THE END.

Before we knew it we were by the beach in Scheveningen on LF1 (click here to read my first thoughts on the place). For anyone who has read my blogs you’ll recognise the name! You’ll probably also know that it’s not so far from where I used to Au Pair. Thus for old times’ sake I dragged my sister on a detour right into the centre of The Hague in order to reminisce on my memories there (here's a little summary of the city as seen by me). A quick sprint through the fountains of the Spui and a cycle around the station's lovely zebra clock made it a fun farewell as we caught the coastalroute back to Noordwijk. Nice to finish the trip with familiarity. 

Thanks Soph for doing it with me!

They really couldn’t have placed our final photo-point better…the Noordwijk lighthouse was right at the end of the town’s boulevard. With a snappy photo on a dying phone we’d finished it. The following days were spent being utterly spoilt by our family friends in the impressive Dutch summer before flying home. One of my first memorbale experiences in NL had been in Noordwijk so it felt right to finish the adventure there. 

They say fortune favours the brave... in so many ways on the trip it felt like it didn’t- our daily bike failures made sure of that. With time, however, we've come to realise something. Actually we couldn’t have been more fortunate. We had three weeks full of challenges, experiences and beautiful sights…not to mention a fantastic music festival AND we made it back in one piece. I mean really, what’s not to be thankful for!? 

The best bit? We’re the only Brits on-record to have done it and certainly the only ones to have done it on such old bikes!

Making it to Middelburg- (18/06)

Little image of Middelburg Station here, it's a busy place!

Well and truly in the province of Zeeland much of our way was along the water’s edge. As the name suggests most of the province is below sea level, consisting of a number of separate islands as well as a strip bordering Belgium (but we cut that bit out!). With an affinity of water comes one of wind, the two being intrinsically bound, so slowly but surely wind turbines became a regular sight and our pace in the burning heat suffered. It wasn’t the only one, our camera too seemed unable to cope and ceased to work! Through too many toils to list we wound up with great relief in Middelburg, the capital of the province.

Back on Track- (17/06)

With the end of PinkPop it was time to pack up all our stuff and start cycling once more- but not before a quick scheduled train trip to take us back up onto the Ronde van Nederland route. You do have to pay to take your bike on the train in the Netherlands and it's only allowed in non-peak times but priority is given to you if you get in the designated carriage so the experience was not overly traumatic. Getting on and off the steep stairs at the platform and indeed off the platform out of the station was however. A little surprising for so bike-friendly a country. Nevertheless before the day was up we’d passed through the well-known cities of Eindhoven, Tilburg and Breda all in a westerly direction- parallel in fact to that of LF13. It felt appropriate that on our mother’s 60^th birthday we had made such definite advances toward the end of our NL adventure. Home felt on the horizon.    

PinkPop Day 3- (16/06)

If you are not a great fan of optimistic adjectives please read no further…

• Out of pure interest we headed to see a band called Puggy at the Brand Bier Stage and were wowed by their catchy pop tunes. It was lovely to see an Englishman, Frenchmen and Swede gel so well together.  
• Next up Bastille. We knew 2 songs of theirs before listening to the humble Londoners perform and now we know an albums worth. Their songs had such great beats that it was difficult not to shuffle along to them.
• At the 3FM Stage old-timers Stereophonics provided some great easy-listening.
• Following The Vaccines on the Main Stage was Ben Howard. He was fantastic. Not just another Brit with a guitar. Interestingly a women (in his backing band of 2) switched instruments for each song, playing mainly the cello, and sang beautifully to add to Ben’s rustic vocals.  
• Closing the festival with a 2 hour set were Green Day- not our usual cup of tea but I have to say they entertained. They sure know how to get an audience going and it was a lot of fun if not a little bit messy.

All in all a fantastic festival.   

Maastricht- (12/06)

Now to roam off the Ronde van Nederland track. Instead of heading west we continued to the very tail of the Netherlands and the capital of the province, Maastricht. It’s a lovely historical city with a mountain of shops, buildings and parks to look around. Being home to a thriving international university we really enjoyed people watching in the central square (squares being an integral part of a Dutch city). 

We’d booked into a Stayokay hostel for the night, well known in NL for their good basic accommodation, which was such a luxury after 2 weeks of sleeping in a tight-packed 2-man tent. Speaking of luxury.. the unlimited breakfast of the next morning was decisively pushed to its limits :)

More Maas- (11/06)

Continuing along the Maas we entered Limburg, the most southern province of the Netherlands, and it was noticeable how differently they spoke- distinctively German in sound. Within the province they actually have their own local dialects so with my amateur level of Dutch it was no wonder I was confused. Fortunately no spoken Dutch was required to reach our campsite! Interestingly from the previously vast nature of the Dutch landscapes there was a definite feeling of density and vegetation as we made it to Roermond. Our campsite was again surrounded by water, a very familiar but nevertheless welcome sight on the tour.

