We’ve been in The Netherlands for over two weeks, and I’m going crazy. The Hotel Old Dutch is clean, and the proprietors are delightful, but it certainly isn’t five star. How do you say basic?
Then there is the problem of money. I’ve never seen it disappear so fast. Between Wilco and his six full time employees, and what Lisa and I are spending to outfit Rabelo we might as well be shredding it. Fortunately it is not real money. It’s only Euros.
We decided to take a break and visit the Floriade. This is a very special flower show that is only put on once every ten years in The Netherlands. It is pretty amazing when you see the temporary structures they are able to erect.
This is the entrance to the Floriade, and it’s temporary.
Some serious drumming by one of the many entertainers we saw.
We purchased Tigre Rose in 2002, and were lucky enough to see the Floriade back then. This year’s show covered roughly 200 acres. We were hoping it would be even bigger and better than the last one, but I must say we were a little disappointed. When I go to a flower show I want to see huge flowerbeds of every shade and color. I want to be inundated by the smells. I want to be engulfed in the beauty of nature’s ultimate palate. I want to see a very special event. Unfortunately, unlike ten years ago, that’s not what I got.
The theme for the show was sustainable agriculture. While I found some of the displays interesting there was nothing that really knocked my socks off. I must say the day we went it was almost 90 degrees and very humid. Unlike the flowers I started to wilt after four or five hours in the sun. We did not have enough time to cover the entire show, so maybe we missed the section covered in brightly covered flowerbeds, but I don’t think so.
While I wouldn’t fly all the way to The Netherlands to see this years show, it was certainly worth the hour and half drive. Here are some shots of the flowers that we did see.
Lisa and I just got back from Rabelo, and I have to say she is starting to come together. The painter has finished in the two guest staterooms, and the kitchen will be done by the end of the day. We are excited to see her almost complete so that we can begin our next adventure.
-Tom Miller
Author of “The Wave” – a Chuck Palmer Adventure novel
JUN
About the Author:
Tom Miller graduated from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Science in Geology. He is a consummate adventurer with over 1,000 dives as a recreational scuba diver, and an avid sailor who has traveled 65,000 miles throughout the Pacific including the Hawaiian Islands. Miller has also cruised the canals of Europe on his canal barge and given numerous lectures on cruising the canals of Europe, as well as sailing in the South Pacific. Piloting is also an interest of Miller's, and He has completed over 1,000 hours flying everything from small Cessnas to Lear jets.