Netherlands & Belgium

Tulips and Windmills

April 2014

 

           We do love river cruises, such a relaxing way to travel! Had Viking River Cruises on the Rhine (2003) and Burgundy/Provence (2009), plus Marjorie & her sister Mary did a Rhine Christmas Markets journey (2012). My semi-retired status now means not teaching this Spring, enabling a VRC “Tulips and Windmills” trip in the Netherlands & Belgium.

Things are busy leading up to our travels. Much prepping for interior painting by friends Teralynn & Rich while we’re away, to be followed by carpet replacement upstairs after we return. This triggers one of Marjorie’s missions to reduce clutter  ̶  many boxes go out to donation sites. We enjoy visits from old friends: Annie & Thomas from our Madison days, Alan from Rochester & Madison. I’m battling sciatica in my right hip (hip issues seem common among our contemporaries  ̶  brings new meaning to “aging hippies”). I get help from physical therapist Nate, friend Betty lends a collapsible cane and student I-Hsin a “Biofreeze” roll-on that helped her. It’s progressed from hobbling to bothersome but manageable. Perhaps “medicinal” substances will be available in Amsterdam.

Thursday, April 3:

          It’s been a long snowy winter, but finally starting to feel like Spring; tho still some very dirty snow piles and Siena College radio played all Christmas music and seasonal greetings on April Fools Day. A pretty early Spring day for a drive down to JFK; we’ve gotten a good deal for parking at one of the private lots: “JFK Long Term Parking.” Some heavy traffic toward the end, but to parking and shuttle to the airport plenty early. First photo of the trip to loosen my shutter finger: a colorful M&M display near our gate. On-time departure at 8:40pm on Icelandair; good leg room, but no free food, not even snacks!

Friday, April 4:

          On time at about 6:15am (lost 4 hours) to Keflavik International, outside Reykjavik. We’ve never been to Iceland, Marjorie’s excited to get passport stamped going from one flight to the other. But this seems not enough to be a “visit,” so Iceland is still on our bucket list. Still on time to Amsterdam Schilphol Airport at 12:40pm (lost another 2 hours). Cloudy, mid-60s. Past a tulip-themed shop in the airport mall, a nice foreshadowing. Easily thru baggage claim and customs to be greeted by VRC rep, a pretty blond, of course. A half-hour bus ride to the ship, and look: green grass, daffodils, trees in bloom! She says it’s been an unusually warm spring, so we should be fortunate w/ tulips.

Our ship (shown above from later in the trip) is docked near Centraal Station, along w/ numerous others  ̶  river cruises have expanded dramatically over the past 10 years. We’re on one of the newer “longships,” the Bragi, named for the Norse god of poetry, music, and eloquence (seems a good fit for us, we think modestly). 

It holds up to 190 w/ larger lounges & sun decks (including over-sized chess set & putting green!), features include “hotel-style beds,” 40” flat-screen TVs, in-room refrigerators. 

As on previous trips we reserved the least expensive accommodations  ̶  the smallest stateroom on the lowest deck, half-windows at waterline; after all, we don’t spend much time there what w/ shore excursions and ship lounges. But a surprise about a month before sailing: an e-mail to “Valued Guest” informed us that our “continued loyalty” gets us a complimentary upgrade. A nice treat: larger stateroom (205 vs. 150 sq ft) on the 2^nd deck w/ sliding doors onto our own veranda. It’s quite comfy. 

Lunch in the lounge, w/ wine (gratis at lunch and dinner, a recently-added perk). A few notes about the food: It is plentiful & excellent! Breakfast & lunch buffets in the restaurant or lounge, and some things can be ordered from the menu; lunches typically include something grilled. Dinner is a gourmet experience, w/ excellent presentation. It begins w/ mysterious amuse bouche (bite-sized hors d’oeuvres), then different choices each night for first and main courses & dessert, and more standard fare (chicken, fish, steak) can be ordered instead by the less adventurous. And the wine (or beer) just keeps coming. For dining, and all other things, there’s plenty of friendly crew eager to help. Coffee stations are also available thruout the day, usually stocked w/ yummy cookies. There will be dieting when we get home!

