Tulip Festival continues in Amsterdam; flower fields in full bloom [video]

Thousands of tulips are on display in locations across the city of Amsterdam as a part of the city’s Tulip Festival. Almost all museums, several hotels and other organizations are participating in providing their own tulip garden spots across the city. Officially underway since the beginning of the month, the Tulip Festival is meant to revive Amsterdam’s traditional link to the flower by making its presence visible in the city. The idea was inspired by Istanbul with its famous tulip festival, where up to 14 million flowers are planted annually for the event. The expected number of Tulips to be planted in Amsterdam for the festival is around 820,000, or one tulip per each Amsterdam inhabitant. There will be numerous routes throughout the city that one may follow during festival days. Tulips planted in public areas will be freely accessible, though museums will continue to charge their normal rate for entry during the festival. On Sunday, six more locations opened their tulip displays, including the Amstel Hotel, a portion of the Hortusplantsoen, Museum van Loon, Museum Willet-Holthuysen, a stretch along Nieuwe Keizersgracht and the Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam hotel. Though not in Amsterdam, photographer and drone filmmaker Rene Oudshoorn published aerial footage of Dutch flower fields over the weekend. The brilliant colors of the flowers seen closeup, are equally interesting to see from overhead.