Tulips, Canals, and Cheese in 2016

Tuesday morning,

Bob walked down the stairs and I took the elevator

we had breakfast.

green tea

Belgian waffles

Our room was on the water side, so we could see the ducks swimming around the edges of the marshland. We saw ducks, and a swan and also some birds I have tentatively identified as coots. It was very cold and somewhat windy, but the birds seemed to be going about their business as usual.

We were docked right in town

Town from the dock

Town from the ship dock

and were scheduled to hear an organ recital but Bob was needing to stay close to the bathroom so I decided to go to Willemstad on my own. I just wanted to take some pictures. I could see a windmill from our cabin,

Windmill from the ship (over the marina)

and it appeared to be a sunny day (although it was cold)

Sign at the entrance to the port

There was a Belgian Cemetery listed on the map and since that was close to the ship, Bob went and took pictures there,

Gate Belgian War Cemetery

The Belgian tribute cemetery in Willemstad (Moerdijk) contains the graves of 159 Belgian soldiers. There is a concrete memorial which is 1 meter high, 3 meter wide and 3 meter deep with the names of 159 Belgian soldiers. The cemetery was dedicated on the 14th of April 1950 and officially opened on the 29th of May 1950.

On the sign which was placed next to the fence is a sign which says (loosely translated)

BELGIAN MILITARY CEMETERY 1940

On this spot is the common grave of the 159 Belgian soldiers who died in the Netherlands during World War Two. Most of them were captured near Gent on the 28th of May 1940 by the German army. They were transported in four ships to a prisoner of war camp in Germany. The ships followed the route from the Westerschelde via the channel through Zuid - Beveland and the Oosterschelde to the Hollands Diep. Close to Willemstad on the 30th of May 1940, one of the ships, the "Rhenus 127" sailed over a German magnetic mine, which made the overloaded ship with 1,200 prisoners explode in the middle. It broke in two and sank. Most of the prisoners were rescued and were cared for by the citizens of Willemstad. But almost 200 Belgian soldiers drowned. Most of them found their last resting place in this cemetery. Later on a few other Belgian soldiers who died elsewhere in the Netherlands were also laid to rest here

Sign in two languages

The side with the inscription in French

The side with the inscription in Dutch which says HERE LIES 134 BELGIANS fallen for their fatherland and ours 30 may 1940

In 1963 they added two memorial stones to the monument.

One of the two extra grave markers

I went on a more wide ranging safari. First I had to get off the ship but there was sand at the bottom of the ramp which of course meant that I got stuck there.

Next to the dock

A very brief setback and soon overcome.

Windmill from the ship

I went and took photos of the lighthouse and what I thought was the fire station next to it. (It turned out to be a lifeboat station)

Willemstad Light from the water side

Willemstad Light and rescue building

This is a currently inactive (since 1989) lighthouse located on the Lantaarndijk on the waterfront of Willemstad, overlooking the Hollands Diep, a segment of the lower Maas east of the junction of the Haringvliet and Brouwershaven, the estuaries north and south of Goeree-Overflakkee. The station was established in 1820, but the old tower was destroyed in WWII. So the current 33 ft square cylindrical brick tower with lantern and gallery, unpainted; lantern painted yellow with a red conical roof only dates back to 1947. The original lighthouse was an interesting pentagonal cast iron skeletal tower. There may be a small museum in the lighthouse, but I did not investigate this. The lighthouse is located next to what I thought was a firehouse - the sign on it translates as Rescue. But pieter_jan_v 5 of VirtualTourist explained that Reddingsbrigade = LIFEBOAT brigade so it isn't a firehouse. And that makes sense as it is right next to a lighthouse which is for sailors. There was a marina past the lighthouse

View of the river with the marina

Battery Marina

The marina on the other side near the lighthouse is called Battery Marina (Jachthaven De Batterij). It is where the Dutch came ashore in 1793 and overpowered the French (Napoleon). Google translation of this event:
Carel van Boetzelaer decided, the then governor, that attack was the best defense. In a battalion in the inner gathered early morning of March 15 to 58 volunteers from the State troops. By ship they were brought up just outside the Water. In silence they went ashore and got on their hands and feet on the Lantern Dijkje direction Westdijk. Once at the French battery, the assailants were unexpectedly and brutally overpowered. Shortly after this attack the enemy's drums were stirred and wisely blown retreat ..

Then I went out into the town (which is inside a perfect star shaped fort). If you look at a map of Willemstad you will see that the original small town is inside of a star shaped fort (seven points) with a moat around the fort. The fort walls, covered with grass are all around the small town.

water entrance - gap in the moat

This is an old map which shows the sea gate -right - Willemstad

Jeroen van der Werf describes the area (and I don't understand the description because I'm not familiar with the Old Dutch System) so I am quoting him here: The fortifications were designed according to the Old Dutch System, only here the flanks of the bastions' are not perpendicular to the curtain walls but have a retreated curved shape .. and are quite short. In later years some of these flanks were modified to make them perpendicular to the curtain wall. Apart from the walls facing the sea, which were revetted in brick, all the ramparts were unrevetted earthworks. The seaward front of the town consists of two bastions with water in front of them. Between this water and the river (which in the past was part of the sea) there is a glacis, which prevented ships from coming too close to the walls and gave extra protection against enemy fire......the overall form of the current fortress dates from the 1680's

Fort wall near the lighthouse

Fuel barge in front of AmaViola

In addition to marinas for yachts, Willemstad is also regularly visited by river cruise ships, and has a dock and facilities for these ships. There is a fuel provider there (Olie-Benzine) which appears to be a barge which also has gasoline. It says bunkering is available.