After lunch a Welcome Walking Tour of Amsterdam. The 1^st impression: so many bikes!! It’s hard to drive in the old cities, plus gas costs a lot more here. Bikes are parked everywhere. We keep hearing about how often they are stolen, w/ stories of people buying back their own bikes. Many different cuisines: Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Irish pubs, Brazilian grills, Argentine steakhouses, etc.

Pretty flower shops, lovely canal views w/ many houseboats, beautiful building facades. And then there are the “coffee” shops where nobody orders coffee; rather, these might better be termed “marijuana dens.” At various times we also see signs for cannabis ice cream & “space cake.” Guide says marijuana is “not legal but tolerated” (in small amounts). 

We also see the main Dam Square w/ Royal Palace. Walking back to the ship the guide says we’ve gone 3.5 km and burned almost 400 calories according to her phone app.

Back on board we have a safety drill, going to our “muster stations” all looking quite silly in our orange life vests. Before dinner there’s an info session w/ Bavarian Tour Manager Ray Bauer, who reminds us of actors Sean Hayes and Martin Short (and does comic riffs during his briefings). A daily briefing is held each evening and we get a 4-page “Viking Daily” w/ schedules, info about the day’s excursions, other tidbits about Dutch & Belgian history and culture (e.g., the origin of “going Dutch,” and the Dutch are the tallest people in the world on average). There are also a “USA Times” w/ daily news summaries in the ship’s small library, 2 computers for internet and e-mail access, some TV stations (mostly news, like CNN), and movies. We watch again the 1^st 2 seasons of “Downton Abbey,” for which VRC is a major sponsor. Don’t make much use of the sun deck, which includes a giant chess set and herb garden.

   At our 1^st dinner we sit w/ friendly couples from Utah (Jane & Kim) and San Diego (Diane & Bill). We do most of our hangin’ out w/ them and Judy & Roy from San Francisco (coincidentally, their niece is a sociologist w/ “aging” interests similar to me). Jane & Kim should be especially interested in the Dutch waterworks  ̶  she works in power management, he’s a mechanical engineer. And there are plenty of other congenial folk on the ship, including couples from Alberta, Houston, Wyoming, Portland OR, mother-daughter from Canada, friends from Dallas & Georgia.

Saturday, April 5:

          CNN still seems obsessed w/ the missing Malaysian airliner. Breakfast on board. 

We’re off to a canal & city tour. [For these tours we use “quiet boxes” to hear guides thru earpieces so they don’t have to shout.] Cloudy start, but sunny & warm (mid-60s) PM.

Amsterdam has 165 canals (the Canal Ring is a World Heritage Site) and 1281 bridges (3 times as many as Venice). There’s one place to see 7 bridges lined up down a canal.

Many colorful houseboats, some very fancy, others dilapidated. Pretty birds: coots & swans. “Dancing Houses,” built on stilts that caused them to wobble and lean. 

Guide says the canals are 3 meters deep: 1 for mud, 1 for bicycles, 1 for water. The canal boat manages to squeeze thru the bridges. Canals are lined w/ beautiful buildings, some ornately decorated gables & doors. Past a very long line for Anne Frank house. A 4-level parking garage for over 4000 bikes. We’re warned to “take care of the bikes” when crossing the omnipresent bike paths thruout the city. The “Weeping Tower,” where women bid farewell to their seafarin’ men.

To a very colorful flower market w/ nearby cheese shops. Back to the ship for lunch (never miss a meal!), we have to cross thru another ship to board. Ships are docked cheek-by-jowl. Ray later warns us to be careful about throwing open our curtains to “stretch in all your glory” in the morning  ̶  you may be looking right into another stateroom!

