tesselaar tulip festival

Even though it’s spring, the weather has been fluctuating and has been somewhat erratic over the past few days. We’ve had cool mornings, rain, warm winds and apparently, in some areas hail. Today though, thankfully, was probably the very first ‘proper’ day of spring. The sun was out, temperatures soared past the mid 20’s and there was no need for a cardigan!

The day couldn’t have been better for a trip out to the Tesselaar Tulip Festival where they brought Turkey to Melbourne (the country and its culture, not the food).

We were greeted at the gate by people in costume (that looked alarmingly like traditional Dutch costumes) and were amazed at the vast fields of tulips. Before we roamed the tulips we decided to visit the alpacas – a little family of mum, dad and baby. Very cute!

For those that know me well, I can never go anywhere without eating or drinking. Nothing new to report, as soon as I saw an ice cream stand I knew I had to try it. This time though, I wasn’t on my own – if anything my cousin had a strong influence on me so we decided to eat ice cream then and there. For me, Turkish Delight (delicious by the way) and for Melissa; choc-mint.

Most of the grounds were filled with rows and rows of tulips. There were some other flowers like daffodils but the tulip is the hero of the grounds (hence the name Tulip Festival...) and the different types and colours on display were certainly impressive.

So, no need to travel to Holland folks to sit amongst a field of tulips and experience its beauty and vivid colours... you can easily do it within an hour’s drive from Melbourne!