Fuel barge

Sign and stop light at entrance

Sign about the 2014 winner

The Entente Floral competition of Europe (Willemstat was the 2014 winner) is a civil initiative involving 55 million Residents living in 25,000 towns and cities that aims to make areas more beautiful and livable. The competition wants the streets to be tidy, the front gardens neat, and the balconies are decorated with flowers. It is run by the AEFP (The European Association for Flowers and Landscape) stands for:
•Awareness among those in charge of our towns and villages, elected or others, of respect for the landscape and of the requirement of an environmental /ecological approach.
•A planned approach to the improvement of the quality of life of the inhabitants of towns and villages.
•Convincing people to become active participants.
•Awareness and educational initiatives which will increase respect for quality actions
•The vital role played by education, training and proper information flows.
•The importance of a well structured communication policy

Pansies

More flowers

Clair de Lune - the bike barge

Sign about Bike Barge holidays

I saw a boat advertising the boat-bike tours from a company called Hat-Tours. Two of the tours are:

Highlights of Holland (HOH)
Beach, Netherlands, Amsterdam, Haarlem, Leiden, Towns (historic), Travel guidance, City walk, Museum, Windmill, IJssel Lake, Hoorn, Bathing resort, Holland, Barge, Flower Park Keukenhof, Fishing village, Zaanse Schans, Sea

Castles & Walled Towns (KVP)
Hanseatic town, Amsterdam, Castle, City walk, Museum, Nature, Barge, River, Fishing village, National Park, Harderwijk, Holland, Netherlands, Travel guidance, Towns (historic)

Clair de Lune - the bike barge

Old Dutch Boat

Guardhouse at the entrance from the port

Wall opposite the guardhouse

The fort was built with two entrances - one if by land and one if by sea. The land entrance has a gatehouse where the gate keeper lived and that still survives. I did not get out to the gatehouse, but this was the sea entrance

The Arsenal

I took some photos of the Arsenal (which is right inside the sea gate) but found it confusing to identify it, because during the Napoleonic Wars there was another armory which is where there is a warehouse now, and that photo kept coming up.

Possible warehouse location of the first arsenal

I was only able to identify it positively after I saw an article which said that a subsequent owner of the building put bells on the front.

Carillon Bells

In 1791 Prince William V told the State Council that he was willing to contribute to the reconstruction of the armory at Willemstad. The new one would have the same length, but they would widen the shore side so the total width of the new building would be about 44 feet. The new arsenal alsol needed a cistern with a capacity of four hundred tons of water for the garrison. The Arsenal was designed by the architect Philip William of Orange Schonck. It was originally divided into three naves with the corresponding three-part facade. However, its design has since been adapted. This is described (as translated from the Dutch) as: The tripodal ground floor with two rows of thick wooden poles, for practical reasons has been changed to a naves, whereby there were also needed instead of three, but two ports. Those gates were provided with a hard stone classicist frame in which black ornament painting. The keystones show to deter a Medusa head with snakes and two swords surrounded by two eagles.
After 1926, the arsenal remained in use for storage of military equipment. In the late sixties, the building was sold to Mr F. van Welzenes, who applied to a carillon bells. On January 19, 1973 the completely restored Arsenal was officially opened and is now used for cultural events like concerts and exhibitions as well as for receptions.

The Arsenal from near Anno 1610

Hotel and restaurant

Near the Arsenal was a hotel, Het Wapen van Willemstad: The Weapon of Willemstad This is the oldest hotel-restaurant of Willemstad. It underwent a thorough renovation in February 2013.

Menu board outside

Water pump opposite the hotel

Trash can

Tourist information board

There is a bulletin board with Tourist Information by the Old Town Hall.

Handicapped parking

Old Town Hall and cannon

Old Town Hall from the side

Our information from the ship said In front of the harbor, the 16th century former Stadhuis is distinguished by it's octagonal tower, double curved gable and black and white shutters.

Top of the tower

Town hall mermaid wind vane

In the Napoleons time the tower top was replaced by a semaphore, but after the fall of Napoleonn in 1815 the top was reconstructed.

Old Town Hall

Tower from below

The Old Town Hall was build on order of Prince Maurits in 1587. The building was was designed in such a way, that on Sundays church services could be held (there was no funding to build two buildings at that time).

Detail of the arches on the ground floor

It now houses the Ceramic Museum (Ceramisch Museum), with pottery and other wares (17th-20th centuries) recovered by excavation

Old Town Hall Tower

Town crest over the Old Town Hall door

Bellevuw Restaurant and Wine Bar

This is right on the harbor, According to the website, there is the Merlot Winebar adjacent to the terrace along the inner harbor of Willemstad and the Salon Liem Sian &; Salon Wigant upstairs. The Traces of War website says: Willemstad was right in the mobilization for a location that was occupied by quartermasters and the staff of the Inundation Station Willemstad. On 24 august 1939 were first mobilized soldiers already arrived in Willemstad and they were housed in Hotel Bellevue and Het Wapen van Willemstad

alley beside the Bellevue

Past the Old Town Hall were several restaurants which were not open at the early hour I was there.

Bora Bora

City Cafe

Facade of a building near the town hall

Listed Buildings

Listed Building

Pretty old building

Roof top detail

As I was going down the center of the main street,

Main street

ATM?

Tree buds against the sky

Street lamp

Gecko logo seats and table

Gecko

Texaco station on the main street

Close-up of the Texaco station

Truck getting gas

I was taking notice of the various shopping places,

Postcards and souvenir shop with no ramp

and I saw Het Rozemarijntje with a ramp. So when it started to rain, I turned around and went in with my scooter.

Front of the shop

The shop keeper was very friendly and we had a nice chat. She showed me a paper with a photo which showed that it snowed in Amsterdam the previous day. This is mostly a book store, but they do have some other items.

