Walk, flowers and coffee

Luckily flowers are available at almost every street corner in Amsterdam. I have been making some changes at home. Buying some flowers  inspires me to be more organised and make all the corners look nice.

I decided to walk to a little flower kiosk near Kinkerstraat, because one of my favourite places for a coffee, "Cafe Edel" is there too. I needed badly some coffee and something green to bring back home.

There is so much variation to collect and the decision is hard to make...what to take? It is also not expensive to buy fresh flowers in Netherlands. This is really a country of flowers, the world's leading supplier of flowers, plants and trees.

I like Cafe Edel, because it is just beside the canal and located in a beautiful old school house with high rooms and big windows. The interior is interesting with lot of creative details, like this light made of recycled glass. In a warm weather it is great to have a drink or a bite outside by the water and watch the boats. All the furniture is second hand inside the cafe. The atmosphere is a little bit bohemic, but everything is well organised and cool. 

Almost a year ago it was warm enough to drink a coffee outside. Looking forward to see some sunny days!

Let's see what colour the flower's will be, forgot to ask. It will be a nice surprise! I'm writing this in early morning. It is still dark, but I hear some birds singing. Slowly it starts to feel like the spring will be coming. Have a Good day or a good night...when ever or where ever you read this! 

Follow the orange!

I was following my instinct today and went to see the late autumn blossom at Museumplein (museum square). I don't like when it's too busy and touristic there, but the crowd usually stays near the huge Amsterdam letters and take photos there. I went to more quiet place just around the Rijksmuseum: the garden of the museum. It is a nice  big area with a lot of surprising elements. You can make the whole round and see the museum from every ankle.

Lisää kuvateksti

This couple will be dancing here in every weather. The sculpture is a copy from a work by Adriaen de Vries.

There is art everywhere in this garden. Joan Miro has made this huge  work and it's for the first time ever exhibited here. He got the inspiration for this "Lunar bird" from prehistorian or pre-Columbian art.

Everyone wants to jump in this shower. The trick is that the water comes from different parts in different times and in the end the whole circle is closed. Then you are surrounded with this spraying water. I went there in the summertime with the kids, but now I just drank my coffee and had fun by watching the other people. There is a cute cafe called " Tuin Huis" just beside the fountain.

Some people are already talking about Christmas, but watching this indian summer and colourful flowers keeps me a long time protected from all that fever. The Colour of the day suits to Halloween, but that is really not my tradition. Maybe we will make some pumpkin soup, but otherwise no plans. So I just follow the orange in my own way.

Autumn is the most beautiful season to me. I like the feeling of change and how quick that process happens in nature. You have to be aware, otherwise you will miss it. This is the time to collect some energy for the dark season. I seem to be using every chance to go outside and breathe the earthy smelling air. 

The game is ready for the next players and I am ready for the weekend! I followed the orange and the orange followed me. I found some nice flowers to take home from the flower kiosk near us.

Hortus Botanicus

Autumn holiday is soon over, but the most relaxing and inspiring day  was today at the Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam. I took so many pictures. It will be difficult to choose which ones I will add to this post.

De Hortus is located at Plantage Middenlaan, east side of the centre, near the zoo (Artis). It is one of the oldest botanic gardens in the world. There are several greenhouses where you can see plants from all over the world and sense different climate. 

There were so many plants that I stopped following the descriptions after a while. It was great to walk and breathe the air in every space and in the garden. The most beautiful room for me was where the big family of cactuses were living. A cool room after tropical heat. I loved the contrast of these spiky plants and the stony surroundings. 

We admired the small butterflies in one glasshouse. You could see many of them quite close and I captured a few of these with my camera. They looked so fragile and one butterfly was like made of the thinnest glass in the world. 

The shape of the garden area is like a triangle beside a canal. The sandy paths between the trees and plants are curvy. This is a big difference compared to the fact, that this cute and great spot of nature is surrounded with busy streets. If you want to take a break, this is a good tip.

This was just so amazing place. A perfect spot to meet a good friend, have a walk, talk, drink coffee and visit a charming museum shop. 

Because of the school holiday, it was possible to make your own piece of art from natural materials. I also read from their brochure, that in december de Hortus is taking part to Light Festival (10 dec 2015 - 3 jan 2016). This garden must be seen in every season. Have a good weekend!!