Up a bit early to have breakfast, pack and get on board for a drive into the country. It's our day for the incomparable Keukenhof Gardens, sketchy weather and all. The name means "kitchen garden" and the garden originally supplied fruits and vegetables for the owners of the large estate on which it resided. Redesigned to resemble an English garden in 1857, it did not take on it's current look until a group of flower bulb exporters came up with a plan to open the grounds as a spring garden. The first spectacular springtime opening was in 1950.
This year it opened March 24th and will close on May 16 - its typical two-month season. The entire rest of the year is spent readying the grounds for the next spring time, replacing all the grass and planting no less than 7 million spring flowering bulbs.
It is hard to take in and you want to run from one gorgeous bloom to the next. Hyacinths, lilacs, the biggest amaryllis I have ever seen and the incomparable tulips. I could not stop taking pictures - one after the other - as we encountered wonderful varieties of color, size and texture. We were deterred only by the freezing rain, and when it started to soak us to the skin, we headed for the shelter and warmth on our bus. Our consolation was that the flowers love the rain and the cold.
Back at the hotel, 70 of us milled about wet hungry and homeless. Overpriced and mediocre (at best) food, a few annoying guests, and a two-hour wait led to Larry's delightful and most welcome plan. He is nothing if not clever. We made arrangements to leave our luggage and took a cab to the ship where we checked in all alone, found our staterooms and sauntered upstairs for a delightful buffet lunch.
A little downtime in our rooms, a nice orientation and dinner, and off to bed. Ah the good life.
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