Cards and books

I got a tin of Dutch cookies, some coasters in the shape of house facades, a cute child's book about a cow, and a small tin of candy for 21 €

tin of Dutch cookies

Coasters

Stroopwafel (Dutch waffle cookie)

The Cow who Fell in the Canal book

Page in the Cow Who Fell in the Canal book

Candy tin

Two gifts

There were also some nice wooden wine containers in the shape of Dutch row houses, but I was afraid they would be crushed in my suitcase

Wine containers upper left and foods

Flowers in the sidewalk outside the shop

When the rain/sleet stopped, I left and went over and took photos of the windmill and some of the fort walls, and the marina. Unfortunately, I this meant that missed going to the Dome Church

Dome Church

The Dome church was heavily damaged during the artillery shellings of the Allies between 30-10-1944 and 06-11-1944. The church was restored in 1959.

Trees and houses

Street and front gardens

Path around the walls

Another view of the path

There is a path along the fort walls, which I did not take. I did see it, or part of it when I went up to the windmill.

Stream and bridge

Wheels to control water?

There are also some big wheels which I think must be some kind of sluice gate which regulates water flow, although I don't know exactly how they work. I saw one right up next to the windmill and another one down by the stream
Jeroen van der Werf in Fortified Places says"
To regulate the water level in front of the two seaward bastions there are sluices in the western dam and near the harbour on the eastern side. On the harbour side a second sluice is made to flood the ditch inside the town. To regulate the water level in the ditch surrounding the town and the covered way'as well as a means to flood the polder a third sluice was made near the only landward gate to the town. Protecting this gate is the only demi-lune'in the fortress* But he has no photos of the sluices so I don't know whether these are what he was talking about or not

Earthworks from behind the lighthouse

Fort wall near the windmill

Another view from near

There are good views of the fort walls below the windmill

Windmill

Windmill - closer

Windmill

d'Orangemolen

The town also has a windmill high up above the town. In the 1500's the land was a muddy marshland, used by shepherds. A Dutch marquis turned the area into a polder. This polder (called originally Ruigenhil) was in a very strategic position between the south and north parts of the Netherlands and on an important Dutch river, the Maas. William of Orange (aka William the Silent) caused the fort with a moat 125 feet wide to be built to protect against the Spanish, and after he died his son the town went to his son Maurits. The windmill which was originally a flour mill is called d'Orangemolen. The windmill is up high on the moat wall and is visible from just about everywhere in town. It is very old, having been built in 1734 as a corn mill. It has been decommissioned, but visits are possible by appointment. This windmill was the one that I saw up close on this trip. One side of the windmill is white and the other side is brown (described in a datebase as a round stone mill partly plastered and whitewashed. The hood is covered with roofing felt.

Next to the windmill

Close to the windmill looking up

Windmill from Marina

Road past the marina near the windmill

Marina from the base of the windmill

Ramp to the docks with fort wall in back

This is one of the two marinas in Willemstad. It is below the windmill on the same side as where AmaViola docked. Most of the boats appeared to be sailboats - there was a forest of masts. Sailing is big in the Netherlands. There is a nearby chandler (a store to buy boat stuff) called Yacht Willemstad.

Yacht Willemstad

Pub Anno 1610

Anno 1610 is the oldest Pub in Willemstad.

't Pumpke

't Pumpke has a covered and heated terrace so that you can enjoy the view but be out of the weather. Back to the AmaViola

AmaViola

AmaViola at the dock

Vista

There was a restaurant out on the end of the dock past where the AmaViola was docked. Their website says that VISTA stands for vastness by which I think they mean that all the way out there you have good views all around you.

We had lunch (I had pumpkin soup and spare ribs)

Flowers on the ship

and then we decided not to take the excursion to Kinderkdjilk because Bob was still sticking close to the bathroom and I had already been there with our granddaughter in 2009. Our ship had to leave the dock a bit early - there were white caps on the larger body of water beyond us.

View from our cabin near Dortdrect

We rode the ship around to Dortdrect. The people who went to Kinderdjilk had a very cold, windy and wet trip. That evening, we had the talk about disembarkation, and met the crew.

Meeting the crew - Chefs

Our cabin steward

Wine glasses and tulips

Appetizer

For dinner there was a

California Sushi Roll

Salmon, scallops, shirmp appetizer

Crayfish Bisque and Puff Pastry Strip

Sorbet(which had alcohol in the bottom)

Bob's Sea bass and saffron rice

my Roast Beef Tenderloin

Stracciatella Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce

Petit Fours

Tomorrow we will be in Amsterdam and will go see Tulips

Today (April 27th) I found our bill under the door had a charge for alcohol on it. I was also agitated because Bob was not getting ready to have breakfast at 7 and I couldn't find my sweater (which turned out to be on the bottom of the closet). We were going to see the tulips today and I wanted to be on time. The alcohol charge turned out to be a mis-typed room number.

View of the bow camera

Today is Kings Day and everyone wears orange. I didn't think I had anything orange until I realized that the lining of my coat was orange. So I put on my sweaters, and over that I put on my raincoat, and then I turned my coat inside out and wore it that way. When Bob got our color for our bus (yellow), he thought he saw the bus outside but it turned out to be a Viking cruise ship bus. Raul the cruise manager said for me to get on the first bus, and the first bus we found was orange. So we got on. This turned out to be the bus of the big group of a travel agent from California. But we just stayed there.

Large Dutch house

Fields of Flowers in the rain

Rain and rainbow on the way to the gardens

The guide was pretty good (I think the travel agent for this group poaches all the good guides) and we lucked out in that it rained fairly hard, but we were on the bus then (both going and coming) and was mostly sunny while we were in the gardens.

