When the tulips bloom in Chicago, it's finally the changing of seasons after a cold/long winter. I hibernate until springtime, and the first place I go to take photographs is along Chicago's Magnificent Mile to see the tulips. There's something extraordinary about the vibrant, blossoming tulips in the heart of downtown Chicago. Chicago adopted the motto "Urbs in Horto," a Latin phrase that means "City in a Garden," in the 1830s. The tradition of tulips in Chicago began in the mid-1990s. It started with 30 planters installed into the medians along Michigan Avenue. Since then, the tulips in the springtime have become a beloved attraction for locals and tourists. With up to 1,000 bulbs in each bed of the two-mile stretch along Chicago's Magnificent Mile, The Chicago Department of Transportation plants over 100,000 bulbs from the Netherlands annually in October and November to ensure a full bloom every year in April and May. I took this photograph (not composite) on the perfect spring day in Chicago, which also happened to be my birthday! The collector who picks up "Sweet Home Chicago" will also receive a limited edition photograph taken on the same day from a different perspective. Dimensions: 7200 × 10702 300 DPI Edition: 1 of 1