Day 83: Katwijk to Amsterdam

October 9, 2013

At breakfast today the change in countries was apparent. The bread was dark brown and cut into large slices, the cheese relatively hard and presented as slices from a hand held cheese slicer. This bread and cheese was just as wonderful as that in France, but way different.

Juul put a lot of effort into getting this combined bell and compass. This model is actually made in Holland

We drooled so much over Juul's new bell, that he gave it to Dodie. What a fine souvenir!

Yuul agreed to take us on a spin through Katwijk, and naturally this was by bike. Not only is the most efficient way, but Juul does not even own a car. With the superb bike path network, a car truly would be a drag for most purposes, compared to a bike. And, when Juul undertakes a slightly longer journey, such as to see his Dad (60 km each way), there is an efficient train service. The train and bike are also the ideal solution for vacation trips.

Though Katwijk is very close to some large centres, it is mentally and physically oriented to the beach and the sea. So Juul took us to the beach and the sea first. Actually the entire beach was closed, because of ongoing works. They are filling in eroded sections and building the whole thing higher with dredged sand. This is in anticipation of higher sea levels due to global warming. Nothwithstanding the detail that "construction" once again stood in our way, we could call this the Grampies' return to the North Sea.

Katwijk is also the place where the Rhine, or at least a branch of it, reaches the sea. As we stood at the spot, we projected our minds over the incredible trajectory of the river from its source in the Swiss mountains. Of course, the river is only a bit over 1200 km long, not so impressive, by Grampies standards! Also at that point where the Rhine ends was an artwork, showing strange figures standing around, some with seashells on their heads. There is an inscription in Dutch around the perimeter, but though Juul translated it, none of us could actually figure out what it meant or why this artwork was there. Juul says he likes it nonetheless.

The centre of Katwijk is typical of a small town, with a good but not crazy selection of shops. Juul says he patronizes these, rather than go to one of the larger cities nearby, because of the quality of after sales service. Though Netherlands is suffering an economic slowdown, Juul could identify some new cafes and bakeries, and we saw a large construction project of apartment buildings.In one of the new cafes we shared the space with Moms out with their babies and had free trade coffee and, in my case, apple geback.

€2.80 for a muffin is pretty darn costly

Juul then undertook to guide us back to the easy part of the path to Amsterdam. We followed him (like in the old days), and he wove a complex route away from the village. Finally, Juul, popped us onto the straight run back to Amsterdam. We said goodbye, but this time we are reasonably sure we will meet again. Most likely that will be next year, as Amsterdam is a good jumping off point for parts of Germany we have so far missed.

The straight run canal, but with the bridge out of commission

We continued down the canal, this time expertly hopping on the little ferry, and in no way missing any of the turns that leadmus back to our "house" at the campground. We dropped €20 in the little shop at the reception, for eggs, ham, and cheese for breakfast, plus enough chocolate and cookies to see us through the night. This does not mean we skipped supper though. Rather the campground owner directed us to a restaurant less than a km away.

At the restaurant, €15 each brought the Dutch equivalent of German schnitzel or French steak frites. Here it is satay - pork cubes grilled on a skewer and drowned in thick dark peanut sauce, comes with salad and fries, of course.

Back in our little cabin at the camping (really not much more than a solid walled tent, but with a small amount of power and an overhead light) we felt like royalty. Immune from any rain, able to type this blog sitting up, and with a secure dry place for the bikes at the foot of our beds, what more could we want? (Oh yes, toilet, sink, stove, heat, shower, sheets, towels, ...). lookit, in too few days we will have all that, at home, and probably will yearn to be right back here!

Path by the forest at the camping leads to a restaurant

Today's ride: 52 km (32 miles)
Total: 5,544 km (3,443 miles)

Rate this entry's writing	Heart	0
Comment on this entry	Comment	0