Ticket

Bob's photo of me with my orange coat (inside out)

The guide took us through the gardens (although one place had stepping stones

Stepping Stones among the Tulips

and she wanted me to go on the grass which I didn't want to do with the ground as wet as it was - so I just went around on the road to the other side.

Flagstone pathway

Winding paths

Dolphin fountain

Paths in the garden

After we left the guide, I went and ordered tulips for everyone who could grow them. I was disappointed in the bulbs when they came - some of them were rotted.

White tulips

Pink and white multiple petaled tulips

World Peace tulips

Large cupped daffodil

Tulip double early

Single Early Tulips

Red. pink and white tulips

Pink tulips

Mixed border

Tulips

Reflections

Statue

Fountains

Grape hyacinths

Yellow flowers among the trees

Red Darwin tulip

Pagoda at the end of a path

Fritillaria Imp - Rubra

Narcissus and tulips

Stop and play a game of chess

Bands of flowers

Grape hyacinths

Historic garden map

Flowers against the wall

Fountain

Botanical tulips

It did rain one more time a little bit while we were in the gardens and we just went into one of the pavilions. (Bob used the bathroom)

Orange hair for King's Day

vases of flowers

Amaryllis

Amaryllis

Windmill in the exhibit hall

Flower cart in the exhibit hall

After we left that pavilion, I tried very hard to find the other pavilions to see what they had in them, but I just couldn't figure out which way to go

Drawbridge

Flowering tree

Floral picture (should be seen from the bleachers, but I couldn't get up there)

Pink and white

So we went back to the bus early because Bob was cold. We passed some kiosks and a calliope wagon on the way.

Calliope

Calliope wagon

Strawberry cart

Cheese bearing Cow

Cheese for sale

Wooden tulips (they never fade)

Most of our group came back to the bus early and did not wait for the guide at the designated location

Going back to the bus parking lot

I took photos on the way back. Some of them I have no idea what their significance was.

Yellow lady statue

Green flags

Flower cars

Purple nose

Silka factory

Green light

Tunnel back to Amsterdam

Dolly Parton Bridge (actually the Enneüs Heerma Bridge)

Following another bus back to town

People celebrating Kings Day from the bus

We got back after lunch started and went right on down and ate. I had a John Dory sandwich,

Chicken curry soup

and duck.

We went this afternoon for tea

Tea cookies

tea sandwiches

Lobby of the ship decorated for Kings Day

and afterward talked to a guy named Richard who was on the Intrepid before Bob was on there.

Bob has packed - I have to pack sometime tonight.

Kissing Swans

We disembark tomorrow and go to Alkmaar

Disembarkation

All the people who were last to get off (9:00) had brown luggage tags. We had brown luggage tags as we were not flying out today. The AmaViola moved over and rafted on the AmaStella in the evening. Bob thought this would be a problem, but it wasn't so much of one. With luggage in the hall it was a bit tight for the scooter to get through, but we went down to breakfast and this time I had the A+ breakfast just to see what it was. It had sausage, bacon, a minute steak, a fried egg, and a grilled tomato. I couldn't eat all the sausage and bacon.

German cat bought in the ship store for our cat sitter

Blueberry soup recipe

We put the luggage out a little early and did the last bathroom run and checked to be sure that we hadn't left anything, and went down to the foyer a little early. Our luggage was still there in the foyer. The drill is - you put your luggage out half an hour before your disembarkation time, and someone takes it down to the lobby. Then people shuttle the luggage down to a tent on street end of the pier.

Crew taking suitcases down the dock

The guy with the yellow thing is moving pallets down from the ship

As your transportation gets there, you get your bags and you are off. So we went out a little early - they were bunkering (water or fuel I don't know which) and Bob talked to the chief engineer for a few minutes.

Bunkering barge on the water side

Then we lifted the scooter over the ramp of AmaStella (as that ramp has a step on each end) and went down to the pier. It was a nice day - sunny and cool but without much wind. Our suitcases were under the tent.

There was also a provisions truck there unloading pallets

I took a photo of the captain with the lady who has the big group from California.

Captain of the AmaViola and Travel Agent

There was a cab driver there who attempted to pick us up but he didn't know our name or where we were going so I concluded that he was not the proper person. I was getting concerned about our transport so I called the number I had called from the airport and got someone who didn't know anything about our transport. Then I got a call from our driver who wanted to know where we were. I did have the address on me, but I couldn't pronounce it, so I said we were between the Movenpick Hotel and Central Station. That allowed him to find it. It turned out that the guy who had been booked for the transport decided not to do it (maybe hung over from Kings Day), so the manager got this other guy to take us. And he did have the hotel address.

Leaving Amsterdam

Highway to Alkmaar

Picture going through a tunnel

From the taxi window

Tulip fields from the taxi

He had a meter and on the meter, the price would have been 128+ € which was confusing to Bob as he didn't hear the guy say that we only needed to pay 83 € which was the discount rate.

It was raining like crazy on the way to Alkmaar. We got to the hotel about 10:30 and checked in. It is a big room

Hotel reflected in the canal

Beds

Wardrobe, TV and Desk (on right) with scooter

and has both a tub with a shower and a handicapped shower with a seat in one corner.

Handicapped shower

Handicapped toilet

It got to be about 12 and we went out for lunch.

Statue of a shepherd near the canal

I decided to go to the museum cafe. This is the building opposite the church. In addition to the library, this is where the museum is and also an Art Center

Stichting Bibliotheek Kennernerwaard

Museum building - Cafe on left

View from the museum cafe

There was some language barrier

Flowers on the counter to order

Table flowers

but we eventually got a cheese sandwich, a tomato based soup and tea for 25.5€

Box to pick tea bag from

Cheese sandwich

Tables in the Culture Cafe

Part of the shop next to the cafe

.
Then I thought the rain had stopped so we started out, but the rain started again so we decided to go through the museum.

