A canal side expression of support for Ukraine - Amsterdam
The excuse for this trip was the Floriade in Almere, NL. My
sister, Sally, and I traveled from Sept. 13-22. We share an interest in things horticultural,
green, art, water management, and food.
Also, both of our cities have engaged with the Dutch Dialogues – so there
was a lot to see and learn.
Although the Floriade was the inspiration for the trip, our
travels also included Amsterdam, Haarlem, Delft, Kinderdijk, and The Hague.
Links included.
Here's a bit of a day journal.
First day – A travel day - flew United direct from Chicago - the people corridor between terminals is very colorful and I always love seeing dawn from 40,000 ft.
ORD
Dawn
Second day - a
canal boat tour as an introduction to the city– an added bonus was that this was a fairly passive activity. Sitting in a boat, drinking wine and nibbling
on cheese, and listening to our extremely entertaining and informative skipper
talk about a city he loves. We did this tour at dusk and the skies were
gorgeous. (Amsterdam
Canal Boat Tour | Captain Jack Amsterdam (skipperjackamsterdam.com)
Amsterdam at Dusk
Third day – Off to Almere to visit the Floriade– did
I mention the superb public transportation? Just jump on the train. The Floriade is a once every ten years
horticultural world’s fair. Spread over
148 acres, Floriade’s theme was building green cities. The different sections included country
displays showing what they were doing in the way of sustainability, a huge
green house which included a hydroponic area and other displays. Each week had a vegetable theme – last week
was potato week and we were invited to sample 12 new varieties of potatoes (all cooked) developed in the NL and to vote on our
favorite. The colors ranged from golden
to white to red to black. So
interesting. Did you know that Netherlands is the second largest food exporter
in the world? I didn’t either. Another extremely interesting area displayed
sustainable building materials including acoustic insulation panels made out of
seagrass. Check out Home - The Exploded View.
We viewed a flyover virtual tour of Flevoland – the youngest
province of the Netherlands formed by the process of land reclamation- in this
case, an inner sea known as the Zuiderzee.
They are famed for their flowers and produce. The water levels are managed carefully and countless
rows of wind turbines are a source of renewable energy.
The Floriade opened on April 14th and will
conclude its run on Oct. 9. The people
we encountered had heard that it had mixed reviews, but we found it
fascinating. The grounds and some of the
buildings will form the heart of a new planned city.
Floriade Expo 2022 - The
International horticulture exhibition
Green building materials
Potato tasting
Hydroponically grown veggies
Part of a larger pepper display
Vertical gardening.. not sure how they'd care for this garden
Fourth day – we began the day with a food tour of the Jordaan area of Amsterdam – (Jordaan
Dutch Food & History Tour - 8 guests max. 2022 - Amsterdam (viator.com)
) our guide was Rudolph K. who blended
history, food and fun. This more than
sufficed for a meal.
Cheese - wonderful cheese
The proper way to clean herring.
A beer from a brewery owned and operated by women.
In the afternoon, I headed for the Van Gogh Museum (Have to
buy the ticket ahead of time as entry is time-slotted), and Sally visited the Stedelijk
– home of much modern art.
Fifth day –
Amsterdam is home to over fifty museums.
We both wanted to visit the Riksmuseum (the national museum) and – again
need to book it in advance. On the way,
we stopped off at the Museum of the Canals which had been recommended by our
boat captain. (Grachtenmuseum Amsterdam) – Did you
realize that many buildings in the city are built on pilings (like
Venice)? The pilings are 45-65 ft. in length
and made of oak or pine. The museum
instructed us on the fine details of the need for water levels in the canals to
be managed very carefully.
We also visited the Begijnhof.. which is described in this
way- it is one of the oldest hofjes (houses) in Amsterdam, Netherlands. A group of
historic buildings, mostly private dwellings, center on it. As the name
suggests, it was originally a Béguinage. The Beguine movement began in the 12th
century, and the Beguines were women, usually wealthy, who lived in Christian community
and devoted themselves to charitable works.
These women lived in towns where they attended to the poor. During the
13th century, some of them bought homes that neighbored each other. They did not
take monastic vows and were free to leave and marry if they wished. This strikes me as one way women attempted to
live independently and to avoid marriages arranged by their families.
The Beguines building their new homes.
Sixth Day – to Haarlem where we visited the Frans
Hals Museum and loved his portraiture which burst with expression and life. From
there to the Cathedral of St. Bavo. I
liked imagining that some of Haarlem’s prominent citizens as portrayed by Hals
sitting in the same space where we were while listening to music of the period.
