Tulips And Royalty

Moving along the path, more tulip beds were in full bloom.

That included this raised circle of tulips I mentioned earlier in the series, with the series of panels about the history of the Tulip Festival along one side. You can see people looking at those panels on the far side of the circle.

There were also some of the large tulip sculptures in the park, and a panel series about Canada and the Netherlands which I showed you last year. There was a new panel among them, which I've included below.

Ties That Bind

In Commissioners Park, there is a raised tulip bed in a circle. When I passed by on my evening stroll, the plants were still green. A close look might note two shades of green in the bed, so there are two types of tulips here. The bed will look quite different when I next feature it.

Along one side of the circle are a series of display boards about the Second World War, the liberation of the Netherlands by Canadian troops, the ties between both countries, and the origins of the Tulip Festival. I've photographed the entire series before, but wanted to photograph some this time, which include the fact that Crown Princess Juliana and her daughters stayed here in Ottawa during the War, and her daughter Princess Margriet was born here. The baby was christened at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church downtown; the photographs on the last of these panels were both taken by the portrait photographer Yousuf Karsh.

Further along the pathway is a large statue overlooking the lake. It is called The Man With Two Hats, by the artist Hank Visch. It is one of two identical statues, the other standing in Apeldoorn in the Netherlands. This one has been here since 2002 and was unveiled by Princess Margriet. Both statues symbolize the close bonds between Canada and the Netherlands.

All Paths Lead To The Netherlands

"All roads lead to Amsterdam. And each will take you past an irritable little boy with his finger in a dike demanding that you take his place in holding back the sea." ~ Duivel van Kletzkop, 1923

I'm looking forward to the comments I get for that little remark. When I started this series on the Tulip Festival, I showed you some posted photographs at Dow's Lake about life in the Netherlands (and connections to this side of the Atlantic). Here are some more.

Close Bonds

The Tulip Festival is underway here in Ottawa and Gatineau. This festival is a legacy of the Second World War and the close ties between the Canadian and Dutch people. The Dutch Royal Family and the Netherlands continue to send tulips each year, adding onto the many the Canadian government has planted through both cities. To start things off, there were a series of displays on the Netherlands at Commissioner's Park by Dow's Lake, where many of the tulip beds can be found. I photographed several of them with the aim of getting the text in. If you enlarge these, they should be readable. Tomorrow we start looking at tulips.