Lobby

On the wall of the lobby

But first I showed the lady at the desk the copy of the Polaroid of the cheese market that Daddy took. She said her colleague was the "Cheese Father" and would like to see it. So he came and he identified the two men and said that they were both dead (which isn't a surprise as they would be well over 100 years old today). He asked me to bring the photo tomorrow as they would be interested. This was a good tip.

The exhibit was on the -1 floor. That is it was in the basement. There was an elevator. One of the exhibits is the 'Portrait of Alkmaar' which presents the "DNA" of Alkmaar. Alkmaar is full of history and wonderful old architecture. In a thousand years Alkmaar grew from a settlement with ten farms to a proud city with 100,000 inhabitants. In the portrait hall are five themed islands showing important or typical objects. Each theme island is introduced by a special Alkmaarder (in a video). There are numerous portraits, cityscapes and landscapes of the area

Painting of the town

View of town and country

Portrait of Dirck van de Reemister and cabinet

China display

Officers of the Old Civic Guard in Landscape 1613

Officers of the Old Civic Guard in a Landscape 1613 - There is no other painting of civic guardsmen on a day out. In the distance is Alkmaar's Great Church, and the artist is in the center with his wife.

Officers of the old Civic Guard 1657. Standing proudly in the center the captains Jacob Baert and Cornelis Groot

The main part of the museum was called THE VICTORY!!! Alkmaar is very proud of the fact that they were the first Dutch city to withstand the Spanish siege during the Eighty Years' War. There was a seven week siege which ended on October 8, 1573 This eventually led to the creation of the independent Republic of the United Netherlands and the heyday of the Golden Age.

Explanation of the victory

I found the exhibit a little confusing - there were arrows to follow on the floor, and we got to TV screens where we heard from various participants such as Jacob, Catholic farmer Dirk, Protestant dweller Cornelia, and Spanish soldier Juan. Passages from the diary of Nanning Foreest theatrical visualizations, paintings of the siege, letters, musket balls, armor and artillery - including a gun from approximately 1570

Weapons of the time

Battle painting

This is what one of the presentations said:

Part of the video presentation

The retreat
"In the early morning on the eighth day of the month, all the Spaniards left. And so the siege of Alkmaar which had lasted for seven weeks and which had cost the Spaniards huge sums of money and material damage and would be to their everlasting shame and discredit, was lifted.

Part of the video presentation

By contrast, God brought the city of Alkmaar prestige in their joyous victory and celebrated triumph, so the city might justifiably and honourably be counted among the foremost cities of Holland."
There is also a display of a 2010 excavation in Alkmaar where archaeologists discovered skeletons in mass graves - including a skull with bullet hole.

Two skeletons from a small mass grave 1573

But I couldn't really tell where the end of the exhibit as the arrows seemed to be circular.

Golden Age

The last part of the main exhibit was "The Golden Age" . To show their gratitude for the city's loyal stand, William of Orange and the States of Holland awarded Alkmaar the Weight House revenues. Painting of the Weight House 1660. It was mainly cheese that was weighed and traded here. In 1679 a record 500,000 pounds was traded in a single day. That was in 1581 and it launched an economic boom: Alkmaar's own Golden Age.

Painting of the weigh house by an unknown artist

Gold from the Golden Age

Nijenburg Spherical Clock 1690

Judgement of Count Willem the Good 1618

Golden Age tour

Pierre Gole art cabinet with floral motifs

The old masters are accompanied by a collection of ceremonial silver,

Traveler's cutlery and case

including seven decorated tazza's (Goblets) and seventeenth-century porcelain and glassware of all types and sizes. A particular object is a cabinet from estate Nijenburg with beautiful paintings of Jesus and the Samaritan woman. (below)

Nijenburg Lutheran Cabinet c 1665

On the zero floor (ground floor or our first floor) there was an exhibit of the work of an artist of the name of Van Blaaderen who appeared to have phases where he emulated most of the impressionists.

Introductory text on Van Blaaderen

Van Blaaderen painting

Van Blaaderen painting

Van Blaaderen painting (winter)

Van Blaaderen painting

While we were there a woman came and asked about the Luggie - she said she had a grandson who had been paralyzed in a bicycle accident and he wanted something that made him look less 'crippled' So we showed her the scooter and she even tried it out.

On the way back to the hotel, we stopped in the Grote Kerk

Side nearest the square

- there were 1700 people buried there, mostly under the floor. It is actually no longer an church, but it is a very interesting building.

Floor composed of slate tile grave markers

Inside the burial stones made a clacking noise when I went over them with the scooter.

Floor burial locations

Close-up of an emblem

Each of the tombstones bears an emblem, mostly coats of arms and occupational insignia. Bob and I took some photos of the slate floor inscriptions. I asked if there was any way of telling where the various burials were, but apparently there was a meeting going on in the room where the information was.

