Sparkling Red

 The Tulip Festival is now wrapped up for another year, but I carry on today with this visit to Dow's Lake and the tulips.

Here we have the largest of the standalone beds in Commissioners Park.

A Deep Bond

 Picking up where I left off yesterday. Crown Princess Juliana of the Netherlands found refuge in Ottawa during the Second World War, while her mother Queen Wilhelmina operated from London to rally the Dutch people. Juliana came with her daughters, while her husband Prince Bernhard, visited frequently.

She and the girls took to the city, and the city took to her, and she worked tirelessly to represent her people and encourage support for the war.

In 1943, another daughter, Princess Margriet, was born. The Canadian government declared the maternity suite extraterritorial to ensure her royal status.

She was baptized at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church; her father and grandmother made the journey overseas to attend, and the service was broadcast on Radio Orange. The photos you see here are by Yousuf Karsh, the Ottawa portrait photographer who became the pre-eminent portrait photographer of the 20th century.

The liberation of the Netherlands by Canadian soldiers deepened the friendship of these two countries- a positive result of war.

Princess Margriet has often visited over the years since to the city where she was born, and has made a point of spending time with Canadian veterans.

Malak Karsh was the brother of Yousuf Karsh, and he chose the landscapes of Canada as his subject for his life's work as a photographer- becoming famous in his own right. It was Malak who proposed the idea of the Tulip Festival, and he is thus considered its founder.

A splash of colour to end this post.

Vivid Tones

 I was glad to have come out here when I did. Weekday visits to the Tulip Festival are quieter than the weekends. When I returned for more shots, it was on a weekend, and it was exceedingly busy.

This particular bed has a sculpture at its heart, and tulips here and there among other plants.

Here we have a raised circular bed. Note the signage on the far side.

The signs tell the story of the Tulip Festival, which rose out of the Second World War. The Dutch, who had been liberated from Nazi occupation by Canadian soldiers, sent tulips in gratitude- and have done so ever since each year. A few years later, a formal festival was proposed.

The Second World War was particularly hard on the Dutch, especially so the last year.

Glorious

The tulips at Dow's Lake were looking particularly vivid on this visit. 

Along the path is this large statue. Man With Two Hats is one of two identical sculptures by Henk Visch. Its counterpart is in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands, and it symbolizes the strong friendship between Canada and the Netherlands that came out of the Second World War.

A less formal bed, but the tulips sprang up well.

More of the colours. We'll pick up here tomorrow.

Shades

A reminder to members of City Daily Photo that the theme for the first day of June is Outdoor Cafes. 

The colours of the tulips have been amazing this year. We carry on with this ramble through Commissioners Park.