           After lunch M goes on the optional Delft city and porcelain ware tour. She likes quaint Delft over the bustle of Amsterdam. 

I poke around impressive and busy Centraal Station (trains, buses, trams, ferries) and follows part of a Frommer’s walking tour of canals, including Brouwersgracht and Prinsengracht, w/ nice views of houseboats. But I pass up a big flea market. AM walking was difficult, so I try out the cane and find it helpful on the uneven cobblestone surfaces.

           Tonight is the “Welcome Dinner,” preceded by a champagne reception where we’re introduced to senior officers and heads of departments. The crew totals 50, mostly it seems from E. Europe: Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria. Much gaiety tonight and thruout the cruise; and waitstaff serenade at dinners those w/ birthdays or anniversaries (♫Let me call you sweetheart♫).

Sunday, April 6:

          We set sail north to Hoorn at 4am; on a large lake (Markermeer) but the cruising is always very smooth. As always I’m up very early, check e-mail & sports (Wisconsin has missed playing for the NCAA basketball championship by 1 point!). A pretty morning view.

Docking at breakfast time, then a guided walk. Chilly & light rain to start, some more later, uneven walking on cobblestones & bricks here as everywhere in these medieval places, but it’s nonetheless a lovely outing. The harbor has interesting boats and watchtower, pretty birds. 

A nice town, pretty houses (some lean forward to enable lifting things to upper floors, others lean to the side due to settling), decorated facades, flowering trees, forsythia, pretty garden plots in front of houses. 

 

Pretty waterways w/ little houseboats for ducks to perch on. The guide remembers as a child Operation Market Garden by the Allies in WWII; we’ll be touring that area tomorrow. One of our group thinks a sign, Verboten des Zwemmen, is banning women, but it’s really “no swimming.”

We’re now broken into smaller groups for home visits w/ people who live here. We meet a young couple (he produces radio jingles, she’s an English teacher) and her mother who serve coffee/tea & apple cake, chat about schools, taxes, local sports, etc. This is a nice personalized touch. 

On the way back to the ship we go thru an old convent that for a time was an old women’s home. Past other lovely buildings, beautiful architectural details. 

  

 

After lunch we take an optional tulip farm tour. Still chilly & windy, but predicted rain mostly holds off. On the bus the guide recounts more local history and culture. We’re in North Holland, 1 of 12 provinces. This area is mostly up to 16’ below sea level, w/ “land reclaimed from the sea” by dikes and dams  ̶  “The Good Lord created the world. We Dutch created our own country” (we hear this proud sentiment more than once). The bus ride passes pretty countryside, lovely towns & villages, many wind turbines (which now far outnumber the traditional windmills).Then colorful red, yellow, purple tulip fields as we reach the Munster family tulip farm. A very interesting presentation about processes more involved than we expected for producing top-quality tulips.

Plus a nice snack. This farm produces some 7 million bulbs a year. The colorful fields are used only for the bulbs; the flowers are recycled for biofuel. Flowers sold (at auction) are cultivated in greenhouses, stored in cold storage areas, sorted by bunching machines to weed out those that don’t make the grade.

Marjorie is given a “reject” purple tulip by a guy on the bunching assembly line; it blooms to decorate our stateroom during the rest of the cruise. We head out to the fields for some photos, then do the “tulip stomp” to get mud off our shoes before getting back on the bus.

Guide Marbel then takes us to her own nearby farm: a “visit farm” w/ their own wind turbine for extra income selling the energy produced (levenvandewind.com). One of our group becomes the 500^th visitor and receives a porcelain wind turbine; appropriate, since her own son lives on a wind farm in Wyoming. Marbel gives an interesting presentation aided by 2 young sons & very friendly dogs.

Heading back to the ship we pass “Civil Servant,” the largest wind turbine in the Netherlands (442’ high, it powers 13,000 households) and then a traditional windmill. We drive next to an 80-mile long, 800-year-old dike w/ lots of sheep & lambs grazing on it, then another cute town, pretty farms.

