The Netherlands (Holland)

May 2010

Visiting the Netherlands/Holland was pretty much a spontaneous decision made a couple of weeks before the first May Bank Holiday weekend. I had driven through the country on numerous occasions on the way to somewhere else, but other than seeing Arnhem and Eindhoven in recent years, I hadn’t visited the Netherlands properly since the late 1980s,

Wendy and I caught the 4am ferry from Dover to Dunkerque with Norfolk Lines. The plan was that it allowed me to grab a couple of hours sleep before setting off from home at midnight and also a couple of hours on the cheaply priced ferry arriving 7am local time pretty fresh for the first day on May 1st.

It was a familiar drive up the coast from Dunkerque to Ostend in Belgium and over to Gent and then Antwerp with its ring road that always confuses me. We ended up backtracking west on the A11 before turning north over the Dutch border and found our way to the tunnel under the Westerschelde to Middelburg in Zeeland.

The Lonely Persons Guide says “The Netherlands is a very big, small country. So much of this sea-battered windswept, flat-as-a-pancake place has played an oversized role in history that it seems hardly possible that it is only 135th in a league table of nations, right after Switzerland and Bhutan.” Population 16.5 million. Number of windmills 1180.

The province of Zeeland consists of three slivers of land that nestle in the middle of a vast delta, through which many of Europe’s rivers drain. It was destroyed by two major floods in 1421 (100,000 deaths) and 1953 (2000 deaths, 500,000 homeless and 800km of dykes destroyed,). This second flood led to the Delta Project, a gigantic 45 year construction program started in 1958 to ensure that Zeeland would never be flooded again.

Middelburg (48,000 pop) was a pleasant and on a Saturday morning, quiet capital of Zeeland. Much of it has been rebuilt since World War Two. The central Market Place (Markt) was dominated by the Town Hall with a mixture of Gothic and classical styles. One strange sight was a fountain where the water had been coloured bright orange. It really brightened up the square (see photo). This should be copied elsewhere. One thing that was obvious in Middelburg was that cyclists were the kings of the road. They assumed they had the right of way and would pull out in front or pass on the inside. They seemed to come out of nowhere and some were lucky to escape getting flattened. This was also the case in the canal towns where cars had problems negotiating the narrow streets.

We headed north across the lengthy movable barriers which block the Oosterschelde and Grevelingen estuaries. Dykes are continually being raised to counteract the rising sea level. I think at least a third of Zeeland is below sea level.

The sleepy town of Kinderdijk (Child’s Dyke) lays just south of Rotterdam. It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997 because there are 19 windmills lining two canals. It is a splendid place to walk (free entry) and examine the different types of windmill and be able to type stereotypical photos of the Dutch landscape (recommended).

Rotterdam (588,000 pop) is the Netherland’s second city. After being bombed flat in World War Two, it was completely rebuilt as a modern city and is famous for having Europe’s largest container port (Europoort) which stretches for 25 miles. I was only interested in seeing a couple of things starting with the magnificent modern Eramusbrug bridge which crosses the river. The 185m tall Euromast is a concrete tower with a viewing platform – the tallest structure in the Netherlands. We didn’t bother going up to get views over Rotterdam but watched three people abseiling down it. The final thing was the Overblaak Development built in early 1980s, There is a pencil shaped tower but more strangely, a line of upended, cube shaped apartments (Kijk Kobus -show cube flats). Inside the flats, the floor is level, but the outer casing has been turned to make it look as if they are tilted over. They had a fabulous design but I’m not sure I’d want to live in one (see my photos).

Most cities are just cities to me so we left Rotterdam and made for Gouda. (pop 71,000). Gouda is most famous for its cheese which made it wealthy. Its attractive centre is ringed by narrow canals and quiet side streets, a large central market place and town hall. On a late sunny afternoon, it was a lovely picturesque place to explore (recommended).

