Perfect Assimilation of an Immigrant
Tulip field in North Holland
Arguably no other immigrant has been as successful in the Netherlands as the tulip. It has become the flower associated with the country. It loves those sandy, well drained soils that can be found on the old inland coastal dunes of the province of Holland as well as its temperate climate. Tulips first arrived from the far-away Ottoman Empire in the 16th century. It was a heavenly match for a country that was craving luxury and exotic beauty to spend the bounty it had accumulated as the commerce capital of the world.
At that time Amsterdam was a city of endless opportunity. Anything could be traded and everything could be priced. Merchants from all over the known world would come to Amsterdam to sell their wares, exchange currency or any letter of credit in their hands. It is here that the first true joint stock company and futures market were launched, where the first multinational saw the light of day, and where the first ever commodity bubble might have taken place: tulips! Tulip fever got hold of the market in 1637 and when heading out to the countryside in spring one can certainly understand the power of seduction of these flowers.
Although tulips are by far not the only immigrants, their diversity in colours and shapes can be a metaphor for all other immigrants. Amsterdam's wealth and prosperity is build on their hard work and the skills they brought with them. From those first colonialist farmers that followed the lure of owning the land they claimed from the peaty bogs of the Amstel River embankments, to the religious refugees of the 80-year war coming from all over Europe, to today’s nomads whose knowledge work allows them to work from wherever.
The lack of solitude is no excuse for not heading out into the multitude fields of colour in the countryside south and north of Amsterdam. For some silence opt to leave the city behind in the early morning by bike. As you reach the fields, you will be intoxicated by the colours and smells of flowering fields that stretch to the horizon. Tulips, hyacinths and daffodils will enthral you with their reds, purples, yellows, pinks, whites, lilacs, oranges, blues in bands that stretch out over the land. And don’t forget to take a few coins with you for the pleasure of buying your very own bunch of luxury and delight to bring home with you and marvel at the fact that this everyday beauty was once an extravagant rarity.
Photo credit: The photo was taken in the region known as 'Holland above Amsterdam', which is part of the flower growing 'Bollenstreek' on an overcast day that did not diminish the pleasure of witnessing the colourful display.