Back at the ship we learn that Ray will be coming to a wedding in Schenectady (next to Albany) in October. We tell him he should take a “Dutch Apple” cruise on the Hudson, later Marjorie gives him a sample list of the many Dutch-heritage places around Albany (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Watervliet, Gansevoort, etc.)  ̶  and we have our own Tulip Festival in May.  Ray says a year ago today it was -5°C! We’re having excellent weather fortune.

After dinner one of the tall Dutch men (6’7”) in traditional costume gives an amusing and interesting demo on making wooden shoes. We then cruise south thru the night under clearing skies & a bright half-moon.

       

Monday, April 7: 

          I continue my routine of starting the day way too early (before 6) w/ the 1^st of several daily sessions of stretching for my hip. BBC: Prince William & Kate are visiting New Zealand, but baby Prince George is stealing the show. CNN: Mickey Rooney has died at 93. Sports news (of the non-USA variety): Sri Lanka wins the Twenty20 cricket title over India. We’re docked at Arnhem, near Germany in eastern Netherlands (Gelderland), by the John Frost Bridge (named for the British Commander of Operation Market Garden), aka “The Bridge Too Far” of movie fame; the Nelson Mandela Bridge can be seen further away. A nice spring morning, partly sunny & pleasant temps. Goedemorgen (“good morning”) from guide Anneliese. The bus takes us thru the city, countryside, and towns, pretty parks, flowering trees & tulips, fields w/ horses & ponies.

We pass drop zones for paratroopers in the large (and unsuccessful) Operation Market Garden that occurred between the liberation of Paris and D-Day. To the Airborne Museum w/ artifacts and an “Airborne Experience” designed to give a feel for being under fire during that operation.

On to the cemetery for 1754 Allied soldiers. Pretty and well kept up, rows of simple white headstones, flowering shrubs around the perimeter. Some headstones are identified only as “Known Unto God.” Many sirens as we’re ready to leave  ̶  no invasion, just marking the 1^st Monday of the month.   

       

           After lunch we do the optional Open Air Museum excursion (my brother Doug & sister-in-law Ann enjoyed this on our previous Rhine cruise). More clouds but still some sun & forecasted rain again holds off. A Dutch version of Sturbridge or Williamsburg, the Nederlands openluchtmuseum, on 100 acres w/ nearly 100 buildings, preserves “the old ways”: farms, houses, churches, pubs, windmills, boats, even reconstruction of a 1960 Chinese restaurant. 

The entrance building incorporates different styles of brick walls. Here & elsewhere we see espalier  ̶  “training” trees & shrubs by pruning and tying to a frame. Many ducks & coots (plus us “old coots” from the ship), an egret poses for photos. The tram conductor has a daughter in Brooklyn; he’ll visit in May. Outside the entrance is “HollandRama,” a quite amazing production on Dutch history and culture. Multimedia exhibits, dioramas, filmstrips appear to cycle by you a la Disney World while seats move beneath you. It becomes apparent at the end that the theater in which we’re seated is itself rotating and moving up and down via a hydraulic setup.

Driving back to the ship we learn more about Dutch culture and history. Skating & swimming are major activities.  Arnhem has a major fashion college. Guide Miriam reviews the royal family. Queen Beatrix abdicated a year ago to now-King William, who married Argentine commoner Maxima; Miriam comments that it seems common for royals now to marry “lower classes.” William & Maxima have 3 daughters; the eldest will become Queen. Back at the ship, during the briefing Ray asks if anyone did anything interesting Dutch. Some answers: “I took a Dutch nap.” “I had gelato w/ flavors listed in Dutch.” Ray tells us there will be a 6 meter tide in the river at Antwerp; they’ll have to keep moving the gangplank. After dinner 2 young men provide excellent and eclectic jazz and pop music.