One final place to visit was Oudewater (10,000 pop). Until the 17th, the Heksenwaag (Witches Weigh House) in the town centre was thought to have the most accurate scales in the land and women suspected of being witches came here to be weighed. The Lonely Person guide said “Weighing was one of the more common methods of determining witchery, as popular belief held that any woman who was too light for the size of her frame was obviously a witch (because witches have no soul). A woman who weighed the ‘proper’ amount was too heavy to ride a broom and therefore was not a witch. Women who passed the weight test were given a certificate, good for life, proclaiming them to be human.” The Weigh House had closed for the day so we couldn’t test the scales, but it sounded interesting.

Accommodation in the Netherlands (especially with the Euro vs Pound rate and local taxes to add) can be expensive, so I had booked the two ‘Formule One’ Hotels to stay at. On the Saturday evening, in glorious sunshine, passing bright green fields full of cows, we made for Waalwijk south of Oudewater.

As we passed by a police station near the hotel, the local police were pulling in every motorist to get breathalysed. I had never had this done before. Fortunately, I had only had a small beer many hours before in Kinderdijk and passed in flying colours. The Waalwijk Formula One was identical to every other F1 hotel in France and Spain. You get a double bed and bunk bed above, a TV bolted to the wall, a sink and a mirror. Toilets and showers are shared down the hall. It is basic but ok and at 48 Euros for the room, was the cheapest option I could find.

On the Sunday morning (May 2nd), the sunshine had been replaced by a non-stop downpour that kept going for most of the day. If you were at home on a day like this, you’d hole up but we braved the elements and kept touring. We headed north and skirted Rotterdam on its ring road and made for Delft in the province of Zuid (South) Holland.

Delft (pop 97,000) is a very popular tourist destination – “compact, charming, relaxed” (LP) where you can stroll by the narrow, tree lined canals, along streets of beautiful old buildings and gabled Gothic and Renaissance houses. The central market place has a huge town hall (Stadhuis 1618) at one end and an impossibly tall, narrow Nieuwe Kirk (New Church 1510) at the other. The Oude Kirk (Old Church) is a few minutes walk away and its 800 year old tower leans 2m from the vertical. You will also find many shops selling ‘Delftware’ – a distinctive blue and white pottery originally copied from Chinese porcelain in the 17th century. Despite the rain, I rated Delft as the nicest town I saw over the weekend. (recommended)

Den Haag (The Hague) was down the road. With a population of 486,000, it is the Dutch seat of government and the home to the royal family. Entering the major city we passed beneath new architectural buildings which looked very impressive. What wasn’t impressive were the lack of signs indicating where the UN International Court of Justice was. Even with a map, we probably spent an hour driving around the city trying to find it in the Vredespalais (Peace Palais). The one way system and roadworks always seemed to take you in the wrong direction.

Eventually, just as we were giving up, we stumbled across it – a massive old mock Gothic palace (1913) behind fancy gates. The rain was lashing down. Various tour buses would pull up for photos but no one got out. Outside the gates was a ‘World Peace Flame’ (cute – a flame in a glassed box – with 197 countries agreeing that the flame represented peace – or whatever) and a couple of seats with mosaic designs of peace (the dove of peace and two hands stretching towards each other). I only wanted to see it because we are always hearing of international court cases being tried here. It was not open to visitors on a Sunday.

We fled Den Haag (it was like a black hole in the Netherlands – once you entered it, it was a long time before you got back out, though it looked a pleasant place to live) and made for Leiden and the Tulip bulb fields further north. I had expected a lot from the university town of Leiden (pop 117,000). The Lonely Person’s guide said it was “a refreshing, vibrant town patterned with canals and attractive old buildings” but after seeing Delft, it just didn’t make an impact. Maybe it was the rain or the fact that the canals were much wider – almost rivers rather than the narrow ones we had seen in Gouda and Delft - or just a dull Sunday morning. We did a quick drive around and moved on to what we really wanted to see.

