Roundtrip to Belgium and Holland

[thy]

Started last Saturday, a bit delayed... there is no way I will tell you the reason.. just troubles with a lented navigator...

Hot day, to hot to drive

First stop was in Bremen, Germany. Visiting an old friend, who moved to Bremen a while back, it was so good to see him and his friend.
They are both exelent cooks, so the dalay of a city walk due to a major thunderstorm was no problem at all
next day we walked the old city of Bremen, it is beautiful http://www2.bremen.de/rundum/start_e.html and went to see Jaans garden where he planted the hosta I brought with me- their first

Then on the road again- direction Belgium ... oh my, there were road constructions in several hundreds of kilometers - Took 4 extra hours so was I tired when I arrived to the hotel at 1.30 AM ... knocking the door- looking for a bell. No bell at all and they claimed to have a 24 hour receptin... found my cellphone and called them.. it worked- out came a very irritaded man, but at least I got my room
Good and cheap- Dirk found it

Next morning I started in direction of Dannys place.. navigator didn't work and I just typed in the direction-
Something went wrong somehow I ended up in the town of Gent... very lovely and I would love to walk there for a couple of days.. but circling around the old castle and houses for an hour, not finding my way out, sure wasn't part of my planning - but logic to everybody who know me http://www.trabel.com/gent.htm -take a trip with the sighseing

After asking too many people I found my way to Danny.

Have you ever seen a lake of hostas with a house in the middle

Danny met me in the garden entrance and it was very nice to see him in person. Then the hosta talk started as he showed me around.. you have to wach your steps, there are hostas everywhere, one of them more beautiful than the other, I just couldn't belive my eyes. Danny brought me something to drink when I was drolling over the beautiful hostas from the auctions during the last years, stunning... You just do not belive your eyes

Hostas are even on the balcony and Danny admitted they were sometimes in the bedroom too

His wife have some common sense. She ordered a full watering system for the garden before Danny leave for the convention... smart girl I sure understand her, most of the hostas are in pots.

It was some great hours and time just flied away.
Thanks for letting me visit


If you think of a night ride.. don't do it even the garbage collectors one road away could tell me the direction

[thy]

More from Danny's garden

Forgot to write down the name of the monster. is is for sure a beautiful one and HUUUGE

[newtohosta-no more]

Sounds as though you had a very interesting trip, Pia! Sometimes we find remarkable sites to see when we get lost and it sounds as though you did and took everything in stride. Good for you! The pics from Danny's place are unbelievable! A sea of hostas for sure!
Thanks for sharing your adventure with us.

[thy]

Leaving Danny I was send in the right direction for Dirk- Hostadream

I do not know if ....the pots are everywhere are normal or just from influence from Danny, but Dirks garden are starting to have them too. It is still a lovely garden with patios, sitting areas and a large pond- with koi's bigger than his dog but Dirk have a small back yard nursery selling hostas to the local people so for some of the hostas there were more than one.

It was nice to meet Dirk and the hosta talk continued
You had to wach your steps, Dirk were putting up solar flres on the roof and there were wires everywhere close to the house.. even dropping down from the roof

[thy]

More pics from Dirks place.

What a day I had

Thanks for letting me see your lovely garden

Pia

[thy]

Next day I went to Holland.

If I havent seen some houses in Belgium and holland i would have been sure they all lived on the highways. highways are everywhere and you have an exit just after the last one... most of them to other highways So when I saw a sign for the southern exit of the town where I knew for sure Marco and Joyse's nursery where just somewhere to the east i was happy to leave the highway
Stopped at a gas station to ask for directions.. the lady didn't drive a car so she didn't know the village of Ter Aar was I totally wrong could be... so I asked for a map and she found one When i was looking at the map she asked an other custumer.. he spoke English and I told him I wanted to go the small roads to Ter Aar. he looked at me and asked me to just follow him... so in the car i jumped... and went back to the highway but after a few milles off again and on the small road. Then he stopped and told me how to get the next 2 milles.
It was all in all a 8 milles

Marco was out but I met Joyce and his father, very nice to meet them

Scrolling through the sales area and the nearby green house was a pleasure... healthy hostas everywhere some of them new to mee.

Marcos father had just spraied the hostas with something so he told me to wash my hands when I left the greenhouse.. had to wash my dirthy fingers with soap several time.. just had to go back for one more

As you can see on one of the pics water is not a problem in Hosta Paradise

Leaving the nursery I just had to drive a short distance for a B&B where I was going to stay for 2 nights ... just what I needed

[thy]

The canals are everywhere in this area and more or less surrounding Hosta Paradise

[wishiwere]

Is that an umbrella hosta in the last pic?