Tuesday, April 8:

         

CNN: Para-Olympian Oscar Pistorius is testifying in his trial in S. Africa over the killing of his girlfriend. A rainbow can be seen from our veranda.A barge passes.

Now near the North Sea coast, we start today w/ the World Heritage Site windmills at Kinderdijk. Cloudy & breezy w/ some rain, much cooler (40s AM, up to 50s PM). Marjorie opts to stay on the ship since she saw this on the trip w/ her sister. I head off along the dike trying to keep an umbrella under control in the wind. It’s well worth the effort: 19 windmills dating from the 1500s are spread along canals, the rain clouds mix w/ some sun to create quite dramatic vistas.

First to a workshop where guide Jack talks about the construction of dikes & windmills. He punctures one legend: the “little Dutch boy” w/ his thumb in the dike is a myth. Jack also notes the Dutch origins of such place names as the Bronx and the Bowery.

Into a working mill, up 3 steep flights of stairs to see the workings of the mill, also pretty living quarters used by a family here. Moving on I drop my “box,” then follow the wrong group; but quickly recover my bearings. 

More displays to see.

   Back on the ship there’s a run on the coffee stations after the blustery hike. Marjorie has been comfortably doing watercolors in the lounge.After lunch Ray gives an interesting presentation on water management. He begins w/ some population demography & geography. All of our cruising is on the Rhine, but there are different branches and names, some are inland seas. 20% of the country is below sea level. Windmills pump out water to “reclaim” land, creating polders. 20^th C focus is coastal protection, especially after the 1953 North Sea flood, using surge barriers and moving gates. There is also a “Room for the River” program that seeks to accommodate the river w/o stopping natural ebb & flow.

Cruising south thru the PM, sun & pretty clouds. Sheep along the dikes, colorful barges, many wind turbines (one area w/ 20+), some nuclear plants and industrial areas, thru some locks. It’s so windy you can hardly stand up on the sun deck, whitecaps on the river, some wind turbines shut down when it’s blowing too hard, but smooth sailin’ nonetheless. 

A relaxing PM on the river. Some play cards, Scrabble, Rummikub. M has me take pictures of interesting photo art in the hallways to try at home. Crew photos from our excursions are continually screening in the lounge; a CD can be purchased at the end, but we think we’ll have plenty of our own (about 800 for R, 150 for M). 

Thru more locks. The Captain gives a “nautical talk” in the lounge: joystick & other controls to maneuver the ship, radar & GPS, the wheelhouse is lowered for low bridges, views of the engine room. We later learn it’s the Capt’s 1^st cruise in charge; he does fine, we don’t hit anything. Then a Belgian waffle demo & tasting. We’ve now crossed into Belgium, where the Smurfs (les Schtroumpfs) were created. Also known for beer, chocolate, and invention of french fries (eaten here w/ mayo). Docking at Antwerp after dinner.

Wednesday, April 9: 

          A sunny, cool AM. The ship is sinking! Oh wait, it’s just low tide. And we are right up against another ship at the dock! CNN: Pro-Russian protests in eastern Ukraine. 

Off on a walking tour w/ guide Gert. As always, we can get a pink water bottle from Maitre d’ Palma as we leave the ship. 

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          Antwerp is known for diamonds & fashion. Nice old streets, many reliefs and sculptures on buildings, shells in the sidewalk mark lodging for Santiago de Campostela pilgrims, oldest house from 1442.

Along the riverside to fortress Het Steen w/ statue of local legend “Water Ghost.” Vleeshuis, butchers’ guildhouse; also called “Blood Mountain” because blood ran down the street from slaughtered animals.

 

Newer pretty housing nearby in Hanseatic style. Past back-alley “1-room houses,” like NYC tenements.  Other pretty scenic details as we stroll along. 

 

          To the main square, Grote Markt, w/ Stadhuis (City Hall) w/ many colorful flags. Statue of legendary Brabo who slew a giant, cut off his hand, and threw it into the river (Antwerp means “throw a hand”).

