Netherlands, Tulips & Windmills River Cruise - 2011

Holland & Belgium

The good ship Viking Europe

April 7

Bonnie, Barb, Brian and I had the usual dreary plane ride from Phoenix to Atlanta, then on to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam is a city of around three million people, nearly that many bicycles, with the usual old buildings, and is built around canals.  It is quite picturesque, as you can see.

We hooked up with most of the rest of our traveling companions at the hotel.  We all thought that it was a good idea to walk a bit to try to combat the jet lag.  The place is full of coffee houses, that will mix up whatever brew, as well as whatever high you want from legal marijuana.  The later is readily available, and you can get custom mixes for whatever buzz you want to experience.  And you can obtain a variety of seeds for your own personal herb garden back home. 

We  also discovered what had to be the cities smallest bar.  Needless to say, we had to have a beer or two.  Paul soon was best buddies with everyone in the place, including Kevin, a former jockey from Newcastle.  Or so he said.

Of course, we also had to take a stroll through the Red Light District, purely on an exploratory basis, you understand.  This place had to have been having an off night, as the area is usually thronged with people. 

We discovered a particular coffee shop, that will have a special meaning to some from our group.  Eventually the jet lag kicked in, and we headed back to the hotel to crash.

April 8

We all slept well last night.  So it was up for the typical European breakfast and then out the door.  We started with a walking tour of old Amsterdam.  Of course, we are in old Amsterdam.  So what did we learn?  The hooks hanging from the top of all the buildings were originally used to haul merchandise into the buildings, as there was usually a store, with storage and living quarters above.  Now, they are used to haul furniture up to the various floors, as interior staircases are very narrow.  Plus the movers have powered ramps and lifts that are used externally for hauling things up and down.  This would have been quite useful for my moving days.  Buildings were taxed a canal frontage.  So people built narrow, long and high structures.  All are on wooden pilings, down to stable ground about 50 feet down.  The city is actually about 9 ft below sea level, with the dams and locks used to keep out the Zuider Sea (which is now a lake) and the North Sea.  As the guide said, the people here love the sea and fight the sea. 

We passed through a portion of the Begijnhof or cloister, which was originally a cluster of small houses for pious, single women.  They could live here without husband or children, without becoming nuns, at a time when there were few alternatives.  In fact, single women still live here.  Several things to note here.  One is the Gebed Zonder End alley, which means Prayer without End.  The Dutch have adapted this saying to slang for any event that goes on and on. 

Also of interest were lintel stones set into a wall.  These depicted the craft or trade of the house in olden times.  Think of them as the first marketing tools. 

The walking tour pointed out some of the more expensive real estate (around €9,000/ sq meter) you do the math.  There is a ten year wait for public housing, a small house costs around €200/250,000.

Our next stop was a walk through the tulip market.  While there was plenty to see, including your very own cannabis sativa plaqnts, we all decided to wait until later in the trip. 

We departed the end of the tour and took the streetcars down to the Van Gogh Museum.  This institution has a great collection of Van Gogh and some of his contemporaries so we spent a few hours there looking at art masterpieces. There was also a Picasso Exhibit, which frankly, isn’t my thing. 

On to the train station, the end of the streetcar line, and back on to another for a ride back to the Dam area (where they originally dammed the Amstel River, thus creating all this.  We stopped in the little pub again, which was really rocking.  In fact, being Friday night, the whole city was filled with people sitting in the sun, sitting in sidewalk cafes, and generally having a good time.

Did I mention that there are lots and lots of bikes.  People ride them everywhere.  I think we were told that while the city proper has a population of around 80,000, there are 600,000 nicycles.  So the streets are equally shared by bikes, cars, and pedestrians.  The bikes all seem to have the right of way, and will run over anything in their path, physics be damned.  Finally it was yet another short bar stop, and back to the hotel, with dinner in a bit at a steak joint Paul had discovered.

