A camellia spring day in Cologne Botanical Garden
“Chanel is composed of only a few elements, white camellias, quilted bags, and Austrian doorman’s jackets, pearls, chains, shoes with black toes”, quoted Karl Lagerfeld, and of all of these, I love camellias the most. A symbol of purity, longevity, and strangely also death, camellias are beautiful flowers. Coco Chanel loved them so much, that, aside from using them as inspiration for her fashion, jewellery, etc, she filled her rue Cambon private apartment with these lovely blooms. The camellia features heavily even on her chandeliers and stunningly ornate Coromandel screens and she re-invented the camellia into more than just a fashion logo. This iconic goddess of fashion first fell in love with the camellia after reading Alexandre Dumas’ ‘La Dame aux Camélias’, a story in which the heroine always wore a white camellia, showing the world that her heart remained pure. The camellia’s emblematic value continues to be enigmatic and in Eastern culture, this flower has always been the symbol of purity. Such has been its calming effect, that Buddhists consider bad spirits to be driven away by camellias. Now, that is a whole lot of importance being attached to a tea flower and camellia is also a beautiful bloom. I have seen them before on and off at various places during my travels, but it was at Cologne Botanical Garden that I attended an exhibition dedicated to the lovely camellias.
Spring camellias at Cologne Botanical Garden
It was in early spring and the exhibition kicked off our 2017 flower trails. This year till now has been very flowery for us and we have chased floral experiences all across Europe. After the gorgeous camellia exhibition at Cologne Botanical Garden, we experienced the mass blooming of wild poppies in the south of Spain, followed by cherry flowers in Bonn, bluebells at Belgium , and finally tulips in Holland. I hope this flower show continues into summer and that my long-cherished dream of Provencal lavender fields also comes true. Anyway, the journey so far has been very beautiful and I have got loads of beautiful memories to cherish. That is why on a lazy Monday like this, I decided to pay a brief tribute to the camellias of Cologne.
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The beauty of the Cologne Botanical Garden
On a cool March Sunday, Cologne Botanical Garden (Flora as it is called in Germany) proudly announced the beginning of its camellia exhibition. A beautiful public park on the left of the Rhine, Flora is one of our favourite places in the city and we never fail to visit it at least once a month. A gorgeous historic building occupies the heart of the park and it is home to over 10,000 species of plants. Though populated by mostly local plants, Flora‘s hothouses breed many exotic blooms and in early springs, they become a feast for winter-sore eyes. The camellias too were one of the hothouse residents and they had turned the glass box into a Garden of Eden. Even though, associated with sombre nuances like death or purity, I find camellias to be drop-dead gorgeous and thus had enjoyed the exhibition to the fullest. Presenting a photo essay of our camellia filled spring Sunday.
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Cologne Botanical Garden Travel Tips
Visiting Cologne can quickly get overwhelming. The city sprawls on both sides of the Rhine and is filled with people, shops, cafes, restaurants, and action. To escape all that bustle and take a breather, head over to the northern part of the city to the Cologne Botanical Garden. The Flora Botanical Garden as it is locally known houses tens of thousands of species of plants from all over the world. It is most famous for its annual camellia cultivation that draws flower enthusiasts in hordes.
How to Reach: An easy way to get to the Cologne Botanical Garden is by the hop-on-hop-off tour bus. The garden is about a 30-minute walk from the old city center. Alternatively, get on tram line 18 for Zoo/Flora stop. If you are travelling by tram line 16, then get off at the Kinderkrankenhaus stop. Bus 140 stops at the Zoo/Flora.
Opening Hours: Monday – Sunday (08:00 to 21:00). The Cologne Botanical Garden is open during the following hours. Garden: all year round, 8 a.m. daily until dusk (maximum until 9 p.m. in summer). Greenhouses: daily from October to March from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., from April to September daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Admission: Free
What to See: Apart from the annual camellia show, you must check out the dahlia patch. The bed has over three hundred varieties of dahlias that bloom from early summer to autumn. Summer flowers can be seen at the French Parterre which features over 30, 000 blooms ranging from South African red geraniums to Australia-native silver baskets. Mountain lovers can revel in the alpine garden that houses two thousand species of alpine plants.
Other Information: The Cologne Botanical Garden has pushchair access. Dogs are not allowed inside and cycling and picnics are also prohibited. Film and professional photoshoots require prior permission. The whole area except for the alpine flora hill is wheelchair accessible.
P.S – This blog post is part of the series called the Cologne Diaries, which highlights a new theme, emotion, and beauty of an expat life in Cologne. For more exotic fun, check out my Cairo Chronicles in the Expat Life category.
Follow the rest of the Germany travel series
- PHOTO ESSAY OF SANSSOUCI PALACE OF POTSDAM
- AN AUTUMN IN POTSDAM
- BONN CHERRY BLOSSOM
- HEATHER BLOOMING IN LÜNEBURGER HEIDE IN GERMANY
- WHAT TO EAT AT A BRAUHAUS IN COLOGNE
- ROMANTIC COCHEM
- ROMANTIC ROUTE ALONG THE MOSEL RIVER
- BEAUTY OF COLOGNE CATHEDRAL
- INCREDIBLE MOSAICS OF AACHEN CATHEDRAL
- BAVARIA WINTER HOLIDAY
- BREITENBERG MOUNTAIN TOBOGGANING TRIP
- TEGELBERG MOUNTAIN DAY TRIP
- NEUSCHWANSTEIN CASTLE
- WIESKIRCHE, A LOVELY ROCOCO CHURCH
- BAVARIA ON MY PLATE
- WHY VISIT FÜSSEN
RESPONSIBLE TRAVELING-BECAUSE I CARE