This cathedral is home to a world-famous organ which had been played by Handel
and a ten year old Mozart. We attended
what was basically evensong featuring the music of Heinrich Schutz (1585-1672)
who is regarded as the most important German composer before Bach. The music, a good bit of it a cappella, was
offered by a visiting choir and accompanied by viola and the organ. We were able to hear the organ in all of its
glory in the congregational hymns and the postlude. Here is a good article about the organ –
click on this if no other reason than to look at the organ – (Contrebombarde.com
Concert hall) – which occupies the entire west wall of the Church. After the service, we went to supper at an
Indonesian restaurant - yum! I did not
realize until we arrived in Haarlem that it was the home of the Ten Boom family
of which Corrie Ten Boom was the most well known. Her book The Hiding Place is a
remarkable testimony. They were known
for having been part of the Dutch resistance to the Nazis. It’s estimated that Ten Boom Family and their
many friends and co-workers saved the lives of an estimated 800 Jews and other
refugees. (source: Information
| Corrie ten Boom House). To visit this house museum requires reservations
well in advance.
Entrance to the Corrie Ten Boom House Museum
Seventh Day – to Delft. Did I mention the public
transportation system? I can’t say enough good things about it. I am sad that our country made (and continues to make) a commitment
to cars and roads rather than public transportation. What a mistake!
Delft is a charming town… while there, we toured the Royal
Delft Museum and Factory and had high tea in their garden. Spoke with a gentleman painting in the
factory who had worked there for 44 years.
It was established 400 years ago and is the last remaining of the
original factories. Love the blue and
white!
At the Royal Delft Museum and Factory
Eighth Day – Delft – we based in Delft and set off to
see Kinderdijk – a UNESCO world heritage site.
It was a little complicated getting there – finally decided the best
course was to take a taxi to Rotterdam (about nine miles) and, from there, the
ferry – water bus to Kinderdijk (about fifteen miles). We had purchased an OV -Chipkaart and loaded
it with funds. These cards really
simplify the process of paying for public transport and include trains, buses,
trams and ferries.
We met the water bus at the Erasmus Bridge – very
modern. I wondered what Erasmus would
have made of Rotterdam and the bridge named for him. The ferry conveyed us on the River Lek to
Kinderdijk – passing two Viking cruise boats on the way.
Kinderdijk was a site I really wanted to visit. It’s about 800 acres and includes nineteen
windmills, dikes, and pumping stations – a perfect illustration of the water
management technology dating from the fourteenth century. The windmills still work and continue their
task of managing water levels so that the adjacent fields and town stay
dry. ( Home
- Kinderdijk molens). The workings
of a windmill resemble that of a ship but a stationary one with sails that can
be moved to maximize the capture of the wind.
Back to Delft at the end of the day.
Kinderdijk
Now I see where Escher got the inspiration for his lily pad image
Look at this painting from Jacob van Ruisdael (1670)
the Church is at sea level - the windmills and dikes make farming possible at below sea level.
Supper was at the restaurant next to our hotel. It billed
itself as having a modern twist on traditional Dutch cuisine. Dessert was served in large,
decorated Dutch wooden shoes. Very fun.
Ninth day – Our final touring day had the Hague (den Haag)
as its focus. We had lined up a two hour
walking tour which was cancelled – actually to our relief. It was easy to train there from Delft and we
were able to store our luggage in the Hague central train station.
Despite the availability of the train system app, there was
always a little anxiety around getting the train combinations right. Fortunately, no real misadventures in that
department! From the train station we ventured out to see the Mauritshuis –
self described as a small world class museum.
Its most precious object on display was The Girl with a Pearl Earring by
Vermeer. Exquisite light and texture.
From there we ventured to the Escher Museum – rather I did
as Sally had just seen a large exhibit of his work. His explorations in
perspective, tessellations, and illusion were well documented. I was struck once again by the precision of
his technique. The house which held the collection had been a royal residence
so, it was pretty interesting as well.
From Escher to the Peace Palace. September 21st is
celebrated as the International Day of Peace.
Unfortunately we were not able to tour the chambers as they were in
session but the visitor center told the story well. The Palace houses the Permanent Court of
Arbitration, the United Nations International Court of Justice and The Hague
Academy of International Law.
The inspiration for the Peace through Law initiative came
from the Russian Tsar, Nicholas II. Such irony given what is happening in
Ukraine. With the help of many donors
(in particular Andrew Carnegie), the building was completed in 1913. I fervently hope we will see Russian war
criminals tried there in the future.
Beautiful grounds and inspiring work.
Worthwhile. Outside was a Peace
wish tree bearing the wishes for peace from many people. We added a slip to the tree.
About
the Peace Palace | Peace Palace (vredespaleis.nl)
From the Hague, we collected our luggage and headed to
Schiphol Airport where we spent the night in an airport hotel. This made the 6:00 am check in a little
easier.
If you’ve read this far, thank you and I’d be glad to answer
any questions. There is so much more to
see and do there. As usual it feels as
if we just scratched the surface. Overall, it was a good experience – Netherlands
is struggling with many issues… rising inflation, outrageous energy bills, but even
so, I appreciated the character of those we encountered – generally
good natured, trying to be helpful and restrained in many important ways. Hope to return soon.
