July 19I slept in a smidgen. Han was up and having coffee when I arrived to the breakfast room. Han had previously contacted a friend from St. Maarten who now lives in The Hague. Her name is Wanda and he had not seen her in a little over 15 years. She is very sweet and they had a nice time visiting while I went to the Apothecary to grab some allergy items and to the mobile store for more phone minutes.
We departed the hotel a little before 11 and literally meandered through The Hague via car to sightsee and take some pics. The inner city construction is ridiculous and I was thankful to get out of the city. Buildings are new and towering and it feels a bit too closed in from the older more quaint towns.
Han knows I love Delft Blauw pottery, ceramics and porcelain, so we drove quaint side streets to the city of Delft, about 15 minutes south and went through the oldest manufacturer or Royal Blue Delft products, called “De Koninklijke Porceleyne Fles” > The Royal Porcelain Bottle.
We enjoyed a walking tour of the museum and factory. It was quite interesting and we saw some extraordinary pieces of Delft artwork. The plant is not very large, but definitely worth the admission of 12.50 euro.They have an extensive gift shop and wonderful café too with an courtyard seating that makes you feel back in the 1800s.
Here is more history on this lovely pottery.
Our next drive thru was the port City of Rotterdam on our way to the Provence of Zeeland in the village of Westenschouwen at a charming informal hotel called De Zilvermeeuw which means “The Silver Seagull.”
We were shown to our room and it was large enough with a private bathroom. However it was a bit hot for me as The Nederlands are experiencing abnormally warm weather, even for this time of year. We mentioned it to our hostess “Natasha” and she found us a fan to use. I was instantly much more happy. We met her adorable dog named “Najda”, a rescue she had brought back fromRussia 9 years ago, and then went to grab a few groceries. I purchased some gladiola flowers in appreciation for the fan, but told her that they were from Najda since she is obviously such a good mommy. I received one of many more hugs to come during our stay.
For dinner we walked to the nearby restaurant cluster. Han had his much awaited for mussels and I enjoyed some escargots in garlic butter.
We sat outside and the flies were going crazy over the mussel shells. To say it was annoying, is putting it mildly.
Afterwards we walked to the beach, climbed the pyramid set of stairs, gazed out over the westerschelde, then went back to our room to relax.
Oh I almost forgot, on our way into this Province famous for its huge DeltaWorks, Han also drove by the marina and vacation park called Aqua Delta that he helped develop in the mid 70’s. It has obviously gone through many expansions since, as it is huge now with four marinas and a 2,000 unit vacation village all by itself.
We had lunch at one of the Marinas, not impressed and way too touristy and Han felt a bit sorry that he had been at the beginning of all this, waking up a small village with a lifestyle that reached back in the 1800s, now turned into a veritable maritime shopping center.
July 20
Slept like a baby.
Breakfast is fantastic and much thought and care is put into the presentation and taste.
Today we drove over to the town of Zierikzee, but not before dropping off some much needed laundry. It is a small, easily walkable city. It was devastated by flooding from the North Sea in February 1953, when thousands drowned. But the buildings survived and the architecture there is quite stunning.
Our first site was the 62 meter high Zierikzee Tower. You are able to take steps to the very top for a bird’s eye view but being that neither Han nor I am fond of tight spiral staircases, we passed up on the pleasure and decided the ant eye view was easier.
The town center is oblong with easy to walk paths of inlaid brick, and much easier on your feet than cobblestone paths.
We had a small lunch at one of the restaurants along the edges of the center, did a little shopping, took more photos, loved the castle archways we walked through with views of the river, many boats to admire and beautiful churches. I just love the old ornate churches here in Europe. I never tire of walking through the beauty of them.
When we returned back at the hotel, Natasha and a visiting friend of hers were relaxing over a Russian summer soup that is made in the approximately one month of warm weather in Siberia, her native home. The soup is called Okroshka and she asked if we wanted to try it. She did mention that most people are not fond of it and if I did not like it, I would not have to eat it. She brought us out huge bowls of it and thank goodness I really liked it. In fact, the more I ate of it, the more I liked it. It is very refreshing and she mentioned that it is a cleansing soup too. Um yeah, that kind of cleansing.
