The Bloemenmarkt is a spectacular floating flower market in the heart of Amsterdam on the Singel Canal.  The stalls are bursting with bulbs for innumerable varieties of flowering plants and are awash in a riot of color and heady aromas.  The market is open year round which must be especially welcome to visitors in the winter!  

 

The tulip, along with canals and windmills, is certainly one of the most recognizable features of The Netherlands.  Ironically, the plant isn’t native to Holland, though its cultivation for commercial sale began there over 400 years ago.  Wandering around the Bloemenmarkt, It’s easy to see why tulips account by far for the largest segment of exported bulbs today.  The variety exhibited in this one place is mind-boggling – though apparently the most popular variety is still the bright red flower with a yellow heart.