Close-up of one of the inscriptions

Pieter Palinck and Josina Willemsdochter van Foreest

This one is copper and is now on the wall. They did identify the plaque on the wall which was for Pieter Claessoen Palinck & Josina Willemsdochter van Foreest - a husband and wife who died in 1536. The church booklet said this was a copper tombstone on the floor near where we entered, but I saw it on the wall. Rubbings have been done of this copper stone. There are also plaques on the walls. There is a textboard from 1672 with the rules on how to behave in church. In the beginning of the 16th century a brick annex was constructed in the corner of the northern transept for the bellows of the Van Covelens organ. For many years a small prison existed under this annex. Anyone exhibiting undesirable behavior in church would be imprisoned here for the night, unless he was prepared to pay a fine of three guilders. There are two textboard dating from 1605 relating in Latin and Dutch the story of the church buildings that formerly existed here

Plaques on the wall

Going back a little - We went in the side door of the Grote Sint Laurenskerk (there is a handicapped entrance). And I took a photo of the statue that was outside first. It is the statue to Maerten Pietersz van der Meij. He was the city's carpenter, but became famous by smuggling letters to and from the city during the Spanish occupation. The artist Mari Andriessen did the statute in 1965

Statue beside the church

Afterward, I took some photos of the outside of the church. It is a very large building which is built in the shape of a Latin cross (the diagonal is shorter than the vertical). According to the church history, there was a church here back in 600. A church was founded on this site in 901 in honor of St. Lawrence. But excavations have only found the remains of a 12th century chapel. In 1468, when they were building tower on this church, it collapsed and destroyed part of the church, It was decided to built an entirely new church - starting in 1470 and completed in what was, for those days, a very short time around 1520. Much of the interior and exterior was destroyed in the 1566 iconoclasm - this was when Dutch Protestants were destroying the Roman Catholic art (icons). Until 1570, Sint Lawrence church was Roman Catholic. It remained Protestant after the Reformation until 1996 when it was designated as a museum and multifunctional building.

Windows, side entrance and statue

Carvings on the side entrance

Side of the church away from the square

Plain end of the church

The exterior is faced with what the little booklet I picked up in the church calls "white natural stone" although it looks yellow or cream colored to me in the photos taken on the 28th - the ones on the 29th were more cream colored.

Red addition on the 'back' end of the church

There was a model of the church inside, and we also took photos of that.

Model of the Grote Kerk (inside of the Grote Kerk)

Model of the church showing the 'back'

The interior is lined with red-yellow bricks which are partly plastered.

The Great Organ

At the end of the church is the "world famous Great Organ" which was built around 1640 by father Van Hagerbeer and his two sons. It was modernized at the start of the 18th century by the North German Frans Caspar Schnitger. The case of the organ was designed by Jacob van Campen who also designed several other prominent buildings.

Great Organ

The shutters to close the case are the largest in the world and there is a painting representing Virtue Crushing Vice (in the form of a snake). There is another organ on the side of the church which dates from 1551. This is the oldest playable organ in the world and was restored in 2000. You can also see in that photo the high transept windows which are the highest on the mainland of Europe

Oldest Organ by the high transept windows

I have included in this set of photos, a picture of a painting that is in the Alkmaar Museum. It is a painting attributed to Pieter Jansz Saenredam who was a specialist in church interiors. It matches pretty well with our photos of the church. It was painted about 1665 although it is not signed or dated. Who commissioned it? No-one knows. But it hung in the town hall in the 18th century. Pieter Jansz Saenredam worked meticulously basing his composition on preparatory drawings and measurements. If he painted it, it was done toward the end of his life.

1665 painting of the interior

Ceiling of the vault painted by Jacob van Oostanen

I took a photo of some woodwork which has the date of 1635. Originally I thought this was the place where Floris V was buried, but the date doesn't match, and I can't match this up with anything in the church information.

May be the Confessional or Stalls

Bob took some photos of a ship hanging in the church. This was unexpected. According to tradition, this is the scale model of a ship from 1667 called "De Ruyter mijn naam" (De Ruyter is my name), which refers to the victorious expedition of Michiel de Ruyter to Chatham. It has on it (which you can't see in any of the photos) paintings - on the mirror at the stern the panorama of Alkmaar. There are also four portraits of ladies in the windows of the officer's quarters. So if you go into the church, look for the paintings

Scale model ship

The sacristry has a wooden vault on which are painted the crests of Delft, Oudewater and Alkmaar (towns once united through a trade agreement). There is also the crest of the patrimonial lands of Charles V and a mirrored Dutch lion honoring the crest.

Crest near the sacristy

After we got back to the hotel and dried off and warmed up a bit and it stopped raining, Bob walked over to the RR station

Street near station

and got some money changed and came back with Burger King for dinner. Tomorrow we visit the Cheese Market.

Today (April 29th) we went down for breakfast. The hotel breakfast was a good one and not as expensive as the one for $25 each that we had in Amsterdam. This breakfast was $17 each. The breakfast area was quite crowded because most people at the hotel were having breakfast, but there was adequate food.

Breakfast tables

Juices on the buffet

I took some packages off the buffet without knowing what they were. One of the packages was called "fruit sprinkles for bread" and it was a sort of fruit candy

Fruit sprinkles for bread

After I got some food, Bob went back and got some more for me.

Bob at the buffet

My breakfast

There was a busload of Japanese tourists and another one of German tourists (I talked to one of the German ladies). They had been to a farm on the previous day and to a factory to see how the cheese was made. The cheese market did not start until 10, so I thought 9:30 would be time enough to go down there. But I was wrong.

Rental boat barge

When we left to go down to the Waagplein, we passed this place near our hotel which said it was Alkmaarse bootjes Verhuut & Verkoop. You can hire a boat from them on a weekend for € 15.00 per hour including pillows and fuel. (In good weather, but when we were there it was raining and a Friday). I took photos of the buildings as we went. We passed De Nachtegaal on the way to the Cheese Market and I took some photos of it because I thought it looked like an interesting building. I was surprised to find out that it was a restaurant.

De Nachtegaal - top stories

Roof

The Old City Hall (Stadhuis) in Alkmaar caught our eye on the way to the cheese market.

Lions on the staircase of the Old City Hall

It was built between 1509 and 1520 in the Gothic style.

Facade of the building

Bob walking by the Stadhuis

On one corner is a tower with a pear shaped spire.