Into Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal (Cathedral of our Lady).

Beautiful paintings (including Rubens) spread thruout make for a distinctive look; also pretty windows, 52 side altars for different guilds. 

   Some time to browse in the nice city center: many shops (chocolate, beer, etc.), nice eateries (and McDonalds & Starbucks!). Into Grand Bazaar mall w/ colorful candy shop and a Tupperware store (!). In the lower level M can fill her yen for poking thru local grocery stores at Carrefour Market; we buy some Belgian chocolate (to take home, honest). 

Back at noon, the ship has risen! A very Belgian lunch w/ fries & beer. Then back into town on our own. A fancy chocolaterie in Paleis op de Meir, formerly a royal palace: beautiful wall murals, colorful candy displays from large bunnies to a Day of the Dead couple.

The clompety-clomp of Belgian draft horses pulling a tourist stagecoach. Along busy pedestrian shopping drag the Meir.

On to Rubenshuis, Peter Paul Rubens’ house (well, mansion really, no starving artist here!). A beautiful setting for his paintings and an extensive collection of others. Especially evocative is “Young boy on his death bed,” a reflection of 17^th C high infant mortality. 

M spends more time in the grocery, I walk back to the ship past Suiet en Seksie, w/ candy and … other stuff.

Pre-dinner reception for Viking Explorer Society members who like us have been on other VRC cruises. We chat w/ a couple who have done retirement travel to all 48 contiguous states in an RV  ̶  Marjorie’s nightmare! Ray tells us about the photo of a woman behind the reception desk who christened the ship as its godmother in honor of her 27 cruises w/ VRC! We sit at dinner w/ Paul & Carol from Portland OR; he makes greeting cards similar to Marjorie’s, we exchange e-mails.

Thursday, April 10: 

Cruising during the night to the west; I awaken at 3am to see a beautiful shimmering moon reflection on the river. Docked at Ghent, clear & cool AM as we head out for Bruges w/ insouciant guide Christa. She says our 1^st stop will be “Madame Pee-Pee.” Past a long bike trail looping over the highway; she doesn’t much care for “bike terrorists.”

          Information about Ghent & Bruges during the 1-hour drive: Flemish linen, pig & chicken farms, schools are on 2-week Easter holiday. Christa talks a lot (too much?) about “The Monuments Men” movie and its background; says we’ll see 2 paintings saved by George Clooney. An unusual fountain by our parking lot w/ sculptures including mating frogs and lactating mermaids. 

Bruges is one of the best-preserved medieval cities: beautiful canals & swans, atmospheric old streets, lovely churches, an old hospital, many horse-and-buggy rides, lace & chocolate shops (including chocolate “Angry Birds”). 

Have to keep looking up and around for details and sculptures on buildings … but also watch the footing! We get into a tourist traffic jam waiting for a church to open; Christa has us leave to come back later. Free time now for “retail therapy;” I find a travel magnet for my collection, M a scarf & Easter egg for her collection. Tempted by cookie samples at colorful La Cure Gourmande, we buy some for later.

On to the Stadhuis w/ beautiful Gothic exterior, Markt Square surrounded by medieval buildings & carnival games & rides in the middle (even bumper cars). Ray offers sample Belgian fries w/ mayo.

Back to the Church of Our Lady. Lots of restoration work, but it’s still beautiful and we can see Michelangelo’s “Madonna and Child” (one of George Clooney’s rescues). 

Walking back to the bus past a residential square filled w/ daffodils.            On the bus we pass the Lake of Love, a pretty park, UNESCO roundabout filled w/ tulips, a big football (soccer here, of course) stadium.

After allowing some “relaxation,” Christa says “Wakey-Wakey” so she can give an orientation to Ghent. It’s much larger than we expected (250K, largest in East Flanders). A big university city, some 65K students.

