The Netherlands is famous for its flowers worldwide and there are a lot of greenhouses and flower farms that you can visit during the season and enjoy a relaxing time there. Winter is not the season for flowers so when I saw that there is a beautiful orchid park located near my city, I couldn't resist visiting it. The best transport system for going to Jungle and Orchid Park is by car otherwise there is no easy way to go to such village areas. The park is located at Luttelgeest village, flevoland province; from Almere, it takes around 46-49 minutes by car. There are tour buses available but you have to contact travel agencies, I saw many other options as well but they are not convenient. By taxi or by car is the most convenient way to reach the park.
Before going to the park, I was checking some photos on the internet and realized it's like a mini safari park and a botanical garden mixed. What makes me so curious and interested in going to the park is the greenhouses and how this park is preserved during the winter season. Besides I have never been into such kind of greenhouses.
Also, there is a candlelight celebration and the winter forest festival is ongoing so I thought this would be the best time to go there and experience something different by taking a nice walk in the jungle.
We chose the weekend to go there because we wanted to experience and enjoy beautiful Christmas music and celebration. When we reached the location, it was already dark, thanks to short daylight. But because we wanted to have night experiences, daylight shortage didn't bother anyone at all.
From the outside entrance, you can't even imagine what is waiting for you inside.
After entering the lobby area, first I saw that Santa and his 8 reindeer were inviting me with an open heart. The decoration was placed in such a way that I felt that Santa was riding his sleigh over me, it was really beautiful. The ticket cost was around 17 euros and the excursion time was unlimited. From the lobby you can go directly to the shop or restaurant area; also when you get your ticket, you can enter the jungle park. I without any second thought entered the jungle.
Tropical Forest
The first zone was known as the tropical forest area. The route sign was everywhere and it was not so hard to find a way because the walkways were nicely done. I got the whole experience before going to another zone just by following the route. Tropical Forest was decorated with thousands of candles and lights because of Christmas. When I entered there, some guys were lighting up the candles one by one. How do you know it's a tropical forest without seeing the description? Because the temperature of that zone is warmer than the outside temperature you will hear the sound of beautiful waterfalls.
There were small fountains everywhere in the forest area, I took a walk on the hanging bridge just to get the feeling of the forest. Also, I have walked on the stones and crossed the waterfall.
The garden was more magical with all those candles in person, these photos do not justify the beauty that I have experienced. It was like a fantasy forest where everything was real.
The only missing part was the sounds of the birds. I am not gonna explain about flora and fauna because it will take a long time to talk about all those plants. It's like a compact botanical garden that is converted into a small jungle to show the atmosphere how and where these plants grow and what is the temperature of tropical forests. Many of the plants were familiar to me as I have grown up seeing them.
What I mostly enjoyed was walking into a fantasy forest where I heard the sound of the waterfall and saw all the flowers and plants. I took a small walk here and there just like when you go to the jungle and take different routes to see the jungle in more detail.
While walking I saw this beautiful bird walking towards me. He was alone in the beginning, not afraid of humans, and later his partner joined him. When I tried to take his picture, he gave me a look saying "Take a good picture of me". It was interesting how these birds are not afraid of humans. Does anyone know the name of this bird?
Tons of koi fishes were there, different colors and their sizes were really large. You can feed the fish and birds. There was food for fish everywhere near the waterbodies.
Orchid Park
Orchid Park was quite disappointing because we all were expecting a lot of orchids hanging and displayed around us. Instead, we get introduced to another waterfall, some hanging orchids in planter boxes and some on trees. I don't know what is the season for orchids but I have expected more. Because I only saw some known, common orchids including Phalaenopsis, I expected to see something uncommon, rare orchids.
Only a few common colored orchids I have seen.
Orchid Park without orchids doesn't sound nice at all.
Saw this beautiful cottage surrounded by orchids where people were taking photos and sitting there.
I spent some time in this zone just to look at the waterfall, plants, and lights. Even though there were not enough orchids, still it is quite nice to see and experience different plants that grow near waterfalls. Also, this beautiful bonsai tree caught my eye. I wanted to see the details of it but couldn't find it. I have been to many botanical gardens and safari parks including orchid parks in Singapore but didn't see anything like this. Normally this kind of park remains closed in the evening.
Does anybody know about these plants? They grow in Madagascar known as the Pitcher plant. They look cute but they are one of the dangerous plants that catch insects. These plants have a pleasant fragrance and nectar which attracts insects. When insects try to reach nectar, they lose grip and slide down the slippery side of the pitcher into the liquid at the bottom. due to pointed downward hairs, insects cannot escape and eventually pitcher digests the insect š
Lori Tuin
Lori Tuin commonly known as Lorikeet Birds, its rainbow color and friendly attitude always attracts people towards it. Kids usually enjoy this zone, they get the chance to feed the birds and spend time with them. I took some kind of liquid cost 1 euro for a lorikeet and entered into the sanctuary. 3 lorikeets came to me but only one stayed for longer.
She was really pretty...
Fish Lagoon
This was a large fish tank full of catfish. I am not a fan of catfishes so I didn't want to spend my time here. The catfishes were huge and it was prohibited to put a hand in the water. You can feed the fish but carefully. This zone looked like a beautiful fisherman's village, clean and pretty.
After seeing this small village demo, I went to another zone. But this zone was a winter traditional market and cafe area. So, it was time to take a small break to have my coffee. Well, inside of the greenhouses was not cold, in fact, I was feeling so hot that I removed my winter jacket.
It's quite a big post already and I still have tons to share.
So, to be continued...
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Priyan...
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.... An architect, a dreamer, and a passionate writer who loves to write about life. I try to present my own perspective and experiences. Please leave your feedback and criticism because it's the only way I can know and reach your mind and thoughts easily...
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