Pear shaped tower

Looking up from the street

Eight years after it was built it was mostly burned down, but it has obviously been rebuilt. It was made a national monument in 1969. Now it still has some municipal functions

Town hall spire above the street

I was able to tell where the cheese market was without looking at a map because streams of people were walking in that direction. We passed stalls selling souvenirs.

Tchotchkes

Wooden shoes

More wooden shoes

I got photos of The Waag which is on the Waagplein. (The Weigh House is on the Weigh House Square). It was built in the 14th century as a chapel for the adjacent Holy Spirit hospital. In 1566, the Bishop gave permission to re-purpose the building. When the building was converted, they added the Renaissance style facade.

Looking up at the weight house 2016

The current design dates from 1884. The original tower was replaced by a larger one which contains a carillon.

Top of the Waag steeple

There are four sides to the tower - each with a clock. One one side, underneath the clock it says vive memor leti fugit hora which is Latin for "Ever mindful of death, time flies" On another side it says Singulas horas, singulas vitasputa The first part of this is "Every Hour, Every ??" The decorative side of the building is not right over the place where the cheese porters take the cheese to be weighed.

Vive memor leti fugit hora

Atop the façade of the building is the Latin proverb: "SPQA RESTITVIT VIRTVS ABLATAE JVRA BILANCIS".

SPQA motto

This means : SPQA (Senatus PopulusQue Alkmaris - Council and People of Alkmaar) by virtue of its courage and strength, restored the rights to the balance to the people and government of Alkmaar." This refers to Alkmaar's famous victory against Spanish Roman Catholics. Also on this side it says 1520 and under it "RENOVATVM 1884". In 1950, when we visited Alkmaar, the Waag was still in use as an actual weigh house for a real cheese market.

Weighing house -1950 with me, my mom and sister

Now it is is part of a show put on for tourists. But my photo is pretty close to the one of Daddy's

Then (1950) on the right and Now (2016)-weigh house

But there were people standing four or five deep all around the market area and from the scooter I couldn't even see the big TV screen they had.

Bob's view

I gradually worked my way around to the other side of the square and then it started to rain so I ducked into the Cheese Museum.

From inside the cheese museum

From there I could see out between people a bit of what was going on.

Trying to see over the crowds from inside the cheese museum

Cheese in the cheese museum

Obstructed view

Cheese Father in the market

I talked to the man who was slicing cheese up for people to taste

Man cutting up cheese in the corner

and showed him the photo and after a bit, he went and got the Cheese Father.

Cheese Father in the Cheese Museum shop

The oldest one of the cheese porters is called the Cheese Father. Traditionally he wears orange - a different color from one of the four colors (Green, Red, Blue and Yellow) worn by the porters. But when we were there, he was wearing green. According to the Cheese Market website:
In the Middle Ages, it was common practice to establish a guild for every professional group, the cheese carriers established theirs in 1593. The cheese carriers’ guild consists of 30 men and the cheese father. The Cheese father is the head of the four forwarding companies - recognised by an orange hat, black cane with silver mountings, and the Alkmaar coat of arms on his chest. Cheese carriers refer to him as “dad”.

De Kaasdragers carrying the cheeses 1950

The Cheese Father couldn't see the picture very well because he didn't have his reading glasses so I asked Bob for his, and with Bob's glasses, he could tell who the people were in the photo. He said, sadly "All dead"

Cheese Father looking at Dad's Polaroid

I told him he could have the photo for their museum.

And he let me go through the barriers and got me a seat in front.

Cheese Father behind me

I took a bunch of photos -De Kaasdragers (cheese porters) move so fast that I used the sports photography setting of the camera so I could take rapid fire pictures in succession.

Photo 1

Photo 2

Photo 4

Photo 6

Photo 7

Cheese maid up by the weigh house

We saw two pretty girls in costume at the cheese market. This is new since our first visit in 1950
The Cheese Market website says:
The Cheesemaid’s job is to promote cheese and the Cheese Market. The idea came from the Dutch Dairy Board, who are responsible for the promotion of Dutch cheese at home and abroad. There are always at least two Cheesemaids in attendance at the Alkmaar Cheese Market. They sell the "Kaasexpres" magazine and sometimes pose in photographs with tourists. A logo was designed especially for this, depicting a girl in traditional costume. ... In 1961, the Cheese Maid was named Frau Antju. Now, Frau Antje is been a celebrity, appearing in advertising campaigns and at important events. And the Cheese Maids also appear in costume at the Cheese Market

Cheese maids

TV Camera from inside the cheese museum

Cheese cart in person and on TV

Cheese maids on the TV above heads

Overhead view on the screen

Cheese Carriers on the TV

I also took a video with my cell phone. I don't think I can replicate Daddy's Polaroid because all my photos are from next to the building out toward the crowds and his has the building in the background

Then (1950) and Now (2016)-cheese porters

I assume that the various personnel in the cheese market performance are identified in the presentation. But I did not hear the loudspeaker so I am going by what is written on the website. In addition to the Cheese Father there is the
Zetter - Puts the cheese from the lorries on the market early in the morning, and loads the barrows. They are dressed in black trousers and a blue shirt.

Unloading the trucks

Zetter Removing rain cover

Ingooier When the cheeses are weighed, the ingooiers toss them from the barrows in wood handcarts and take them to the lorries. They are recognised by their black trousers and light fawn shirts.

Ingooier with the wooden cart

Cheese Market 2016

Vastman - An experienced cheese carrier working for one of the forwarding companies. The so-called forwarding companies, are active in the guild, each of them having their own particular colour: red, green, blue, and yellow, and consisting of 6 cheese carriers and a tasman. The colours are also seen in the cheese carriers’ straw hats, bow ties, and barrows.
Tasman - The tasman is recognised by a black leather purse around his waist, and stands at the scales. Bills used to be settled with him. He checkmarks the cheeses after weighing them. The tasman has been in service for the longest.
Voorman A “voorman” is the head of a forwarding company, and the oldest member. Also referred to as “overman”. Every two years, an overman is selected from the forwarding company. He has a silver sign with a ribbon in his company’s colour.

