Pretty Little Hortus Botanicus in Amsterdam

I truly love it when a garden moves me. And Hortus Botanicus in Amsterdam did exactly that. This really is ‘an empire in a garden’ as the brochure states.

Hortus Botanicus was established 357 years ago! In fact, Napoleon’s first wife, Josephine, was once responsible for the garden. So it’s evident that this is no ordinary garden, but one steeped in the history of Amsterdam.

You’ll find all sorts of plants and flowers here – from the dry Southern African heat (South Africa in fact – imagine my surprise)…

To desert-like conditions with succulent plants of all colours, shapes and sizes (plus a lovely peachy-coloured backdrop to boot!).

Just look at these incredible colours. The plants here even look like sea urchins of some sort.

And I really loved these pin cushion plants – this one in particular (below) is dubbed the ‘Schoonmoedersstoel’ or translated, the ‘Mother-in-law’s chair’ and I wonder why! Even plants can bring you a little bit of humour…

There’s also an interesting view from the inside out too. Note the typical Amsterdam-style buildings in the background (an interesting contrast with these desert-like plants indeed).

Here we are (myself, left) and my friend from Amsterdam, Inga (right) thoroughly enjoying our experience of the Hortus Botanicus (and certainly not dressed for the African heat either).

 

After Africa and Australia, we ventured into the more humid and moist Asian climates.

We saw trees with the biggest leaves ever and it honestly felt as though we had stepped into a tropical jungle of sorts.

We even stumbled upon this strange twisty specimen of a plant (or tree).

And my absolute favourite! Little turtles bathing in the light. Watch out though – they do bite and they look kinda military craning their little spotted necks and all.

Next we stepped into another greenhouse – this one not tropical or dry, but instead pretty mild and a lot cooler.

I honestly loved the roof. It was a pleasure just looking up like that and absorbing the sky amidst intricate architectural patterning.

Here are some of the plants we saw inside this particular greenhouse (mostly potted plants):

You even get a taste (excuse the pun) of certain herbs used inside different types of food products.

There are some glass cases filled with little plants too – definitely makes for interesting observations.

Ah! And the butterflies! This one is a South African butterfly which I remember seeing quite often as a child:

As you can imagine there were many ‘ooohhhs’ and ‘aaaahhhs’ coming out of our mouths in the little butterfly room.

This one below is a fake (but still pretty amazing if you ask me!).

All-in-all, Hortus Botanicus was an absolute blast. It’s a great place to visit with the family or with friends who have an appreciation for plants and pretty little things. Even if you’re not a botanist or plant expert, Hortus Botanicus is a great experience and besides, it’s good to experience some heat now and again in relatively cool Holland.