We visited a bit while sitting out on the lovely patio surrounded by gorgeous flowers. She knows limited English so most of our conversation was interpreted by Han, but she and I hit it off and enjoyed our fun if not limited ability to speak with each other. She is much better than I, since I know no other language besides English.
We asked Natasha to write the soup recipe for us. I hope to receive it soon via email.
The hotel is somewhat loud and bustling during the day, but at about 10:30pm everything goes quiet like a light has been turned off.
July 21So this morning began the cleansing part of the soup. We were not able to exit the hotel for a while but it was great to laze around some. Han picked up the clothes from the laundry and I stayed close to the restroom. LOL
I did however take an apple to the sweet horse across the street. He is very people oriented and really enjoys if anyone stops to chat to him. He LOVED the apple which I had cored for easy bites and taken the seeds out. I wish I was not scared to ride them because I find them to be fantastic and interesting.
After I felt it safe to leave the premises, we walked to the beach. The day was a tiny bit cooler but sunny with a soft breeze. Perfect beach weather. Once again those dang stairs up and down to the beach. The dunes were man-made after the great 1953 storm, but since then they let nature take over. They are huge and purposely so to protect the town from any future floods.
We just took a stroll, snapped some photos and picked up a few small shells. My collecting is already out of hand.
It was also quite the workout since the sand is soft and deep and the beach is expansive. Today was obviously very crowded.
I noticed they have many lifeguards on duty who walk the beach, a dingy boat in wait and ready for any rescues and another boat in the water always scanning. They take vacationers safety here quite seriously.
Lunch today consisted of Belgium waffles with warm cherries and whipped cream. Not near as good as our previous one in Giethoorn, so was somewhat disappointed.
We drove into the small village of Haamstede but could not get through because they were having a market and I honestly was not in the mood for another market. We did see two yard sales which I of course had to stop and inspect. I purchased some 1800’s pewter small figurines at one and nothing at the other. Han and I both loved talking with the locals and found they are very friendly and welcoming.
On the way out of town, I saw a hair salon. I decided to get more of my hair chopped off. I am tired of being hot.
She did not understand what I was going for, and I am not overly fond of it but it grows back so all is good. It is much cooler on my neck now though, so that is good.
We have learned that the kids here begin working very young. We were served today by a young boy of 10 years old and then dinner tonight by a young girl of 11. I have to admit by being completely impressed by their efficiency, work ethic, professionalism, maturity and knowledge. They seriously put people twice their age to shame. Most of the establishments here are family owned.
Travel Hint: People young, old, worldwide enjoy compliments. Bestow them on those deserving individuals. It makes your and their day.
Also: We stayed up far too long tonight watching the tube. Seldom do I find English speaking channels as I have here, so I am enjoying the TV a bit too much as one movies moves into the next.
July 22
Woke up and realized I have now slept great for three nights in a row. That is almost unheard of for me. It is feeling great.
Much cooler and overcast this morning, so was easier to pack up. The hotel emptied out fast and I think we were the last ones to leave. I wanted a little more time to visit with Natasha. I will miss her. We had some more hugs and maybe one day I will see her again.
Patted the doggy good-bye, told the horse to eat more apples and we got on our way towards our next stop of Ghent Belgium.
We drove through the longest tunnel that either of us have ever driven in. It is over four miles long and deep underground.
We got terribly lost in Ghent, as Ring Roads turn into dead ends trying to find the hotel, finally stopped to ask directions and we were a bit far from where we were supposed to be. After some more going around in circles a few times due to the extreme construction, we finally found the hotel parking lot entrance.
We were able to check in early to the Holiday Inn Expo which is across the parking lot of IKEA. I happen to love their food so later on we walked over to have a late lunch. It was delicious. Han had two salmon and shrimp appetizers, we each had an entree and drink and it cost us only Euro 24.00. Love it.
The hotel is very nice, excellent location very near the tram station and affordable. Our IHG points are adding up and helping to save us money.
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