Saturday in Vlaardingen

If you've never been to the Netherlands...you might not know about the bikes.  Let me tell you...they are EVERYWHERE.  It seems as though everyone owns and rides a bike.  In fact, we were told by someone in The Hague, that most everyone owns at least two bikes.    And...you will see all kinds of people riding them...including thin people and heavy people...very old people and young people...groups of teenagers and whole families...people that smoke while they are riding...people who are dressed in suits...and mothers with a child on the front and another on the back.  Some bikes pull carts, while most have some kind of basket on the front or saddle bags on the back.  You will also find very nice bike paths that lead all over the country...hooking cities and villages together.  When you go to the train or metro station you will see huge areas where you can store your bike during the day until you return at night.  It truly is amazing. 

Last Saturday on our way to the park we saw an unusual number of people flocking into town on their bikes, and dropping them off in the bike parking lot.  As we walked through the downtown area, we realized there was a market set up in the plaza.  

At the market they sell a wide variety of things...including flowers...both plants and fresh cut...

fruits and vegetables...

fish and cheese...

Big store coolers are actually brought outside to store the meat and cheese

and waffles, plus other goodies.  

After visiting the market, we continued on to the park where the Foodtruck Festival was taking place.

We arrived as things were just opening up.  

The Foodtruck Festival takes place all over the Netherlands.  They are scheduled for a different city from the middle of May to the end of September.  Each truck or tailer offers a variety of food or drinks.   

 They also have a stage that offers live music.

 There was one ride and a number of activities for the children...  

and a masseuse for the adults.

We were lucky to have a warm summer day for this event...and had a wonderful time.  

 

Another Corner of the Netherlands

The past few days have been cloudy and cool in our neck of the woods.  Truthfully, it often feels more like fall here than summer.  Therefore, we decided that the next sunny day we would take advantage of the nice weather, and travel to The Hague. The Hague is the third largest city in the Netherlands, and is located on the North Sea.    

We did some quick research before leaving, and found several points of interest that we could investigate.  In order to stay within our budget, we agreed that we would avoid some of the more expensive museums in the city.  Instead, we would spend time walking around the historic district looking at some of the interesting architecture in this area and just enjoy the day.     

The old city hall...built in 1565

An old dutch department store that was recently sold to new buyers.

One of the newer buildings we saw in the city

Government buildings where the Parliament meets

Mauritshuis Art Museum

The gate leading to the government buildings

The facade of an old building attached to a new one.   There were several of these in different styles.

Passage ways with stores...similar to those found in Paris

Two of the many canals you see throughout the city

Lance always downloads Google Maps to help us navigate a new city.  Unfortunately, for some reason, he was having problems with his maps. We were trying to direct ourselves to  the Peace Palace but were unsure of the way to go.  As we were standing on a corner looking very confused...a young lady named Beth asked us if we were looking for something, and if she could help us.  We explained our problem and she quickly said she lived close to the area where it was located...and if we didn't mind she would walk there with us. 

Beth was originally from Venezuela, but she and her husband left eight years ago due to the political corruption taking place in her country.  They first moved to Paris for four years, and have spent the past four years living in the Netherlands.  She loves it here because it she feels safe and secure.  Beth was warm and friendly, and we enjoyed our conversation with her.  We are always impressed by the kindness of strangers...especially when it comes to people from South America.

Along the way, she showed us different points of interest...including some sand sculptures in the park.    

Eventually we arrived at the Peace Palace.  The Peace Palace is an international law administrative building.  There is a small free museum on the grounds that explains about the palace and what takes place there.  You can see a short film that shows the inside of the palace...but unfortunately you are not allowed to tour it.  

Thanks to the excellent public transportation in this country, we are easily able to hop on the metro or train to visit any city.  We are always pleased with the ease one can get around without a car.   

  

       

Delft, NL

Last week Thursday, Sietse, our Airbnb host, had to travel to Delft for his job.  He sent us a text the night before and invited us to ride along with him.  Of course we accepted.  On Thursday morning he dropped us off near town, and we toured around, then found our way back on a train.  Unfortunately, it was a cloudy, overcast day...but no worries...when you travel, you make the best of things...especially the weather.

We began our day by taking a tour of the Royal Delft pottery factory where the famous Delft Blue pottery is made.  It is the last remaining factory from the 17th century.  The Royal Delft Group is the only Delft Blue potter with a seal of approval from the Dutch royal family.    

All pottery here is hand made and painted.  It takes 10 years for the painters to learn their craft.  

Artists creating pottery in the factory.

Above shows the different stages of the pottery process.
You begin with white baking clay to form a plate.
A stencil is applied with charcoal to make a basic sketch on the plate.
Once the outline is on the plate, the painter uses a simple black paint to fill in his design.
When the piece is fired the paint turns from black to the color blue.  

There was a market taking place on the day we arrived in Delft.  It was an odd assortment of food and other items...such as bolts of material.  It wasn't a very pretty market, and had the appearance of a backyard sale.  It also made it hard to get a good picture of the buildings on the square.

Above...a house on a side street that was once privately owned
Below....the doorway belonging to the same house

We took some time to visit the Museum Het Prinsenhof, which is located in a splendid old castle.  

Flowers on the canal

Lance and I enjoyed a tasty lunch in a restaurant near this canal.  You could sit and eat on the boat...or inside the restaurant.  We grabbed a window seat in the restaurant.  Lance had dutch pancakes and I enjoyed a delicious hamburger.  

We enjoyed our visit to Delft.  It was interesting...but not quite as pretty as I imagined it to be.  Perhaps it was the overcast weather...or the large number of stores that you might see at your local mall.  Or...maybe my expectations were just too high.  Nevertheless, it was a fun adventure and I'm glad we went.