French Impressionist Artist Claude Monet’s home and garden are open to the public in the town of Giverny which is 73 kms North-West of Paris, France. Having  last visited in 1997 I visited for the second time because I wanted to see his garden in the tulip season. Although the famous waterlilies which he painted so often were not in bloom we were lucky to enjoy a sunny Spring afternoon in awe of the beautiful garden and pond. See whether you can find the two bees and the”Japanese Bridge”which often featured in his paintings.

Since I was at Primary school in the 1950s and 60s I have always been fascinated by all that is Dutch. From wooden shoes to tulips, canals and windmills I dreamed that one day I would visit Holland (now the Netherlands). On April 2nd  my husband and I left Australia during my School Holidays to fly across the World to Amsterdam.These are just some of the many photos we took. I would like to know which is your favourite scene. See if you can work out which celebration happened while we were there.  I would be  extra thrilled to receive a blog comment from the Netherlands.