          After lunch onto the bus into Ghent, joined by Diane to explore on our own. Lots of sun & warm (mid-60s). Past impressive sculptures to Sint-Baafskathedraal (St. Bavo’s Cathedral); showpiece is “The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb,” but it’s under restoration.

Nonetheless a beautiful church, interesting exhibits in the crypt.

On to another big square surrounded by beautiful buildings, a pretty park, several street musicians. A nice canal view from St. Michael’s Bridge w/ castle in the background. Back on the bus w/ jolly Scottish driver; he asks: How many countries drive the “correct” way (on the left)? Answer: most. There’s a big Volvo factory here.

          We’ve had 2 big days, lots of walking in 3 beautiful and interesting cities. Tonight is special dining: “A Taste of Holland & Belgium.” I view a herring tasting as an inauspicious start, but dinner is festive & tasty. Wandering accordion players. 

A variety of food stations spread across the restaurant, lounge, and galley (M enjoys seeing the kitchen). Ship departs about 10 to cruise overnight to Bruinisse in SW Netherlands. Past some noisy industrial areas.

Friday, April 11:

        Pretty boats in the harbor at sunrise. Mostly sunny AM, only to mid-50s today. Onto the bus. The guide, also personal assistant to a local mayor, tells about mussel “farmers.” Thru pretty agricultural countryside, neat furrows in fields for potatoes, sheep and horses on dikes. But mostly she focuses on the terrible 1953 North Sea flood: hurricane force winds and heavy rain for 20 hours overwhelmed and caused gaps in the dikes. Nearly 2000 died, including 4 brothers of the guide’s grandfather. It was 9-10 months before they could repair and fill gaps in the dikes w/ concrete caissons created for the WWII D-Day invasion but not used then. By then mussels were growing inside houses! 

We tour Watersnoodmuseum, housed in 4 of the immense 60’ tall caissons. Artifacts & exhibits about the flood, fabric art installations, poignant postcards in the gift shop of children’s artwork about the flood. 

Back on the bus, a long bridge over an arm of the interior sea. Floating markers for mussel farmers. Orchards in bloom about a month ahead of normal. Poplar trees along dikes, some polders are nature preserves.

          A nice stop in Veere, a picturesque village; would be a lovely place to stay in a Bed en Brood. Colorful boats, homes & gardens, shops. 

I take a photo of large rubber ducks in traditional Dutch garb under an umbrella for my choir director, who has a rubber duck collection. Afterward past fields w/ cows & horses, tepees for camping.

Along the North Sea to Delta Works storm surge barriers, 1 of the 7 Wonders of the Modern World compiled by the American Society of Civil Engineers (others include the Panama Canal and Empire State Building). It’s a long stretch of dams & barriers that can be lowered to keep out the North Sea when needed. Also many gleaming white wind turbines. Back to the ship and a heart-shaped towel on our bed from steward Florin.

        

           A nice PM for cruising north to Rotterdam, tho cool & increasing clouds. Ray does an “All Things Dutch” presentation, followed by tea & pastries (like we need more food!). Trees along the river are now quite filled out w/ leaves. Tonight is the Captain’s Reception and Dinner, w/ many courses! Ray introduces the entire crew by department, w/ his mantra: “Ladies and gentlemen, please put your hands together for …” After-dinner entertainment by Shantykoor (Shanty Choir) “Albatros” from Rotterdam. Dressed as if from some Retired Pirates Rest Home, very energetic renditions of nautical songs including “Anchors Aweigh” & “Sloop John B.” Lots of fun! We see lights of Rotterdam reflected on the river. Then cruising thru the night back up to Amsterdam.
      

Saturday, April 12: 

        Clear & 39° as we dock, only up to mid-50s today, a pretty AM sky. CNN: A shoe thrown at Hilary Clinton during a speech. Bikers texting on phones as they ride past the ship.

