Tiptoeing through the Tulips

One of the great things about living in Europe is that visiting another country is a lot like visiting another state.  I recently flew to Amsterdam and back in one day for less than a tank of gas to go visit the Keukenhof Gardens.  Wow!  It's the only word for it.  As seems to be the trend recently, there are an abundance of photographs, but I just couldn't choose my favorites.

It's an all out sensory experience.  The sights, the smells, the sounds.  Even the fountain is designed to look like a dandelion "wishy".  The organ in the background was cranking out some festive polka music.

First glimpse of the flowers.  Bulb flowers of all varieties abounded.

The color combinations were magnificent.

A sea of wildflowers lined one of the paths to the landscaped gardens.

There were quaint bridges and babbling brooks throughout the garden to add to the atmosphere.  Here was an impressive display of hyacinths.  They were beautiful, but I had to enjoy them around my sneezes.

I had an absolutely gorgeous day!  The colors were so vibrant.

They had massive daffodils that were still in full bloom.  I love windy paths.

There were swans in the lake.  The colors of the flowers were the perfect foil to their beauty.

Some of my favorites looking to the sky.  They remind me of cotton candy.

The tulips were everywhere.  I was there and I almost can't believe it.

The "white" garden.

The fields of commercial tulips.  They stretched forever!

The colors were absolutely fantastic!  I wish I could combine colors this way.

Beautiful landscaping through the trees.  We were blessed to get there so early and see part of the garden with very few people in it.

So serene.

I LOVE the color of these.

More tulips.  Can you tell this is my favorite "pose"?  In fact, I stooped down to take so many tulips at eye-level I felt it for several days afterwards.  That's what 390 photographs will do to you.

Prettiness.

It was amazing how the garden changed throughout the day.  Walking past the same point in morning, noon, or afternoon sun changed the colors and the look so dramatically.  The garden is also very large, set up almost like rooms.  We found this toward the end of our day.  It is tiny grape hyacinths with tulip accents.  I think it looks like a river.