The Blue Forest
The unique Hallerbos, a forest in Belgium, is in this period covered by a bluebell carpet. The natural spectacle is so amazing that even Japanese come to see it
Today just a small tip. If the wind blows you to Belgium in this time, do not miss visiting a unique Bois de Hal (or Hallerbos in Flemish), the forest located south of Brussels, between two small towns Halle and Dworp.
The best period for wandering in is right now, from late April to early May. Actually, you can monitor the status on The Hallerbos website. I am sure it is a pleasant area all year round, but in the spring, suddenly the millions and millions of bluebells start blooming. Imagine the fresh, bright green leaves of beech trees and a breathtaking blue carpet beneath them, smelling as intoxicating as hyacinths. The place has a magical atmosphere, as if you were in a fairy tale.
Hyacinthoides non-scripta, the common bluebell, is a bulbous perennial plant. In Great Britain they call it simply bluebell, in France ,,blue lily of the valley" or ,,wild hyacinth". It is protected; global warming doesn’t suit it, it has already disappeared from many areas. Nowadays it grows only in some regions of the Netherlands and France, in England it is slowly disappearing and so the Hallerbos is unique for the quantity of flowers and also the area of 552 hectares.
One year we somehow got into the woods from the side and we didn’t meet a living soul. We walked up and down, listening to the birds chirping and smelling the strong scent of the blue petals. Another time we met some families, horsemen and Japanese. In the land of the rising sun, the Hallerbos is very well known, perhaps because they poetically call it Haru no Mori, The Forest of Spring.
Hurry up because the bluebells are in blossom only a few weeks, then the magic goes away and the wood turns green like anywhere else in the world ...