         Today is the piece de resistance: Keukenhof Gardens, the world’s largest floral park, 80 acres (or 32 hectares, we’re told), 7 million bulbs, a variety of gardens and styles. It’s open only 8 weeks a year, late March to late May. Guide Christiaan introduces our “Cheesehead” driver from Edem. During the 40-minute drive to Lisse we get info about the garden. It’s fully in bloom, earlier than usual. Pavilions named after royal family members house exhibitions, including roses in one. There was “Tulipmania” in 17^th C when bulb prices skyrocketed. Bulbs can be ordered for planting in the fall. We pass beautiful tulip fields of different colors as we circle the garden to coach parking.  

         Thru the hoofdingang (entrance) to incredible vistas! Flowers everywhere, layers of many colors and varieties of tulips (some seem to be on steroids), many other flowers (hyacinth, lavender, daffodils, etc.), flowering trees, azalea & rhododendron.  

 

Lovely paths, pretty ponds w/ swans. Words fail. Can’t imagine anything better: full blooming, a sunny day! What luck! We took the last cruise before the cost jumped substantially, hoping we wouldn’t be too early for the tulips. People who paid more for later cruises may be disappointed by tulips past their prime.

Enjoyable strolling with Jane and Kim. It’s good we got here early. As we leave at noon it’s gotten quite crowded and people are still streaming in; seasonal attendance is some 800,000 and it seems like they’re all coming in now. 

Pretty indoor settings, as well. We drive out past gardens w/ signs for self-plunken (pick your own). 

          The PM is spent relaxin’ and packin’. After dinner we stroll w/ Jane & Kim to the Red Light District. Crowded on a Saturday night, even tour groups. Ladies in their windows mostly look bored, some on their cellphones. At the edge of the district we experience the contrast of a choral group singing outside a church. 

 

Bypassing Medieval Torture, Erotica, and Sex Museums, we enjoy lights of Centraal Station and other buildings, ships at the docks. 

 

Sunday, April 13:

          Sports news: little Union College near us (2200 students, no athletic scholarships) beat big, bad Minnesota (that’s my Wisconsin hockey fan legacy speaking) for the NCAA hockey championship. Another beautiful sunny AM for disembarkation day  ̶  some depart very early, we’re more relaxed (luggage out at 9, transfer at 10). People for the next cruise coming on as our group leaves; Ray has shifted to his “Welcome!” role. A shared van to the airport w/ couples from New Hampshire & Long Island. A long walk to security (w/ a very jolly agent), another long walk to the gate only to find we’ve been told the wrong gate. Oh well, call this a last walking tour  ̶  there’s a large mall area of shops and eateries, another area is decorated like a forest w/ sounds of birds, water, a dog barking. Flight on time to Keflavik, coming in over rugged landscape, steaming vents, snowy mountains in the distance. Plus enticing tourist info on the plane. Must come back! [The predictable outcome of this is evident in another trip journal from a year later.] On the flight to JFK I’m next to a father-daughter from Paris going to check out colleges for her. On-time arrival about 7pm. Efficiently thru passport check and customs, shuttle to our parking, thru NYC and north up the Thruway, home about midnight.

This was a wonderful trip! It was more than “tulips and windmills”: atmospheric medieval cities, beautiful countryside and quaint villages, fascinating “water management” engineering. We were pampered by Ray and the ship’s crew. Excellent guides & excursions. A very congenial & punctual group of shipmates, new friends who enhanced the experience. Cooperative weather: only short periods  of rain, and did I mention the magical day at Keukenhof? And did I mention the food?

Special thanks to Betty! Her cane helped keep me from being relegated to the “Leisure Group” for walking excursions. And a shout-out to Teralynn & Rich  ̶  the painting is almost done when we return, and looks great!

It was a beautiful earlier-than-usual Dutch/Belgian spring, and now we’ll get a 2^nd spring at home. And celebrate Albany’s Dutch heritage w/ our own tulip festival in Washington Park next month. But altho it was in the 70s the day we got back, a couple of inches of snow fall to cover the ground 2 days later!