April 9

After a good nights rest, we were off to explore more of Amsterdam.  The city is built on low lying land (every one knows the story of the Dutch land reclamation) and pierced with canals, which originally were the transportation nodes.  We started the day by heading for the Amsterdam Historical Museum, which was a portion of the Cloister facility that we had previously visited.  The museum, while laid out in a rather strange manner, was quite interesting as it not only presented the usual “these were the old guys who built the place” but also delved into the housing styles over the last 150 years and generally talked about the way people lived.  Of some interest were the floating caissons, which were used to raise ocean going vessels.  With the more shallow draft, the boats could then be towed into inland harbors, but move across sandbars and shallows. 

So far, this is the only wiondmill we have seen.  The tulip market was yesterday.  Is this the only windmill?

After we returned to the hotel, Brian and I headed out to scout for a coffee house in which to spend a few hours.  We walked and walked, and by the time we found a place to sit, there was no chance of returned for the group.  So he and I stayed, and solved the world’s problems, while the rest of our entourage stayed in the hotel lobby and solved the problems that the two of us failed to address. 

Then it was off to our floating home away from home (unpack once and you’re good to go) the Viking Europe.  We had obligatory safety lecture, crew introductions, and dinner.  From that point we walked back into town, past the central railway station, and to the Vistoria Hotel.  This was to be the start of a guided tour of the Red Light District.  Our guide turned out to be a woman from – Madison, WI.  Small world!  There are no photos in this section, as a) it was night, which requires some stabilzation, and b), we were told not to try to photograph people and displays.  So I shall continue sans photos.  There are actually three red light districts and all were jam packed.  Prostitution has been officially legal since 2000 (I think).  Ages are obviously primarily younger, but the oldest “working girl” just retired at 84, and there is a section for 60-70 year olds, who generally don’t work the later hours.  The girls are all on display in their own windows, which are rented for around €175/night.  Prices generally run about €50 for 15 minutes.  It is all private enterprise and there is a great deal of money to be made.  I must tell you, these girls were smoking hot.  By law, they all must wear bikinis, so to, um, showcase the merchandise, a great deal of UV light was used to make the garments fluoresce.  We walked and talked, and passed a multitude of shows and stores, all catering to the sex trade.  Everything is above board, although the gay community does not have display areas, nor does the women seeking men section.  Both prefer remain somewhat less than public.  Interestingly, the women are not tested for STDs.  Seems they all went to court over mandatory exams, and won.  But with the legalization of soft drugs, and the institution of heroin replacement programs, crime is quite low.  Although I suspect there exists a spike in junk food sales.  We had a drink in a very, I mean very, smoky bar and headed back to the ship. 

April 10

The day started with a canal cruise, past many of the sights we had already seen.  There are no barriers on the canal sides.  The Dutch trust people to use their own good judgement in how close to get to the edge.  As a result, a few cars end up in the water due to people misjudging parking areas. 

Some of the houses have ornate cornices, and if a house has a series of steps leading to the front door, tne builder must have been very wealthy. 

There are about 2,400 houseboats that are moored along the canals are taxed as residences.  If a houseboat sinks or moves, another may not occupy its spot, as the city is trying to get rid of them.  Many are in poor repair. 

The canals are bridged by low, narrow bridges, which can make navigation difficult.  We then spent some time looking for Sara’s Pancake House, which turned out to be in the only direction we did not explore. 

We passed the royal residence, which is under renovation.  This must be our curse, as practically everyplace we have gone, the palaces have been under repair. 

Then into the Anne Frank House, for a sobering moment on experiences in occupied Amsterdam in WW2, and then onto the trams for a ride back to the ship. 

What did we learn today?  Only about 3% of all housing is owner occupied.  The Dutch did not invent the windmill – they did invent the movable windmill head, this allowing the sails (blades) to be turned so as to catch the most wind.  The narrow Dutch houses are taxed on frontage along the canal.  If you have a house on a corner, you get hit twice.  Bikes abound.  Parking is difficult; they are building a subway which is way over budget.  While heavier, new houses are on 30 meter concrete pilings, everyone else is on wood pilings, which run down maybe 15 meters.  This makes it imperative that water levels be maintained so that the pilings stay under the surfact (to block rot) but the water level below the housing level.  The streets were crowded, with people are all over the place.  It is a sunny Sunday.  Everyone was out enjoying it, as the area generally gets over 200 days of grey sky. 

