The joy of seeing 2 million+ flowers in one big parade: Bloemencorso Valkenswaard

For many internationals, the Netherlans is all about wndmills, clogs and .... flowers. But in Valkenswaard, just south of Eindhoven you can experience what it means to see more than 2 million flowers in one big parade. Radio 4 Brainport interviewed Robin Wijnen of the organisation of Bloemencorso Valkenswaard.  

In Valkenswaard, the tradition of a flower parade stems stems from the liberation on September 17, 1944. After years of parades with decorated bicycles and wagons, the first flower parade moved through the streets of Valkenswaard on 17 September 1953. In those early years the cars were still 'uniform and almost symmetrical in construction'. Today, Bloemencorso Valkenswaard is an exciting spectacle of dahlias, technology, drama and music. The organisation calls it even a moving open-air theatre.

Over the years, the wagons became larger and more complex. In 1963, more than 150,000 dahlias were processed throughout the parade. With the same number of flowers on one car, we now speak of a small car: the total procession today counts almost 3 million flowers. Valkenswaard also explores the new construction technology and adds moving parts, plus theater and (live) music.