Windmills - 9 April 2007

No trip to Holland could be complete without seeing some genuine Dutch windmills.


Zaanse Schans is an area beside the River Zaan that used to have 200 windmills. Today there are eight working windmills left. As well as the expected flourmill and water-pumping mill (both quite tiny) there is a sawmill, a mustard mill (family run since 1792), an oil mill and the last remaining paint mill where they grind pigments for artist’s paints. The area has been turned into a model village, by the addition of houses that have been relocated here. There are merchants' houses along the river and workers' cottages on the lower-lying ground. In spite of the tourist buses it is a tranquil and fascinating place to visit.


Back in Amsterdam we had a final wander through the city before heading to the airport for a dream run home: the BA pilot managed to chop 20 minutes off a 65-minute flight; the immigration queue was three people long; bags were 4th and 7th on to the carousel; the inter-terminal shuttle was waiting; the Southern train was at the platform when we got there; we had 5 minutes to wait at Clapham Junction; and the Harrow & Wealdstone Tube had just pulled in to Wilesden Junction as we ran down the stairs. 2:40 from take-off gate to front door at the end of a holiday weekend - quite remarkable.

Haarlem - 8 April 2007

Forgoing our free bus ride, we paid for a train ticket to speed us back to Haarlem, our final stop of the day. This is even more attractive than Delft: the town square is impressive and there are many interesting streets to explore leading off the square.

Down one of these side streets, we came across an Indonesian restaurant, which we decided to try. We had read that one must try Indonesian food in Holland, as this was one of the Dutch territories.




An excellent way to approach this is to have a rijsttafel, which on this occasion was 14 separate dishes plus rice. Unfortunately, like our selection of fish in Hoorn, we ended the day none the wiser as we had absolutely no idea what we had sampled. What we did establish was that it was another fantastic meal: so, when in Haarlem, dine at De Lachende Javaan.

Delft - 8 April 2007

To get to the Keukenhof Gardens from the train we purchased another all day Bus Pass; so, following on our success of the previous day, we decided to use our pass in the afternoon and visit Delft. This proved to be a 2½-hour expedition, and included a bus change that required us to walk though the centre of The Hague. We did not enjoy this city: compared to the other places visited in Holland, it is most unappealing.


Delft is attractive and, naturally, full of Delftware shops. We wondered at the similarity to Chinese Willow pattern china, but this was explained when we leant that Delft was another of the cities where the Dutch East India Company was based.

Keukenhof Gardens - 8 April 2007

The main reason we choose Amsterdam in April was to visit the Keukenhof Gardens: the best spring bulb garden in the world. However, after paying €13 each to get in, the miserable toads charge €0.30 to use the toilets. How mean can you possibly get?


Nevertheless, the day was brilliant,


and we spent several very enjoyable hours


wandering around the gardens.


It was a wonderful way


to spend Easter Sunday,


enjoying the symbolism of the 'dead' bulbs


becoming new life


with their beautiful blooms.

Hoorn - 7 April 2007

In 1642 Abel Tasman set sail from Hoorn and, by chance, discovered New Zealand. In 2001 two New Zealanders returned the compliment when they set off from Auckland and ultimately, and quite by chance, discovered Hoorn.

As our fourth fabulous town for the day we were now drowning in a surfeit of cute and quaint views. It was once one of the six cities where the Dutch East India Company was based as well as a base for the Dutch West India Company so was full of prestigious and important looking buildings. It boasts a fine square surrounded with civic buildings, as well as a picturesque harbour and waterfront.


We resisted the touristy looking cafés in the square, and had a memorable meal in a humbler looking restaurant, where we shared a most delicious pot of a least a dozen different types of fish, fresh from the local harbour. They don't get many tourists making day trips from Amsterdam so made us feel very welcome. The meal was excellent, as was the view from our table in the window: if you are passing, dine at the So Da.

A quirk of old Dutch architecture is that buildings lean in towards the street, but not all at the same angle. It must be most off-putting if you are slightly tipsy and trying to maintain an upright stance by referencing the buildings! The reasons given were a) to make the buildings appear bigger and b) to keep goods being hauled up to the top floors from damaging the frontage lower down. With a corner building, sloping out on both faces the brickwork up the corner became quite interesting!

Edam - 7 April 2007

Back on the bus again, we left the masses of tourists behind, and stopped at Edam. Made famous by its cheese, it is not at all ‘cheesy’ but rather: charming, cute, compact and convivial; and made us wish we could stay the night.

But we couldn’t; so instead, after buying the obligatory Edam in Edam, we were back on the bus heading for Hoorn.

Waterland wanderings - 7 April 2007

By the time our final canal cruise had finished, the day had improved considerably so we bought a Bus Pass to the Waterland area. What excellent value! For €10, the two of us (but we could have had 5 people), we were able to travel all day this area. We intended to bus all the way to Marken but the first bus that came along was going via Monnickendam, the first stop on our intended route, so we took it and explored this very picturesque market town.


Back on the bus again we crossed the causeway to Marken, until the 50’s an island with a population of 70 families. This small fishing village now has a population of 2000 but the original town has, apparently, no street names – with only 70 families why would you need them?


Leaving the ‘island’ in the traditional manner, we took the ferry across the bay to Volendam. Here they have given up on traditional fishing and abandoned themselves to the tourist coaches; so it is very touristy and not as enjoyable.