Celebrations Dutch style

During our last few weeks in The Netherlands before returning to Australia we were busy and had lots of fun celebrating Dutch style.

The weather had been unseasonably warm which was really wonderful on one hand but on the other it meant an earlier end to the tulip season than normal. We were a little worried that these gorgeous flowers would be over before my sister Sarah and brother-in-law Martin arrived from England for a quick visit.

Thankfully, the tulips – all 2.5 million of them – were in full bloom the day we took them to The Tulip Barn in Hillegam, about 30 minutes from Amsterdam.

Thankfully, the tulips were in full bloom

A mind blowing display of 2.5 million tulips!

It was a mind blowing display of colour and variety and we had a lovely time walking through the vibrant and varied tulips in lovely sunshine.

The colour and variety were almost unbelievable

Our little granddaughter surveying the amazing array of colours

Everywhere you looked there was a different combination of colours

Photographs hardly do the colours justice

The following day we took Sarah and Martin to the wonderful Kröller-Müller Museum in the heart of De Hoge Veluwe National Park – not far from Arnhem.

One thing I like about The Kröller-Müller Museum are the beautiful flowers placed throughout public areas

This gallery has the second-largest collection of paintings by Vincent Van Gogh in the world – only beaten by the actual Van Gogh Museum itself.

One of the many hundred of Van Gogh paintings in the Kröller-Müller Museum

We were taken there for the first time some years ago by our Dutch sailing friends Annemieke and Gerrit who we first met on the Indonesian rally in 2015.

We fell in love with this beautiful and impressive museum and have visited several times since our first visit and were delighted to be going again with Sarah and Martin – our gift to Sarah for her 80th birthday.

Another beauty from the Van Gogh collection

During their few days with us we also managed a pleasant visit to the local garden centre which is absolutely massive – even by British standards.

One tiny corner of our local shopping centre

Martin and Sarah enjoyed browsing the myriad of choices and both ended up selecting a few bulbs and seeds to take back to England with them.

We also managed to squeeze in a visit to lovely Delft for a walk through the ancient cobbled laneways and a browse round the shops -our favourite stop was at a sweet little store that we all like which is brimming with quirky items – great for Christmas gifts!

On Sarah and Martin’s last day it was our son-in-law Pieter’s birthday and also Jonathan and my 40th wedding anniversary so we had a lovely time celebrating! Our daughter Hannah made an amazing cake which was very much enjoyed by all.

Sadly Sarah and Martin were unable to join us for dinner at our great local Italian restaurant in the evening as they had to leave to catch the Eurostar train which conveniently leaves from Rotterdam station – just a quick ride on the Metro from Pijnacker where Hannah and Pieter live.

The celebrations continued the following day as it was Koningsdag (Kings Day) in The Netherlands – a public holiday commemorating the birth of the current monarch, King Willem-Alexander.

This is the most popular public holiday in the Netherlands and it seems as though the entire population throws themselves into having a great time!

Part of the Koningsdag parade in Pijnacker

Kings Day transforms the entire country into a massive street festival where millions of people dress in orange to enjoy outdoor music, fairs, parades – and flea markets.

Everyone dresses up in orange and the flea market is bursting at the seams

Apparently the flea markets (vrijmarkt) originated in the late 19th century as a children’s tradition and has evolved into a massive, nationwide event. Today, the vrijmarkt is widely considered one of the largest flea markets in the world.

On this one day in the year the requirement for a street-trading permit is officially suspended. The tradition allows anyone – from adults clearing out their attics to children selling their unwanted toys, puzzles and books – to lay down a blanket on the pavement or claim a spot in a park and sell their wares.

There were a loads of pony and traps – all different shapes and sizes but all decked out with flowers and other decorations

We had a great day with our granddaughter wandering through the market stalls, listening to live music, going on rides and watching the horse parade.

Our granddaughter meets the train driver

We had one more day after that before we went on a short road trip and decided to visit a nearby city farm that we hadn’t been to before.

It was a great time to do this as there were lots of baby animals to see – including the sweetest juvenile donkey!

All too soon it was time to say goodbye to our little family in Pijnacker as we were going on a short road trip in the camper van before flying back to our little home “amongst the gum trees” in Australia.