Alexandra Oakley 
I have wanted to see the tulip fields for years, so finally making it to Keukenhof and Amsterdam this week felt a bit like a bucket-list flower trip.
It really was everything I hoped it would be: rivers of colour, huge drifts of bulbs and more tulips than any sensible person could process in one day. I came back completely full of ideas and, unsurprisingly, wanting even more bulbs.
It also made me laugh because back at home I am still dealing with the usual rogue tulip in entirely the wrong colour, popping up where it was definitely not invited. That is gardening really: dream trips on one hand, random yellow tulips on the other.
I took a day off work months ago just to plant spring bulb pots, so there was something very satisfying about finally seeing the season arrive in full force.
