Kuckenhof gardens

Last week Saturday morning we got up very early and drove to the Netherlands. Driving into the cities of the Netherlands is like taking a walk through the Orange City phone book. We recognized so many names on businesses, etc.! It was really fun! We had tickets for the Kuckenhof Gardens - a huge, magnificent garden complex, only open eight weeks of the year, specializing in, of course, tulips!

Jeff's friends were waiting there to meet us :) !
I cannot even begin to describe the tulips! Every color - brilliant beyond your imagination - bed after bed after bed. I took pictures, of course. But they don't begin to do it justice!

Their wooden shoe maker...

These are the tulip fields just outside the Kuckenhof gardens. We were too late for these - Europe had essentially no winter and a very warm spring. We heard that while we were in Iowa the tulip fields were at their peak.

De Jong ice cream!

There was a small petting zoo - of course the boys couldn't resist (Ellen either).

(Look at these tulips - they are almost as big as Daniel's head!)

The street organ.

A poffertjes break...mmmm...

Please don't get wet, please don't get wet, please don't get wet...

(they didn't, whew!).

The Kuckenhof was absolutely amazing! Now, on to Amsterdam!