorgeous day for us to walk around and enjoy the beauty of Ghent and the warm sunshine.
We ended our walking tour at St. Bavo’s cathedral where the Easter Service was about to begin. I had last attended Easter Service in church when I was studying in school in Kolkata, so I decided to get a load of my feet and attend the Service. While the service was lovely, I forgot all about the sit, stand, stand that is a part of the service.
One of the highlights of the trip to St. Bavos for me was a visit to view the famous altarpiece, the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb painted by Hubert and Jan Van Eyck. The altarpiece has been relocated and stolen multiple times during its lifetime, even spending some time in the Louvre.
Most recently I read “The Omega Factor” by author Steve Berry which features the Ghent Altarpiece and the clues hidden in the painting that are the central theme of that story. So, I paid the toll and made my way to the self-guided tour of the altarpiece.
The Dutch and their ancestors have been working to reclaim land from the North Sea for thousands of years. Dikes and Terpens were built to hold back the waters. As a child I remember reading the story of the little Dutch Boy, the hero of Haarlem who had saved his village from flooding by plugging the dike with his fingers.
Despite all the reading the dikes were not at all what I imagined as we viewed a lot of them during our time in the Netherlands and I even got to walk on one.
Enkhuizen, once a thriving fishing village and now a maritime museum which preserves a way of life for visitors.
Windmills have always played a large part in how I and I imagine several folks think of the Netherlands. We got to visit several windmills in several towns, after all they were used to pump the waters to reclaim fertile land. This pastoral scene with a statue of Rembrandt sketching it is so quintessentially how I once imagined the Netherlands, so I am glad that we got to visit this site once we were back in Amsterdam.
As we got off the coach, we glimpsed a stork nest with a stork actually sitting in the nest. Apparently, the parents nurture their young and ready them to fly to Egypt for the Summer.
Four glorious days exploring Amsterdam and areas around it post the cruise. First stop was the Rijksmuseum where I spent some time as well as in the museum square. Unfortunately, I was not able to score tickets to the Vermeer exhibit, but I spent a wonderful afternoon exploring the Rijksmuseum where I stopped to admire the Nightwatch painted by Rembrandt, dolls houses and Van Gogh’s self-portrait amongst other notable artists and works.
These pots of blooming tulips in the fountain in front of the museum make such an impact.
Giethoorn is a charming village about three hours outside of Amsterdam. I had originally booked a day trip to the Hague, Rotterdam and Delft but when I was informed that the trip needed to be cancelled because of a marathon in the area, I decided to make this day trip and thoroughly enjoyed exploring this area.
While I had to make a choice between Ghent and Bruges on the cruise, I managed to arrange a day trip from Amsterdam. A three-hour drive made it a long day but again I am glad that I made the effort.
My last opportunity to try Belgian waffles. This place absolutely deserved the title of best Belgian Waffle.
Of course, my other reason to absolutely make it to Bruges was the opportunity to see Michael Angelo’s Madonna of Bruges. This is one of only two works by Michael Angelo that can be found outside of Italy, the other being in the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Having been stolen twice and relocated it has now returned to its original home thanks to the monument men depicted in the famous movie of that name to be displayed in all its glory in the beautiful church of our lady in Bruges.
The church is open to all but you do need to pay a special fee to view this but it is well worth the price of entry to walk through a veritable gallery of treasures.
Goodbye to Amsterdam. A last glimpse at tulips blooming in pots at the entrance to the departure gates at Schiphol airport. What a trip, but I have miles to go before I go back home but I promise I will share more of my experiences at each of the specific places soon.