April 11

We sailed early this morning for Hoorn, arriving just before 9 AM.  Hoorn is a former seaport, and has a bit of history in that regard.  Native son Willem Schouten was seeking a faster way to get to the Dutch East Indies, and instead of going around the Cape of Good Hope, went the other direction.  He named a small island on the tip of South America for his hometown – Cape Horn.  Did he get there faster?  Yes, by one month. 

The second name from here was Jan Pieterzoon, who helped found Batavia (now Djakarta) in Indonesia.  Old Jan wasn’t a particularly nice guy, as when he discovered his Indonesian suppliers were undercutting him with the British, slaughtered 15,000 people in one night.  But he is credited with helping establish the great colonial Dutch empire.  You can see his stature in the last photo of this section. 

There are also three children’s book heroes, displayed as bronze sculptures.  Apparently The Shipboys of Bontekoe are well known, although I must confess to never having heard of them.

The town itself has a population of about 70,000, but you certainly wouldn’t know it from our morning tour.  Things in the residential district were pretty quiet.  The houses generally date from about 400 years ago (1600), and have been restored and rebuilt in the old style.  Many had wooden frames, and as a result, are leaning quite a bit.  There are a few nice details here, in frames, lintels and doors, and you get a sense of the age of the place, by examining some of the corner and builder's date stones.

I thought that doors were of interest.  They were all painted in a high gloss enamel, which made things shine and sparkle in the morning sunlight.

Initially, visitors are greeted with a nice defensive tower, which also had a lighthouse.  While the city was supposed to have been walled, I certainly didn’t see any remnants of the structure except the tower.  There were the usual canals and brick streets, and the usual abundance of bicycles.  The bikes are all pretty substantial, single speed machines.  I supposed riding on the flat, on bricks, requires a sturdy machine.  And people are all sitting up on these – none of this bending over racing style.  These are utilitarian; get me from point A to point B devices.  Some of the doors are pretty intricate, with what appears to be hand carving.  The central square has Cheese House, which was a former hospital.  The downtown was bustling and vibrant, with lots of shops; a clear contrast to the sleepy residential district.  We had a couple of libations in a street café (surprised?), and then headed back to the shop in the late afternoon.  Tonight is a wooden shoe demonstration.  I’ll reserve judgment.  Dinner – high hilarity, with a great group of people.  I didn’t make the wooden shoe gig, as was helping yet another woman with her Smartphone. 

April 12

The wonderful weather left us today, to be replaced with rain showers.  However, that did not stop us, so off on the buses we went.

First, we headed out to the Het Loo Palace.  This royal residence of the Orange Nassau’s, representing the Netherland ruling family, opened its doors to the public in 1984.  The place was created in the 17^th century, and was added on to with several wings, and a stable. 

The grounds cover about 4,000 hectares, complete with gardens that resemble a miniature Versailles, although with some typical Dutch traits. 

The royal stables contain a collection of cars and carriages, including children's carriages and pull toys. 

I have no photos of the palace, as picture taking was not allowed.  It was a typical small palace, but you’ll have to take my word for it.  I wonder, when I see these things:  How did people really live?  Get up, have a cup of coffee, read the Wall Street, decide to invade a country, impose a new tax?  What? 

At any rate, that took until Noon, when it was back to the ship, and the usual cruise eating contest.  We again tried to check our email, but with mixed results. 

The same guide we had in the morning took over for a tour of the grounds that were fought over in the Battle Arnhem.  This ten day battle, in September of 1944, was a massive Allied defeat, and a real blot on the military career of Field Marshall Montgomery.  In a nutshell, here is what transpired.  I had a great deal of help here from Dan.  While I remembered the basics, Dan former history teacher and old movie buff, filled in the particulars before we arrived on site.

