Holland

Well it's hard to believe it, but we've already been on the ground in Europe for a week.

The time has flown by and we have tonight and tommorow left here in The Netherlands before we pack up and head to Germany on Saturday.

We left Bruges, Belgium last Saturday morning and had a 4 hour drive to our present stop in Zandvoort, Holland.

Our drive from the coast took us down a lot of neat little roads that are typical of this neck of the woods.

Small road in Belgium

We tried to stop at the windmills by Kinderdijk recreate the picture that we took of Gracie & Lucy in the wooden shoe but

1) the shoe was not there, and 

2) parking was a real problem as it was saturday in Tulip season and Kinderdijk is a very scenic spot.

So I pulled off the side of the road to put some new waypoints into our GPS and as we were doing that there was a knock on Kates window...   I looked over and this young boy in a Boy Scout uniform was motioning for me to roll down the window...  which I did.

In almost perfect english he asked: "Are you in need of assistance?"  I told him what I was doing and he offered to show me some free parking places nearby.    We chatted for a bit, and I told him how I used to be a Boy Scout in America.   He found that particularly interesting.    Soon we thanked him for his help and we were on our way.   We departed with an appreciation of some unknown parents who did a fine job in raising their son.

As we neared our next destination, the seaside town of Zandvoort in North Holland, we began to see the tulip fields.    It was our first taste of the colorful fields that would be our scenic backdrop for the week.

Our AirBnb is a very nice place.   An Annex of the main house, it used to be an indoor pool area.   The owner used her imagination to turn it into a light and airy space that is quite comfortable and homey.   We've really felt at home here and will be sad to leave.

The lower level, formally the pool, is now a sitting / TV room.

Our house is one row of houses back from the beach.   The beach is fronted by a paved walk that runs for miles and miles.    We have been up and down that walkway numerous times while here.

The walkway is on top of the large dunes (Dike?) that protects the interior from the sea.

On Monday, it was time for the highlight of our stop here.   

Our visit to the World Famous Keukenhof Gardens.     This stop has been on my list for many years so it was quite special to finally be able to make it here.

Flower field along the way to KG.   The red tulips are electric!

Entrance to Keukenhof Gardens

79 Acres planted with over 7 million bulbs, which bloom at different times thru the spring.  It was a feast for the eyes as well as the nose!

We did not get to duplicate the dog in the shoe photo at Kinderdijk, but Keukenhof will do just fine.

In all we spent about 5 hours waking thru the gardens.   

On Tuesday we made the short 20 minute drive to the nearby city of Haarlem.

Like most of Holland, the city is criss crossed by a seemingly endless series of canals, which gives it that special flavor found only in The Netherlands.

Haarlem, Netherlands.

If the shoe fits....

Now that I've found a prop - I see a trend developing.   Let's see how far I can take it this summer.

The Big Market Square in Haarlem.

Kate and I stopped at one of the outdoor cafes for a nice salad for lunch.

The cities here are very walkable and we just strolled about for a few hours after lunch before calling it a day.

On weds we stayed closer to home and explored Zandvoort.   We walked to the town center and was pleasantly surprised to find it was market day.

The street gets closed off and vendors set up stands selling all sorts of stuff but the best are the food items.

They love their cheese in Holland, and the line for the cheese vendor was consistently about 10 deep all morning.

We picked up a spit roasted chicken for tonights dinner.

Like most cities, there is a large pedestrian only area.

We've been walking about 4 miles or so each day so when we get home the dogs are ready for a good nap.

Today (Thursday) we made the hour drive to Gouda.   The city from which the cheese gets its name.

Thursday is the cheese auction that runs till about 1230 so we planned to make it here to see all the action.

The Cheese auction has been going on for hundreds of years.   Its been moved and modernized now, but they still hold a small one in Gouda to keep the tradition alive.   Farmers would bring their cheese wheels to town in horse drawn wagons, and the cheese would be weighed on the ancient scale 

Cheese Weighing Scale

Then on the main square in the shadow of City Hall (in background) the buyers and sellers would discuss the products and agree on quantities and price.

You would need to keep a sharp eye out watching the cheese wheels because you never could tell when a Cheese Wench might try to run off with one.

The Cheese Wench strikes again

Caught in the act, the wheel is repatriated to its rightful owner.

We did leave town with a bit of cheese - but thru legal means.

Edam & Gouda

The cheese delivery wagon.

Gouda, like so many other towns here has the beautiful canals.

Bikes, bikes, everywhere

An interesting feature in these cities are the crooked or leaning buildings.   We first saw them in Amsterdam a few years back and it seems to be a mainstay in all the towns with the canals.   It certainly must be due to the soft wet base upon which the cities are built.

I wonder how much it has to lean before it's condemned?

Leaning building

Another leaning building (center)

Even more bikes

Back at the market square, the action has calmed down and the crowds have thinned out.

Yep...  a definite trend is developing.

Another pedestrian-only zone in Gouda.

Walking one of the larger canals, there was an assortment of pleasure and house boats docked along the shores.

With all of the bikes here there needs to be a way of incorporating them into the traffic flow.

The road below is typical.  The colored sides are the bike lanes.   The main (black) road is not wide enough for 2 cars, so you must use some of the bike lane when passing other traffic.   If a bike is in the bike lane then you must slow down and wait to pass the bike until there is room and it is safe to do so.

Not all bike lanes are colored - the dashed lines however indicate the lanes.

Typical road with bike lanes in the Netherlands

It gets pretty confusing at times...  especially in congested areas.   The bikes seem to come from every direction.... whether or not they have right of way.    They sure seem to act like they have ROW at all times.

It really can get pretty wild at the roundabouts.   We saw a lady in an electric stroller clip a bike today in Gouda.   They both yelled something at each other and kept going.   No doubt they were not exchanging pleasantries.

Tomorrow we are going to stay local and enjoy Zandvoort and the sea for our last day here.

On Saturday we'll head to Bacharach, Germany for 2 nights and then Monday we are in Switzerland to visit our second family...  our Swiss buddies for a week.

Here is a stock photo of Bacharach to give you a teaser of our next destination.

Bacharach Germany

See you down the road.