De Hoge Veluwe Park- (09/06)

Having set up camp in the outskirts of Arnhem we found ourselves perfectly placed for a day at the Hoge Veluwe Park. It’s the largest privately owned nature park in the Netherlands with 5,000 hectares of woodland, heathland, drift sands and peat bogs.

With 1700 free white bikes, visitors can make use of the 43km of bike paths to explore this extraordinary place. Happy to ditch our bikes for the day we loved cycling around the park load-free! The weather was naturally windy but with the sun out we spent a relaxing hour or so sunbathing by the many helpfully placed picnic benches. 

The 13km to the Visitors Centre from the entrance was worth it for the information about the animal habitat, methods of maintenance and history. From there the Kroller-Muller Museum and Sculpture Garden satisfied my artist interests. A great day out for the family. I highly recommend.   

A bit of history- (08/06)

Getting around the river Ijssel we intended to spend the day in Arnhem but with yet another puncture we were forced to stop in the city of Doesburg. As we tried to enter the high-street we were (and I kid you not) stopped by medieval guards who informed us that bikes were not allowed. Having explained the situation we were then escorted by guard to the bike shop beyond the gate. Turns out the town was having its annual medieval celebration, the Doesburgse Hanzefeesten. Well we thoroughly enjoyed having a look around the craftsman stalls, antique market, and traditional venders, listening to the folky live music and observing everybody’s medieval fancy-dress.  

Eventually we made it to Arnhem. A place I’ve always wanted to visit, being a bit of a history lover. We wandered through the city streets on the way to the Battle of Arnhem Museum situated intentionally within sight of the John Frost Bridge (named after the Major-General who led British forces in defence of the bridge). The museum was really interesting, mapping out the movement of Allied and Enemy forces chronologically with clips from the infamous film A Bridge too Far (although that is of course fiction). I really liked the walls displaying the feelings/accounts of German and British soldiers as well as Dutch eye-witnesses (both young and old).

If you really don’t know what I’m on about I suggest you read up on your WW2 history. Be warned though, there's no happy ending here.  

Ijssel Reunion- (07/06)

Navigating ourselves was never too difficult, we followed the LF signs and if they weren't there then often bike checkpoint numbers (or ‘knooppunts’ if you’re Dutch) were. Failing that, red-lettered signs for nearby villages or towns, with the number of km to go, could also be found. In some cases navigation was made EVEN easier by the fact that there was only one possible path. As our long day of cycling entered its final quarter this was certainly the case. Courtesy of the river Ijssel. 

The 113km river flows all the way to the Ijsselmeer* from its origins in the German Lower Rhine. By simply following the water we made it our campsite which was conveniently located along its edge.


A bit of a risky place to put a campsite if you ask me, I'm guessing the path in the photo was once accessible....

*remember that?... the area by the Afsluitdijk up in the North

Overijssel delivers- (06/06)

Making further strides through Overijssel we met its largest city, Enschede but not before a rather bizarre find. We’d been working our way steadily through a pretty dense area of forest until suddenly it completely opened up and we found ourselves encountered with something more at home in the landscapes of Africa or Asia, the Lutterzand. Dismounting our bikes, advised for your safety, we walked along the steep edge following the meandering river until the forest appeared once more. 

It was amazing to think that not a few kilometres back had we found the Denekamp. Stunning in a different way with its bustling pavilion complete with an encasing lily-clad lake, traditional watermill, lock and blossoms...      

 

No glitches- (05/06)

Another day for the landscapes. A pleasurable 90km took us to our campsite in Den Ham, now in the Dutch province of Overijssel. 

Perhaps it is worth saying that the day was actually our first since starting the trip where we suffered no bike failure. By that I mean… no long detours to find bike shops, no carrying our bikes for kilometres, no forking out for new inner tyres or frames and no relying on the good will of others. In a celebratory mood we found a nearby restaurant and treated ourselves whilst hoping against hope that it would be the first free day of many... 

Dolmen Day- (04/06)

With the turn of the week it was time to start the descent of the eastern border, stop heading north and start going south. The rays of sunshine heightened the beauty of all the flower fields and forests that we cycled through. We happily photographed them all. 

