The Canadian Tulip Festival

 

Holland may be famous for its beautiful tulip fields, but Canada holds the world's largest tulip festival . The Canadian Tulip Festival in Ottawa (or the Ottawa Tulip Festival) is world-renowned and attracts an average of 500, 000 visitors annually!

 

The tulip festival is a celebration of the arrival of spring. Thousands of visitors flock to Canada's capital city in May to see millions of tulips in bloom. The city comes alive with bright, vibrant colours and beauty! These beautiful flowers are everywhere you look. Tulips are planted in various public spaces in the city, with the majority of the blooms displayed in Commissioners Park on the shores of Dow Lake and along the Rideau Canal, where 300 000 tulips can be seen! It is a spectacular sight, indeed!

 

Here's a look at the 2013 Canadian Tulip Festival:

 

 

This year's festival takes place from May 3 until May 20th, 2013. Along with the tulip beds, there will be live entertainment, a marketplaces, food trucks, presentations, a tea party, fireworks, and other fun events. 

 

The Canadian Tulip Festival was started in 1953 to celebrate the friendship between the Dutch and the Canadians. After WWII, the Dutch government and royal family donated over 100,000 tulip bulbs to thank Canada for their help in the war.  The tulip, Ottawa's official flower,  represents friendship and a sign of spring. 

 

For more info, visit: tulipfestival.ca