It was early May and the tulips were blooming. Leiden is the largest place near the 110 sq km of tulip fields which lie between it and coastal areas. As we left Leiden, we took a slip road off the highway and I spotted our first field of colourful tulips. I must get a photo, I thought and pulled off the road onto what I thought was solid ground. With the non stop rain, the solid ground was in fact mud and both wheels on the right hand side of the car started sinking. We attempted to reverse out but the front wheel kept sinking.

It was mid Sunday afternoon, pouring with rain, we had a car stuck in mud, unsure of our location and we were seriously buggered. What to do? Call our European breakdown service? How would they find us? As I contemplated our predicament, a local Dutchman pulled up with his truck, tied a rope from his front tow bar to our back end and pulled us out. It took two minutes. What a saviour. I’ve always liked the Dutch – down to earth, just get on with it kind of people – and wished his team good luck in the World Cup coming soon. The car never left the road after that experience!

Soon enough, we came across the tulip fields, a 19 mile strip between Leiden and Haarlem called the Bloembollenstreek. There were acres and acres of them - lines of multicoloured tulips stretching to the horizon. What a glorious sight. Many tourists visit the Keukenhof Gardens – the world’s largest bulb flower garden (32 hectares) but by the time we arrived, it was nearly closing time and we had seen enough tulips already.

We had entered the province of Noord (North) Holland and made for Haarlem (pop 149,000) near the coast to the west of Amsterdam. We were expecting a “classic Dutch city of cobble-stone streets, historic buildings, grand churches” etc etc. But when we parked up to take a stroll, it just seemed to be the Grote Market surrounded by bland litter strewn shopping precincts. The square had a town hall and mish mash gothic cathedral (Grote Kerk van St Bavo) with a 50m high steeple. Maybe everyone had headed home or the rain just made it look ordinary, but we didn’t hang around. Tonight we were staying at the Amsterdam Formule 1 hotel to the west of the city in the suburb of Zaandam. It cost 53 Euros and was a little run down.

On the Bank Holiday Monday (3rd), it was still pouring with rain. Since I was coming back to Amsterdam in early June, we decided to check out three towns just north of the city.

Marken lay on an island in the Gouwzee Bay connected by a low lying causeway. The wind was whipping up the sea and it was freezing. They have made it car free and charge a hefty amount to leave your car in the ‘park and walk’ car park. Given the rainy conditions and horrendous wind, we passed and headed for Volendam.

Volendam (21,000 pop) is only 22km north of Amsterdam and is a former fishing port turned tourist trap. I used to take tourists around it myself in 1987. Once we got through the ordinary houses, we found the old harbour with rows of wooden houses and mostly souvenir shops and restaurants. The shops were full of clogs, dolls, wooden tulips etc etc. The town had expanded greatly since I had last been here.

Finally, we checked out the village of Edam (7400 pop) a couple of miles away which was certainly the nicest of the three. Once a renowned whaling port, this scenic little town is one of Noord Holland’s hidden gems. The old shipping warehouses lining quiet cobblestone streets had been converted into houses and the narrow canals were crossed using hand operated drawbridges. Of course, edam cheese is now the main tourist draw and there is a weekly cheese market (kaasmarkt). Today we visited the kaasmarkt’s single gabled weigh house (1592) and stocked up. The large balls of edam cheese wrapped in yellow wax (red for export) were stacked up outside. The village was almost free of tourists and was a lovely highlight to end our sightseeing (recommended).

From Edam, we had to make our way around Amsterdam and down to Utrecht. The roads were clogged with traffic, especially convoys of large trucks. The traffic and rain continued down to Breda and stopped before Antwerp in Belgium. Crossing to Bruges and then down to Dunkerque, it took nearly 5 hours but we made the 8pm ferry back to Dover.

We never reached saw the northern sections of the Netherlands, nor Utrecht or Maastricht. No matter, they are always there for another tour of a friendly, civilised European neighbour.