The Biesbosch Museum in Werkendam, NL

Because we almost never drive from Point A to Point B in a straight line, here's a bit of a prelude before I take you to the next museum on our Museum Card.

In all fairness to our first museum, which was the open-air museum in Arnhem,

here's the windmill in Geldermalsen we stopped at first for our cornmeal, ground there by the mill.

It's the De Bouwing grain mill from 1848.
And it was a gorgeous spring day, April 11.

Two weeks later we drove to our second museum, just 6 miles from from us, in Werkendam.

And as you know, we stop whenever something interests us along the way!

That huge house next to the church had whirligigs in their yard and cows in their window.  HA!

Whenever I got out of the car, I HAD to capture the flowers...even the weeds.

The right-middle image is rapeseed.  They grow a lot of it in England but just a little here.

A handful of weathervanes.

A few sheep and cows.

We even had to stop for a saiboat at the Biesbosch lock drawbridge.

Astrid has lived with drawbridges and locks her entire life and still gets excited about them with me.

I loved watching the tip of the sailboat mast pass by!

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By the time we arrived  in the vicinity of the Biesbosch Museum, it was time for koffie.

It was a good place to start feeling the energy of this water basin, 

formed after the St. Elizabeth flood of 1421.

Today it is a nature preserve with reminders of a day gone by when inhabitants earned their living here,

fishing, hunting, weaving baskets, farming....

As museums go, at €3.75 normal rate, it sure packed a wallop.

 For some reason, I've always been a glutton for life-sized model re-enactments of past eras.

Someone put a lot of time and energy into all the details.

I liked the boats, of course....

...but my favorite was this mama doing the laundry with her sweet little girl (and cat!) nearby.

Did we really use to do things that way???  Oh, yes.  I remember.  HA!

All the taxidermy was done to perfection.  The birds....

...critters...

...and even the water creatures, all in their natural habitat.

The walls were covered with photography and paintings.  

Lots of history to see and read about or watch on flatscreens throughout.

We actually were thrilled by this little museum.

It took us only 2 hours to see it all...perfect for an afternoon's inspiration.

Another time we may decide to go back and pay the extra price of the electrically-powered "cruise"

 around the creeks and waterways, to see the otters, birds, foxes and who-knows-what.

Don't you just love what you can find in your backyard...once you buy your annual museum card!

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As an FYI, we fly to England tomorrow for our Shutterchance photoblog meet-up on Sunday,
and will return on the 18th with lots to show and tell!

Drive-Through Windmills

Actually, make that one...because supposedly there's only ONE drive-through windmill in the world. And it's only 56 km (35 miles) from our apartment here in Holland! And yes, that's Granny Towanda driving through it, thanks to Astrid.

The windmill Rijn en Lek (Rhine and Lek rivers) in Wijk bij Duurstede, Holland.

While Astrid is at work during the week, I start Googling to see what the Gran Towanda (thank you, Red-Ink-Art-Photography Linda, for the nickname!) might want to see next. It was a no-brainer when I just happened to find a drive-through windmill that Astrid herself had never seen. So for our third trip out, this past Saturday was our longest round-trip to date at 154 km (96 miles).

But before I go back to the windmill, Wijk bij Duurstede is also known for it's 2 churches AND its castle. It's like slagroom on the appeltaart (whipcream on the apple pie) when you can get everything in one swell foop!

1. The Grote Kerk (Big Church) on the left has a flat top because the bishop didn't have enough money in 1486 to make the tower higher. It began as a Roman Catholic church but is now Dutch Reformed Protestant.

2. The Sint Johannes de Doper (St. John the Baptist) Roman Catholic church near the Grote Kerk is not as imposing but at least it has a spire!

3. The Kasteel Duurstede (Duurstede Castle), on the right, is a ruin from 1270 and is used as the site for weddings today, among other things. Can you imagine!

Of the 3 above landmarks, the Grote Kerk and the castle were my two favorites, as seen in this collage below.

The Grote Kerk and the Kasteel Duurstede.

But you know I'm going to say this: That windmill stole my heart. How is it that there is only one in the world...and how is it possible that it is almost in my backyard!

We saw other churches and windmills and castles both before and after Wijk bij Duurstede, which you can see here in my photo album. But as Astrid and I were driving home, I said to her that if ever we have family or guests visiting us here in Holland, THIS is the city we will show them. It has it all.

And in case you don't believe me, don't forget the klompen!

You Can't Walk on One Leg

First of all, it's my turn again at Vision & Verb and if you really want to understand what this title is all about, that's where you'll have to go to find out. Clue: it has more to do with Dutch idioms than with this black sheep grazing somewhere around Buren, Holland. Second clue: it has more to do with generosity than how fit you are!

Now, to the post at hand. This past weekend was gonna be real iffy when it came to Granny Towanda and if we'd have a date with her. It was predicted to rain the entire weekend so we basically decided not to do another photo hunt. However, come Saturday morning with only cloudy skies greeting us, we spontaneously went for it. Another outing nearby, all of 77 km (48 miles) to Culemborg and Geldermalsen...followed by lots of rain later that night.

First stop was Culemborg, where the water tower greeted us as we entered the city. Astrid knows by now that I will always ask her to stop Granny Towanda so I can take a picture...this time from the car window. It's the larger of the two cities at 12 sq. miles and approx. 28K inhabitants. Its market square is large and historic, known most for two things: it's Binnenpoort gate and its Town Hall as seen in this collage below (click on collage to enlarge).

Between Culemborg and Geldermalsen, driving along the back roads, we passed this church on the side of the road in Buurmalsen. In 2006 the town had 1,058 inhabitants. These towns may not be big but they sure do have big churches!

Geldermalsen, less than half the size of Culemborg, with 10,551 inhabitants in 2007, and with barely a smidge of a market square to speak of, gave us two delights. First, a place for a nice cuppa koffie at Le Mélangeur Koffie Thee Choco Vlaai café. Out in front of the shop is this delightful statue of three dancing ladies. I think of the Three Graces but have no clue what it's called or who the artist is. Note to myself: Google will not always help you find what you are looking for, so write it down while you're there...or take a picture of the plaque!

The outside statue is above; the café's mural is below, right next to where we sat on the left.

Besides the statue and refreshing koffie break, Geldermalsen's De Bouwing windmill filled us up for the rest of the day before returning home. Luckily it was open to visitors, so we had the chance to stroll around and talk to the ladies [wo]manning the shop. We even bought some corn meal that was ground by the mill and are eager to try it out. Incidentally, one lady told us that the woman who runs the working mill in Holland, Michigan, is the only female miller outside of Holland. I have 3 siblings who live in that Holland, so that bit of trivia is delicious!

The top-left pic in this collage is actually De Hoop windmill in Culemborg. But all the other pics are of De Bouwing mill in Geldermalsen. You know me. I can't ever get too much of them. So soulful to me!

As a side note, THANKS to sister Ruth for getting me hooked on Picnik.com where I have access now to collage-making. I've needed it for a long time because of how many pictures I take. I will continue to make my photo albums for me, to document the trips. But these collages will help you, I do believe. You can see my photo album of this trip here.

Don't forget to go to Vision & Verb if you want to find out about the title of this post. You really CAN'T walk on one leg! That's why we had to go to both Culemborg and Geldermalsen.