Voormen?

Weigh house during the cheese market

After things calmed down a bit, I went out to take some more photos

Bleachers late in the morning

Market from behind the barrier

Wagon and pallets

Crowds the bring in lots of income

Approaching street organ

Street Organ

We saw a street organ like the one we saw at the tulip gardens. A street organ is an automatic mechanical pneumatic organ designed to be mobile enough to play its music in the street. Dutch street organ are large organs that play book music. They are equipped with multiple ranks of pipes and percussion. They are powered with a belt drive from a small battery powered motor or donkey engine, allowing the organ grinder to collect money. Slightly smaller than the semi-trailer-sized fairground organ the Dutch street organ is nevertheless able to produce enough volume to be heard easily on a busy street corner. Modern Dutch street organs are frequently trailer mounted, and sized for towing behind a pickup or other light truck

Another view of the street organ

Street organ at the end of the street

Store next to where the street organ was set up

Then it started to rain again

Weigh house after the Cheese Market is over

and I went back into the cheese museum

Post cards 1€ or 0.5 €

Wall of post cards

smart phone ap

Wall above the crowd

and asked them about buying some cheese to send home. She gave me a map and marked on it a cheese shop that was two doors from the PO. I put on the poncho I got when I rented a scooter at Disney World and we went out into the street.

It was on a pedestrian street

While we were on our way to buy cheese, I saw a jewelry store

storefront

and ducked in there to shelter from the rain. I bought a sapphire ring to maybe give to my granddaughter

ring

In the end I gave this ring to my daughter whose birthstone is sapphire and bought another one for my granddaughter. We found the cheese store.

view from the scooter

Cheeses on the shelf

The red cheese was what we bought

We bought some cheese and then took it to the PO

Post office logo

and bought a box and some bubble wrap and the lady at the PO taped up the boxes and we mailed them. It was time for lunch so because it was cold, we tried to find a place to eat where we could eat inside. I tried this place.

Hap Wat from the outside

Fried chicken (I could read that)

But I couldn't find a table.

Hap Wat sign from inside

Burger Tijd (Burger Time in English)

We saw this restaurant when we were looking for a place to eat lunch in Alkmaar after the cheese market. Their website says that they have the best beef burger in Alkmaar. Apparently the burgers are delivered to the customers. Eventually we went into a cafe

Outside of the Grand Cafe samen

Bar area from our table

Bob ordered the anytime breakfast

Bob's fried egg, cheese and tea

My cheese sandwich

I just had a cheese sandwich and a cup of tea.

Dessert refrigerator (we didn't get any)

Bob suddenly panicked because he couldn't find his passport. He knew he had not put it into the safe. I thought I remembered him saying that he wasn't going to take it because he wouldn't need it, but he didn't remember saying that. So we started out from the cafe to go back to the hotel.


Bob was looking at the map (I forgot that he really couldn't see it without his glasses) and he took us the completely wrong way and we were down at the other end of Alkmaar. We came to the Accijnstoren

The Accijnstoren

which is square and built in brick with natural stones. The tower has a loud bell. It was initially a kind of tax office. Imported goods had to be declared here, the excise taxes that produced them were an important source of income for the city.

Fender guitar

Games Workshop

HT Cinema Sexshop

Bob walking back from the far end of the old town

Although since the old part of town isn't that big, we weren't too far out of the way. Then he remembered that he had left his umbrella at the cafe. So we found our way back there, but it wasn't there.

Cheese Museum after the market is over

Once we were there, I knew which way to go to get back to the hotel, and when we got there, Bob's passport was right there. So we just had the lost umbrella. I am not accustomed to Bob losing things. Usually it is me that loses things. After we got back to the hotel (and found Bob's passport), we watched TV while the scooter charged up. And then we set out again for two nearby cemeteries - Sint Barbara RC Church and the Alkmaar General Cemetery. The lady at the desk told us to head for the hospital

Arendshof

Molen van Groot

Windmills are an iconic part of the landscape - this one is called Mill De Groot (The Great), but it is better known as "De Molen van Piet", or Piet's Mill (referring to the family who own the mill). It is situated on the Singel Alkmaar a little way down the road from our hotel. The mill was built in 1769 as a corn mill. Since 1993, the blades rotate merely 'for show'. You can see the inside of this iconic mill on 'Open Monumenten Dag'

Floral Clock

Matthias Laurentius Church

When we got to the hospital we wandered around until we found Sint Barbara. The gate was closed and locked

St Barbara's gate

Sint-Barbara

Photos through Sint-Barbara's fence

Bob took a few photos through the fence. We went in the direction of the General Cemetery which was in a park. The path took us through the zoo.

Aviary outside the gate

Map pointing to where we were

We saw a llama and a Chinese pheasant, doves, parakeets and some chickens among other things. It was sunny but cold. The General Cemetery was open and we took photos.

Alkmaar General Cemetery

Map of the General Cemetery

Bob mostly in A an B sections and I was mostly on the other side in H section. Then I asked the GPS in my phone how to get back to the hotel and there was a single road which was a straight shot instead of wandering around the hospital.

Bob complained about my holding the phone while running the scooter, but had admitted at the end that this was a good route. We came out right at the gymnasium next to the hotel. When we came in I asked about places that would deliver food and there is a website which has restaurants (although it was in Dutch). The girl at the desk took pity on us and ordered a pizza which was €8.95 and was kind of a medium pizza.

hotel elevator

It was delivered to our room.

Pizza