The Allies landed on the Normandy beaches in June, ’44.  The forward momentum stalled out at the border of Belgium and Holland.  Monty constructs a plan to make a northern thrust into Germany through Holland.  To do so, he has to capture a number of bridges across Hollands canals and rivers.  On September 17, the Allies drop roughly 35,000 airborne troops into Holland.  They are delivered via a massive daylight airdrop consisting of some 2,500 Horsa gliders and standard airborne troops.  In Arnhem, a Lt Colonel John Frost was initially able to capture the northern approaches to a major Rhine bridge with only around 750 men.  However, Allied intellegence was faulty.  Instead of light resistance, the Germans had roughly 10,000 battle tested, but battered, Panzer and Armored division remnants in the area.  To make a long story short, Frost was unable to hold out against the superior firepower.  His reinforcements never arrived because Montgomery was too cautious and slow in getting to the area.  Polish paratroopers were dropped, additional supplies were dropped but fell into German hands.  The mission failed, with 1,500 Allied troops killed, nearly 4,000 evacuated, 6,500 POWs, and 5,400 casualties.  The Germans lost around 300 troops (admitted by Field Marshall Model) but estimates are higher at 8,000.  Some say the failure prolonged war.  Others say the Battle for Arnhem was a noble victory.  Like most wartime annals, which are written by the victors, it was a toss up and a classic case of indecision, heroics, disasters and victories.  The museum is housed in the former command center.  The basement has a sound and light experience, to provide an inkling of the urban battlefuield, while the other floors house battle plans from the perspective of both sides, and artifacts.  The people here still find war remnants as they plow the fields, or dig for construction. 

Our final stop was a sobering visit to the wartime cemetery, where many of the victims were buried – many unknown. 

As usual, the droning guide, the vibration of the bus, put most of us into deep slumber.  But it was back to the ship, dinner, and a folk dancing exhibition.  Later.  Walking down to the lounge, I ran into Dan, who had just come back from a brief walk into the town of Nijmegan.  We both went back up a steep hill to walk through the town center, see an old town gate, a church that seemed to still be in use as a church, and stopped for a beer in a local pub.  Then down the hill and back to the boat.  Our friend Brian won enough to buy drinks for all at the neighboring casino, so it as a good night for him. 

April 13

The sun was out again today, as we sailed up the river to Dordrecht.  This is the oldest town in Holland.  We were greeted by a replica of Noah's Ark.  This is being built by a famous Dutch contractor, and will be displayed at the London Olympic Games in 2012.  After that, the plan is to sail it around the world.

Dordrecht is an important traffic hub in the Rhine delta.  It is home to major ship building concerns, including construction of riverboats, and major private yachts.  It is also home to a UNESCO site, the Windmills of the Kinderdijk.  There are 19 mills remaining in this small area. 

Here is the story of the Dutch windmills.  While the Dutch did not invent the windmill, they invent the rotating windmill head, thus allowing the sails of the mill to be directed in any direction so as to capture optimum wind flow.  Originally used to power granaries, and lumber mills, the power of the mills was eventually turned to use as water pumping devices.  In order to reclaim marshy coastal lands, the Dutch built a series of feeder canals in fertile, low lying lands.  By using berms and series of sluiceways, the water could be channeled out to the river and then to the sea at low tide.  The berms kept the high tide water from flowing back into the drained areas.  The drained lands started to settle, and the berms had to be built higher, and eventually, settlement became so much that pumps were needed to get the water out to the higher level rivers and sea.  Enter the windmill, with scoop wheels affixed externally to the mill.  The mills in this area were built in 1738 – 1761.  The drainage canals fed two reservoirs, one higher than the other.  One set of mills would pump water up a step to the next reservoir, while the second pumped the water out to the river or sea.  This step procedure (or multi-stage pumping) is still utilized in pump and water management situations today.  The windmill vanes drive an upper wheel gear, which in turn drives an upper and lower pinion, set on the kingpost.  The lower pinion drives a water wheel which scoops the water up (no more than 1 meter) and into the reservoir.  A hinged door, called the watch door, keeps the water from flowing back should the mill stop. 