Pia! It's a good thing you weren't swallowed up in the sea of Hosta! Goodness! They were beautiful! What an eyefull! Just lovely!

Thanks for sharing your trip, and glad you had some rest to absorb all the wonders after!

[Lessadragon]

My goodness Pia. What a wonderful trip. Talk about hosta overload. All of the gardens you saw were wonderful! And I thought I was out of room! Kathleen would have kittens. It must have been great to meet everyone in person. Wow, what a great trip! Glad you had so much fun. Even getting lost turned out to be a great adventure.

Lynn

[Wanda]

Oh what a wonderful trip! And your narration was excellent...I felt like I was there! Great that you could see so many spectacular hosta gardens and so many countries on one trip. Do they really let you take hosta across borders without any fuss? That must be great!

So happy you had such a great trip and so glad you shared it with us in your pictures! Show us more...please?

wanda

ps. That great BIG hosta looks a lot like my Sum of All.

[thy]

From the B&B there were only 1½ mile to tuincentrum Jan van den Top.
Lovely big nursery with all you can want

Found Jan in the shadehouse putting show plants back after the Hosta days at the nursery.
I scrolled the area looking for hostas and just looking at the hostas . Saw some of the new ones for next year and some of his seedlings.

Jan is the "Dutch HVX watchdog" and is very knowledged about HVX and like Marco very serious about selling healthy plants, so we had a good long talk about the virus and what to do

Sure did find a couple of hostas I neeeeded

It was one more great day Thanks for letting me see the hostas and have a HVX talk

Found 3 beautiful Clematis not normal to see here too..

Now the car was filled up to the limit

[thy]

Thanks

Yes it was a great trip. We can bring plants all over EU.. the good thing those people made

Wanda, it is not.. remember it is in Dannys garden... an auction plant and only a few years old

[thehostagourmet]

Pia, That's awesome!

George

[thy]

All I had to do was having a good night sleep and then find my way home... I thought. At 11 PM the fire inspectors came to the B&B wanting to check out how many people were staying there. I were outside talking to one of them, but they knocked the doors to the other rooms.. something about them being alloved to have5 persons only in 2 rooms. We were 4 persons in 3 rooms and they had an extra guest room, so the old couple was shaking when they came back and told us... hope everything will be fixed in a good way for them, they were wery nice people

Then my old car start making troubles.. for 100 milles it only wanted to go 50 milles pr hour... a bit slow, but if I put pressure on it it stopped so nice and slowly until just before the danish border.. then it wanted to go home- fast

Promissed it to bring it to the car doctor one of these days

Met a friend on a gas station and gave him the hostas I had brought home for him and then--- HOME
Was I tired, sure was but it have been a great trip and so great to see both hostas and people you know from Internet conversations

So What did I bring home

Cherry Tart
Little Hobber
Lonesome Dove
L. Sparkle Plenty
Country Mouse
Red Cadet- OS
Goldpressed Latinum... did I forget to tell you Dirk have voluntare seedlings everywhere
Designer Genes
Salute
Mont Kirishima
Christmas Tree Gala
Roller Coaster Ride
Showboat
Paradise Backstage
Lullaby
Jewel of the Nile
Blue Dimples.. with a wavy edge

Pia

[pauhaus]

Wow, Pia, sounds like a great trip! Thanks for the pics and the descriptions, felt like I was there too.

[Tigger]

Wonderful story, Pia. So nice that you got to visit all our european friends.

So, where are you going to PUT all these hostas? They're not all small ones, you know!

David

[Arlene]

I loved the travelogue, Pia!! The photos were beautiful -- thanks so much for sharing . . .

Just one suggestion:

Now the car was filled up to the limit

Obviously you need a bigger car!!!

[Kent]

Thanks for the overview, your trip sounds wondeful. Maybe one of these days I'll make it over there!

Kent

[Ginger]

Lucky you! You got to see Danny and Dirk and Jan's places Man oh Man. I love the lady on the bike! And is that your home? It is wonderful, I just love it!
Glad you had a good time and brought home a great haul

Ginger

[malaprop]

I want to know the name of the monster hosta at Danny's! Love those big ones.....and the lady on the bike, it looked like it was a metal sculpture. Great trip.

Thanks for all the pics and story. I know that is a lot of effort, but such a treat!!!