Den Poezenboot

I love cats.  I love them so much that I pictures of Padawan, "my" cat, on both my computers.  (I say 'my" because he belonged to my niece.  Then she got married to someone with cat allergies. So, now, Padawan lives with my brother and sister-in-law, but he knows me, and I am his human!)

On the Singel Canal is the Poezenboot, or cat boat. This floating refuge is home to about 30 cats until they can be ready for new homes.  Some cats are brought in by people no longer able to care for them.  Some are found on the street.

Some were very friendly with me, and other hissed at any human.  I had a fun time with those that wanted to be petted.  Enjoy the pictures.



Cat boat mascot, she has her own daybed outside the boat, near a bench.  Sit on the bench, and she will come and welcome you!




Very friendy




Scared of people.  It will take a long time to get her adoption ready, but he has come along way. 




People take pictures of us every day!



For the Love of Tulips

Tulips - the word is Turkish for turban. A wildflower from central Asia, they were first cultivated by the Turks. (Turkey has its own Tulip Festival near Istanbul each spring.)  Tulips are now known to be a great export of the Netherlands. The first bulbs  in the Netherlands came to be when botonist Carolus Clusius planted some bulbs in the University of Leiden's research garden.  It was fall 1593. By spring 1594, tulips were beginning to bloom, and this once wildflower would forever change a nation.

Tulipmania

By 1636 tulip trading and speculation was at its zenith and getting out of hand. Some bulbs were more expensive than an Amsterdam house!  Regular people were sinking every penny they had to get their hands on a bulb. In 1637, a single bulb of the legendary Semper Augustus fetched the outrageous price that equaled 10 year's of an average person's income.  By 1637, the bottom fell out of the market, resulting in many bankruptcies.

The Semper Augustus Tulip, shown above, was the most expensive tulip ever traded/bought during Tulipmania.  Ironically, the beautiful stripes and varigations so sought after were actually the result of a tulip virus.

Tulipmania even made it into literature.  The acclaimed French author, Alexandre Dumas wrote La Tulipe Noire ( The Black Tulip), a novel of intrigue written around Tulipmania.

The love affair is still ongoing with this flower. The Netherlands is the world leader in cultivation, and most of the bulbs grown here are shipped to North America and Europe. The above picture of a tulip field is courtesy of curiousphots.blogspot.com

Keukenhof Gardens

I have always wanted to see the tulip fields of Holland.  Since I am currently teaching in year-round school, and will most likely be transferring to a new school with a traditional calendar, I knew this would be my last chance in a very long time to go to the Netherlands to see the tulips.

Keukenhof Gardens is the world's largest bulb garden covering 32 hectares of ground with around seven million bulbs (tulips, crocus, daffodils, hyacinths).  It is located near the village of Lisse, which boasts the Museum de Zwart Tulp, the Museum of the Black Tulip, where a person can learn everything possible about tulips, including why black and blue tulips do not exist.  If anyone can cultivate those two colors, Tulipmania may begin again.

I would arrive just as Keukenhof would be opening.  It opens for only about 10 weeks a year.  It was possible I may not see the tulips in full bloom.  But, there would be other flowers in bloom, and I knew I could always go to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving point in April, although it would not be the same.

It was a crisp, sunny spring day.  Most of the tulips had not bloomed, but Keukenhof has pavillions where spring came early, and I wasn't disappointed. The garden also has a petting zoo of farm animals, and a playground - because when you are a little kid, looking at flowers is only interesting for so long!  (The bunnies were also a favorite of some Chinese visitors, who asked me to take pictures of them with the bunnies.)

There got to be a point where I got lost. I didn't care! I wandered around until I found a place that served hot chocolate. Dutch hot chocolate is to die for!

I am going to leave you now with just a few of my pictures. (I took over 100 pictures!)  Enjoy!

The Beguine Pictures

I have loaded them.  All I see are tiny squares.  Click on them and the picture should show up.  I have worfed four hours on this post.  Enough.

The Beguines

In the 1930s, Cole Porter wrote the song Begin the Beguine, about the sultry slow rumba-like dance from the island of Martinique.  In the local Creole language, a beguine was a white woman.

In Amsterdam, the Beguines, were woman, but they would have been shocked at a sultry dance.  In the 14th century, Amsterdam was a destination for pilgrims and a strong Catholic center. The Beguines, or Begijnen in Dutch, had their own cloister that was founded in 1346.  They were not nuns.  They were pious lay women who were involved in charitable and religious work.  This was a good alternative for women who were not married or had children, and who did not want to become a nun.  At this time the choices were few.



Views of the inner courtyard of the Begijnhof. It is amazingly peaceful here. 


In 1419, a gothic-style church was consecrated for the use of the Beguines.  From 1578-1795, Catholics were no longer allowed to openly practice their religion, as the Protestants had taken over. Oddly, the Beguines were left alone.  However, in 1607, their church was given to the Protestant community.  I had no one to ask if the church was given to placate the Protestants, or if they took it against the Catholics' wishes.  Because they had no place to worship, they would worship in hidden chapels built into someone's home.  I think one reason they were left alone, was because each woman owned her own home, and it was not the property of th Catholic Church.



At one time, this was the door to a Catholic Church.  The church now belongs to the Church of Scotland. Tourists cannot enter.


Cornelia Arents, the mistress of the Begijnhof, died in 1654.  She did not want to be buried in the Protestant church, even though this was her right.  Since some of her family had become Protestants, she felt she had to do penitence.  She asked to be buried in the pathway that lead to the Protestant church.  Each year flowers are placed on her grave, though it is not marked.



Somewhere under the brick is the gravesite of Cornelia Arents.


 In 1671, an offical house chapel was opened in two connecting homes. It was called "The Chapel".
The order continued even though the Protestants  had took over Amsterdam.  The last Begijn died in 1971.



Inside this door is a beautiful chapel.  See video.



Between 1980-87 on the Begijnhof houses.  Princess Juliana, of the Dutch Royal Family formally and legally handed over the courtyard and its homes to the Begijnhof Foundation.  

Currently, 93 senior citizen women live in the Begijnhof.

Statue of a Beguine.

Religious pictures carved into a wall.

Can't get this pictue uploaded.

Detail of a rooftop.

The black house is one of the homes that still stands from the 1400's.



Behind these gates is the outside world of Amsterdam.