These mills were also homes, as the operator (the miller) had to be ready 24/7 to make certain that the sails were correctly set, and to turn the pumping action on and off according to need.  The pumping power eventually moved to steam, then to diesel electric or straight electric propulsion. These windmills are still operational, and can be used in the event that the electric pumps stop working. The pumping stations can lift as much as 1,500,000 liters per minute.  The battle against the water continues. 

And just to show you that we were actually on site, here we are, all happy in the morning sun.

The Dutch still use the wind, although now it is with Vestra wind turbines, generating electricity.  It is estimated that if the pumps were to shut down, the land would revert to water filled march in as little as 3 months.  Then it was back to the ship and another favorite pastime, lunch. 

I should mention the tree screens.  Everywhere we went, we saw trees, tied into this screening lattice.  The Dutch use the leaves to form a sun screen.  Personally, I wouldn't think there would be enough sun to worry about, but we saw this implementation everywhere.

This will be an afternoon of R&R.  We were treated to passing coastal ships carrying bulk, containers and coastal tankers.  Tonight and tomorrow, we are in Antwerp, the diamond capitol. 

April 14

The day dawned with more passing coastal river traffic.  Note the raised pilot house, which is necessary for passing under low bridges.  The car is used in port, as the captain and his family live on board.

Today was our day in Antwerp, Belgium.  As you will recall, because of the Jones Law, international cruises have to touch two countries within a week.  Belgium is the second one for this trip.  The country is about the size of the state of Maryland, and generally flat, although there are some hilly portions near the Ardennes Forest (remember WW2?).  So like the Netherlands, there is a series of dikes and seawalls along the coast.  There are actually two countries here, as the north is aligned culturally with Germany, and has a more conservative, every man for himself approach.  The southern portion, is aligned culturally to France, with a totally "let the state take care of me" approach.  The union of the two areas actually lasted about 15 years; it has been politically split ever since.  In fact, at the time of this writing, the constitutional monarchy has been without an official government for some 300 days.  Which the people tend to like.  Religion was Catholic and Protestant, although with only about 3% of the people attending church, the largest functioning religion is Islam. 

Our day started with a walking tour.  While the girls took a bus and toured more of the Antwerp area then a walking tour of the older part of town. We manly men took the extended walking tour.  As a result we walked though the old red light district (now moved to be closer to the docks on the 89 mile long harbor) and many refurbished apartments and inner garden courtyards. 

We ended up in the old town square, with the statue of Brabo, the man who slay the river dragon and threw his hand in the river, thus founding Antwerp, and the government offices. 

All along we saw the new – as evidenced by this new museum, representing waves and containers - to the old, with stepped false fronts and brickwork. 

A highlight was the Cathedral of Our Lady, which had contained some Paul Rubens paintings.  The interior is pretty. although I suspect that it is kept as a torurist showpiece.  If you looked closely, wear and tear were evident.

We went back to the ship.  We did pass by this little slice of home, but did not stop. 

Later, we were all pretty restless, so the the four guys walked back to town to see the railway station, one of the grandest in Europe.  We were not disappointed.  Not only was the exterior pretty intricate, but the interior was a step back to the days of steam and intrigue.  BTW - since it was Thursday, the girls played a rousing game of Hand & Foot.

There is much to like about the lifestyle and the general feeling in Europe.  Brian bought some shirts, Dan a pair of shoes.  Paul and I just gabbed on a bench.  Tomorrow will be another long day, as we depart of Brugge and Ghent. 

April 15

If it is the 15^th, it must be – Brugge.  Entry is through the port city of Ghent.  After an hour’s bus ride (and subsequent nap), we arrived at our destination.  Brugge is an intact medieval city in the lowlands.  It is preserved from the 1600/1700s and has cobblestoned streets, canals lined with ornate houses, gables, and quiet courtyards.  It is known for its lace and chocolate and was originally an active trading port, thus avoiding a great deal of the Norse sacking that occurred in the Middle Ages. 

