The Trip that was: September 28, 2008/2010/2012/2016/2019

 2008

In Katwijk, near where Dutchboy's oldest sister lives with her family, is a "recreation area" called PanBos.  You can pay a daily fee, or a yearly ticket,  to enjoy the trails, open fields, playgrounds, and deer park.  It's a lovely walk! And you can, in fact, walk all the way to the sea through a lovely forest that turns into rolling dunes. 

Through PanBos, runs the remnants of the Atlantic Defense Wall.  It's an anti-tank wall that runs from the North Sea to the Valkenburg Airport in The Hague. 

People tend to shoot soccer balls instead of bullets at the wall now. 

After leaving Leiden by train, we stopped in Amsterdam. See a pattern? No matter where I go, I return to Amsterdam.

2010

Zuiderzee Museum .  We went with Mum and Dad to see Zuiderzee Museum, which isn't a "museum"  like you would think of it.  It's an open air museum, a collection of salvaged houses that were put together to mimic the old villages that existed along the Zuiderzee, the waterway that was split by the Afsluitdijk into the IJsselmeer and the Waddenzee.  You take a ferry to get to the museum. 

Who photographs the photographer?

This "Organ house"art work greets you as you exit the ferry.  It's the digestive tract from tongue to rectum and includes a womb and female reproductive parts, too.   The uterus is a bedroom. Eh. Okay.

Hoop Rolling, or "trundling" is one of the old-fashioned games you can play at the museum.  Mum was great at it!! 

Dutchboy, not so much. 

The town gate looks surprised to see us go!

2012

On a ferry and heading to the island of Texel! This was years before my bike trip around the island and my first adventure to one of the islands. 

These birds were EVERYWHERE.

2016

Museum Belvedere .  Home to many great works of art. And, as always in these super-rich old cities, the building itself is a work of art.  We can thank the Hapsburgs for it, and for most of Vienna. 

We left the Belvedere behind and headed to the Leopold Gallery to view works by one of my very favorite artists, Egon Schiele.  That's not the Leopold. I don't know what it is, but apparently we passed it along the way. I just put it there for randomness.

I promised not to show you lots of photos of paintings, but I simply cannot resist sharing them. I saw his work for the first time in 2005, at a special exhibition while I was in Amsterdam.  I fell in love.  It's timely that I share them now  because the reason so many don't know Schiele is that he died very young, at the age of 28.  He died of Spanish Influenza, the same disease the took his wife, and their unborn child, three days prior to his passing. 

The Austrian Parliment Building.

The Vienna City Hall. 

St. Stephan's .  It wa closed for remodeling while we were there. I have terrible timing for these things.  Unless, of course, you WANT places to be closed or hotels to be ridiculously expensive because it's Fashion Week (that happened on our trips to Paris and Milan). 

In the park near the City Hall, Dutch boy was "resting".  Rabble rousing, says I. 

Here's the proof.  Sure, it COULD have been there before he sat down. But does he look like an innocent and tired tourist to you?!? 

2019

Back to Purmerend and an evening spent with friends! Friends who cook for us! Friends who have lovely children! And friends that share a love of  good foor and great wine.  Ya know, PERFECT friends. Of course, we only have perfect friends. 

Lest you think I let them do all the work, I did contribute a FANTASTIC bottle of wine.  It came highly recommended and I lovingly carried it on my flight from America just to share.  And it was worth the effort!

Aren't these gorgeous!? Dutch PERFECT female friend MADE them. So pretty!! 

In return for my bottle, Dutch Slightly-annoying-but-still-rather PERFECT male friend couldn't be outdone and had to offer a rare and very special dessert wine.  I have to admit, I was THRILLED he did. 

See why I LOVE traveling so much?!!?

Tot Ziens!