There were, however, a few points at which photographs played a more important, less leisurely, role. Along the entire route were 6 photo-points. Basically points where a photo of us and our bikes were needed to prove that we had actually completed the Ronde van Nederland properly- no cutting corners. The day heralded one of our favourite photo-points of the trip... the largest dolmen in the Netherlands. Don’t worry I also had no idea what one was before we saw it but hopefully the picture will help! Pretty impressive, no? 

Going to Groningen- (03/06)

With probably over 300km cycled we were very happy to have a day where more time was spent sightseeing than cycling. A brisk 40km under the sun bought us to the city of Groningen, the largest town of the North but definitely not what Brits would consider large. Our cycle route took us straight from the countryside into the central square with its town hall, tourist information and church all in immediate sight. 

It was really refreshing to see some youthful faces as the rural cycle routes were very much dominated by quick middle-aged professionals or meandering elderlies. Let’s just say I wasn’t at all surprised to hear that students make up around 25% of Groningen’s population! With the weather still warm we plucked up enough courage to take an evening dip in our campsites lake to top off a great day. Yet another stunning natural campsite to add to the list and not a stone's throw from a bustling city.   

Day #5- (02/06)

We’d been following LF10 since leaving Den Helder and it bought with it a noticeably greener scenery than that of our first few days. More and more wind turbines began to penetrate the increasingly flat horizons. The undulation of the coastal routes was certainly not missed! All along the Dutch western border were further opportunities to hop off to one of the Dutch islands but having already more than halved the suggested speed for completing the Ronde van Nederland we thought that 1 was enough this time.

Onward we skirted a beautifully enormous man-made lake, the Lauwersmeer, and enjoyed a free pedalo around the considerably smaller lake surrounding our secluded campsite later that day. With the setting sun came thoughts of our grandmother (our 'oma') who was born in the very province of Friesland. It's nice to know that we can now say we've been there... 

Easter in NL (29/03-01/04)

A Good Good Friday:

Having shown my twin sister around the main sights of the Hague by Thursday evening it was time to see them all, and all the other sights of the Netherlands, in miniature! Madurodam, an enormous miniature village, was a great day out for us and my host kids. Lining almost every section of the park were interactive kids games or toys to keep them entertained and card-activated informative videos for the adults. As we weaved our way through the traditional mills, wind turbines, boats, bridges, castles, churches, houses, cities, flowers, cheeses, stadium and airport I was thrilled by how much I recognised and how much I’d seen in real life.

I didn’t get to stop and observe as much as I would have wanted to as a lengthy stop at the incredible kids playground proved necessary as did a stop at the café for a quick muffin and hot chocolate :) Once back home Sophie and I got ready for a night out to celebrate my friend’s birthday. That ticked off another attraction off the list.

Saturday:

Midday called for a relaxing bagel and tea at one of my favourite cafes in the Hague, Bagel & Beans with Sophie and friends. Then a stroll along the Scheveningen promenade- still astoundingly cold for the time of the year!- and it’s pier with its great view across the beach (more on Scheveningen in summer here). A trip to the cinema there rounded off a lovely relaxing Saturday. Simply ‘lifting’ Sophie to all these manner of places was enough to warrant this day of rest. What’s ‘lifting’? The word refers to the carrying of another on the back of one’s bike. Very very common in the Netherlands.

A Sisterly Sunday:

On a day celebrating new life I celebrated having my twin physically back in mine. I couldn’t resist showing her all around Delft and I was really pleased to hear some Easter tunes in Delft’s central square. The cheese tasting in the Henri Willig shop and the visit to the Royal Delft official shop just next door ensured that I completed all that I wanted to in this lovely little town.  

Roaming Rotterdam:

An early start for the train to Rotterdam is how Sophie’s last full day in NL began. Locating a different Tourist Information from my first visit (more here) proved to produce a gem. A free walking tour of Rotterdam’s architecture. The absurd mix of modern and old, simple and complex, curvaceous and jagged, monolithic and bright, opaque and transparent, functional and decorative, dense and sparing, towering and plane. Just wow.

The sun even ventured out as we caught a bus to take us around Rotterdam by water. You read right. A bus. Starting at the Southern point of the harbour we were driven to the Northern point and with an almighty splash (thoroughly enjoyed by all the kids on board) we entered the water. It was a lovely hour long tour, with a perfect view over Rotterdam’s eccentric skyline. Nice to see the Euromast Tower and Erasmus Bridge from an unobstructed vantage point.  

Tuesday morning Sophie and I took the kids to school, then straight to Schipol and then it was back again for me to pick them up. It was a lovely Easter, while it lasted. Love you and miss you Soph x