Originally, Brugge was a port city, but the harbor silted up, and the city saw a slow, gradual decline.  This actually proved to be a saving grace for the residents, as they had no money for urban renewal, and the city remained.  That lack of funding was the saving grace, as the residents were unable to destroy the inherent beauty.  That of course, led to a huge tourist trade, with an abundance of tourist shops, restaurants, tours by horse and canal boat.  The city sees roughly six million tourists a year, and this day was no exception.  The place was packed, and frankly, a bit much.  Is it pretty, of course.  Is it a great example of a European walled city?  You bet.  Was I really impressed?  Well, not so much.  I sort of felt like, been there, done that.  There are a bunch of these walled cities in Europe, and this was just another one, but with more tourists.  Anyway. 

The church played a huge factor in medieval towns, and Brugge was no exception.  There are plenty of massive church related structures, including asylums, a hospital, alms houses, and the main churches.  Of note is one of the few Michelangelo statues outside of Italy, of the Madonna and Child. 

Visitors also get to see nice gardens, a canal system (hey folks, lets increase our revenue stream with canal boat rides) and the usual Flemish stepped gabled houses, built in the Dutch style – narrow, deep and high.  We were told that the stepping arrangement is called "Steps to Heaven."  It is an apropos title, as the structure does resemble a staircase climbing into the sky.  Admittedly, some of the brickwork and ornamentation was quite lovely. 

Paul was unable to get his QuietVox to function correctly, so took on a new duty as the "Carrier of the Sign" for the tour guide so he could hear her commentary.  I think he did it to get a discount on his next cruise!  The four couples took the extended package today, so we had roughly three hours in which to explore the area.  First, we had lunch of Belgian waffles in an Iranian café (go figure) and then took a canal boat ride, which gave us an additional perspective on the old bridges, and houses of the city.  At this point it was shopping time, and we did our level best to help lift the Belgian economy through the purchase of tapestry and lace. 

And as usual, we ended up in street cafes, watching the 15,000 of our closest personal friends wander market plaza, and sampling the local Belgian beers, of which there are a large number.  Eventually, it was time to head back to the boat (along with another hours nap) and the start of the evening. 

And we finally saw tulips.  We have seen the windmills, and now the tulips.  Hence the Tulips and Windmills trip designation.  Plus, Bonnie found a new friend. 

April 16

The intrepid travelers were up and out early again this morning.  Our greeting was a hot air balloon.  We met our guide, who was a most pleasant woman, who had been guiding for some twenty years.  I don’t know if I mentioned it, but guides have to go through a two year educational program and obviously need to speak at least two languages. 

Our first stop, in the light morning fog, was the town of Middelburg.  This is the largest town on one of the islands in Zeeland, a Dutch state.  There were the usual old churches, cobblestone streets, and – fun for me – a flea market.  I found a pedal car, but decided it was just too much trouble to send it home.  Ha!  Actually, I thought about it for about five seconds, before dismissing the idea. 

Paul was once again tasked with carrying the sign, as the guide has some visuals to display.  This place was pretty much destroyed in the second world war.  Barb always worries about me wandering off; a couple of the people on this tour did get sidetracked and almost missed the bus.  The bus ride was an excuse for a half hour nap, but the end destination was amazing. 

Today we went to the Delta Works.  This project is a storm surge suppression system designed to keep the islands and lands in the Rhine, Maas and Scheldt river deltas from being flooded.  The project is a direct result of a dike rupture in 1953 that flooded a major portion of Zeeland.  While flooding had always been a problem, this one was a result of the confluence of a long storm blowing from the North Sea, weakened dikes, and a high tide.  The result was over 1,800 people dead, 72,000 people evacuated, some 200,000 hectares of land flooded, and the loss of 200,000 livestock, with 47,000 buildings lost or damaged. 

