www.theblisspages.com - travel: The Netherlands
www.theblisspages.com - travel: The NetherlandsI have only visited Holland once, on holiday, but would love to return.
One morning, we drove to Kinderdijk, a well-known area with numerous windmills in the Alblasserwaard in South Holland. Kinderdijk has nineteen windmills in a row, and I found it entrancing.
Our base in Holland was Oss, where we stayed with a friend, Pieta, who made us very welcome. We also visited some of Pieta's friends and relatives, and I recall a lovely meal with good wine in gorgeous rural surroundings.
Holland is the ideal country for cycling. It's flat, so there are virtually no hills, but the thing that really makes the difference is the cars. In an accident, the driver of the car is automatically considered to be at fault. They are, after all, wielding a potentially lethal weapon. Drivers are careful and considerate around cyclists, and the reverse is also true. There is none of the anger and aggression one sees on the streets of London every day. Drivers stop and wait for cyclists, and the atmosphere is tranquil and friendly. There are also many well-maintained and segregated cycle lanes.
The result of this is bikes, thousands of bikes. Families of cyclists going out for Sunday outings. Amsterdam is also a haven for cyclists. All the bikes had integral locks on the rear wheels, so you didn't have to carry around huge and heavy cycle locks.
During one outing, it started to rain, and my young daughter, who must have been about two, was sitting in the front carrier. She didn't appreciate the sleeting rain in her face, and our journey home was accompanied by a continuous ululation of "No, no, no, no, no..." Who needs a bell?
One afternoon we went to the local sauna complex. It was superb and had none of the sleaziness that one sometimes finds in saunas in England. None of that stupid fumbling with towels and swimsuits that one can find here either. Nudity was treated as the norm.
When I visited Amsterdam, I went on a tour on a canal boat, but the other essential was a visit to the sex museum, which was an eye-opening experience. Hard pornography was on open display, some titillating whilst some was just disturbing. I didn't like the galleries devoted to sex with animals or masochism, but found some of the others fascinating. There was a continuous loop of hard core films showing, but by then we were becoming jaded by the continual barrage.
We also visited a coffee house by a bridge over the canal, but didn't partake of any highs other than an espresso. Unsurprisingly, there was a very-laid back atmosphere there.
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: © Mike Bliss 2008