The government decided to so something about this.  Existing dikes were repaired and built to a new height.  New dams were built, but in three places, the Dutch took a revolutionary approach.  Rather than try to simply wall off the water all the time, the fishing industry had to be preserved, along with the ecology of the tidal estuary.  The results were massive storm surge gates. 

The construction project was ambitious.  The seabed was prepared with a special mat for stability, and huge concrete pylons were constructed, and floated into position by a specially built ship.  The pylons were then filled with sand for weight, and rocks were carefully piled around the bases.  Special steel doors were fitted between the pylons that can be lowered by hydraulic rams to close the openings in case of high water surge.  This was a 25 year project, with three seawalls constructed.  It was a very impressive, and a very ambitious project.  We saw a film about the process, and then visited one of the gate complexes.  I vaguely remember this, but had no idea as to the immensity of the project.

After that it was a ride on the bus, which meant yet another nap.  There was a great deal of agricultural land to be seen along the way, and it was pointed out the when the area flooded, the water was as high as the top of the second story of buildings. 

We picked up the ship in another port, had lunch, and did the wheelhouse tour.  As with most modern ships, the ship is all pretty much computer operated, with joysticks, and thrusters.  This ship is 115 meters in length, has a beam of just over 11 meters, and yet has a draft of only 1.75 meters.  Satellite navigation has done wonders for water travel. 

Tonight we will be in Rotterdam, the largest seaport in the world.  Having seen Antwerp, and the complexity of that, I’m sure this will be pretty amazing. 

We are coming to the end of the trip, with only a single day in Amsterdam remaining.  Evening found us relaxing, as usual, at cocktail hour. 

I would be remiss if I did not mention Brian's new shipboard friend.  He enjoyed the attention of Mila, one of the staff, particularly on his birthday.  Mila's greeting may be found by clicking on the photo.

April 17

This cruise was billed as Tulips and Windmills.  Well, we have seen the windmills.  Today was to be Tulip Day, and we were not disappointed.  We visited the Keukenhof Gardens, just outside of Amsterdam.  To get there, one has to pass fields of tulips.  The growers really don't care about the blossoms, so just cut them off and then harvest the bulbs.  But before they cut the tops, visitors are greeted with whole fields of color.  It's as if someone just took a paintbrush and painted the ground.  It was quite amazing.

So the whole area is filled with tulip growers, who plant, wait for the blossoms to form, and then cut off the blossoms, dig up the bulbs, and send them all over the world.  And this brings me to our destination.  In the area, was a small castle with a nice garden.  The mayor of a small local town had an idea.  Why not have the town take over the garden, turn it into a showcase for tulips, and make some money.  The result if Keukenhof Gardens, a garden that is only open two months of the year, but pulls in roughly 800,000 visitors.  After being greeted by a young woman in traditional Dutch garb, visitors will see rivers of color, special displays, and acres of flowers.  The gardens are set up with photo spots so that visitors can get great shots with lots of color in the background.  There is every type of flowering bulb imaginable, as is evidenced by some of these photos.  The garden features music, food, and of course, bulbs to purchase and ship home.  It was very, very impressive.  The five of us were given free rein, and we saw plenty of beautiful sights.  It was crowded though.  We were told that the previous day saw an admission of 50,000 (at $20/head) and 900 buses.

We all napped on the bus ride back into Amsterdam.  The girls went to the Delft Factory, and the boys headed back downtown, along with practically everyone in Holland on this sunny Sunday.  We checked out the walk to the railway station for two couples who are going on to Paris tomorrow, and then went back to the red light district to find a special prize for the golf group.  Unfortunately, there are no photos of said prize, as it will be a surprise to the recipients.  This is our last night.  What a fun time with a great group of people. 

I like Europe.  I like the small cars, the general cleanliness (at least here) and the  general relaxed attitude about life.  People live with less, and generally seem to have less baggage.  My dream is to come live over here for six months.  Maybe my tune would change if I did so.  Paul has his deathbed saying, “If not now, when?”

So this trip comes to a conclusion.  I have memories of a too short two weeks, with new friends and companions.  We had a lot of fun, and I hope we can all travel together again.