Sinterklaas in the Windmill

By now you may remember that yesterday, December 5, was Sinterklaas here in the Netherlands.  It's the traditional day of giving and receiving gifts...not on Christmas.

It also happens to be the day I celebrated my arrival here in this country, 9 years ago (2009), to start my new life with Astrid, who became my wife 2 months after arriving, on February 5!

But I digress.

What I rarely show, however, is the importance of Sinterklaas himself in this culture.  Yes, you can say he's similar to America's Santa Claus, but he's different in that he arrives in the Netherlands 3 weeks before December 5 to make sure all the kids know he's here.  That's NOVEMBER!

It's a fun story...about how he arrives on a boat from Spain with his horse, Amerigo, and his Zwarte Piet helpers (Black Peters, who are Moors).  You can read all about it here.  He actually does arrive here in Gorinchem on a special boat, with kids watching him arrive in our inner harbor from the Merwede river outside the locks.

And yes, he's a legendary figure based on Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children.

This is the Nooit Volmaakt windmill just a block down the street from our back door.

It's a grain mill, originally built in 1718, from which we buy the flours for our homemade bread.

Nooit Volmaakt means "Never Forget."

When Astrid told me Sinterklaas was visiting this mill last Saturday at 2 p.m.,

I knew I would try to make it, if it wasn't too crowded.

Lucky for me, it was NOT too crowded, which actually surprised me!

The action was on the first floor up, where kids were invited to make speculaas cookies

while waiting for Sinterklaas to arrive.

I zeroed in on a couple of the kids who were fully involved.

Future chefs in the making, for sure!

Coloring was also an option....

which, of course, made me think of wee granddaughter Hailey.

Then we got the news that Sinterklaas had finally arrived down below!

He brought with him a Zwarte Piet (yes, they can also be women), as black as night.

A child standing nearby, as a Zwarte Piet wannabe, was allowed to hold the staff.

This is serious stuff.

Not anything like Santa Claus Ho-Ho-Ho-ing.

Some kids were afraid (sound familiar?), 

but parents played their part to calm the nerves.

This girl in particular was a total believer.

And then Sinterklaas climbed up to the cookie makers above.

No, I didn't follow him...

but I pictured in my mind's eye what it must have looked like.

It was raining when I left the mill but I didn't care.

I came.  I saw.  I dreamed about the years to come with Hailey!

And I repeated what I say every year at this time:
"Yes, Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus!" 

An Autumn Break

As most of you know by now, this is the time of year when Astrid and I fly back to America to be with family and friends.  We leave early tomorrow and return on Wednesday, 1 November, three weeks later.

While we're gone, I'll leave you with some images from two of my recent citadel walks from where we live here in Gorinchem, NL.  It really IS autumn!

This is the collage I posted on Facebook after my September 20th walk.

Okay, not technically autumn yet, but who cares!

From my collage posts, I love picking out a few images for my Shutterchance photoblog.

How can you resist the little children leading us!

See how easy it is to dramatize an image?!

Sometimes I "see" it in my mind's eye and just have to play around with it.

The next week, September 27th, was a foggy day, which I love.

The Nooit Volmaakt windmill is just two blocks from our back door.

The sun was trying to burn through the fog.

Then I saw the first of Erik Buijs' 7" mini-sculptures along the citadel path.

It's the one of a man playing "fetch" with his dog.

In fact, the top image is from March where you can see the full view on its 5-ft pole.

Not that I've seen the series but, up close, he reminds me of The Walking Dead!

Our other Gorinchem windmill is De Hoop (The Hope), standing as a sentry midst "foggy" times.

When I posted this on Facebook last week, it felt appropriate after the Las Vegas mass shooting.

Just past the windmill is our Dalempoort, through which you look out to the Merwede river.

On a foggy day it felt so magical.

Today on FB I have posted this collage as a Good-Bye to all my lovelies where we live.
When we return on 1 November, I'm sure there will be many autumnal changes.

We'll spend our first week in Connecticut with friends Ted and Jane.

Then we'll have time with the kids in Atlanta, followed by Bob and Peggy south of Atlanta,

and then the North Georgia cabin in the mountains with the kids before flying home.
For those of you who follow us on FB, we'll try to keep you updated there.

We LOVE this time of the year!

A Wee Little Walk in Gorinchem, NL

Did I mention that we drove to Münsterland this past weekend in celebration of our 4-year wedding anniversary?  Guess what I'll be working on for the next several days/weeks to come.  HA!

In the meantime, here's a wee-little citadel walk I took a couple Sundays ago when the weather was just spectacular.  I wanted to play around with my camera, for one thing, and just look again at what's at our doorstep.

I pass our little Paardenwater (water horse) pond every time I walk to one of our grocery stores.

The ducks and geese love it--their own little paradise.

You can look back to our Grote Kerk from there, just two blocks from our apartment.

Nearby, after rounding the pond, you can see our fire station on the Linge river.

Do you recognize some of these landmarks by now?

Our water tower from 1886 is now an apartment building.

And that's our Nooit Volmaakt windmill from 1718, a block from our apartment.

The little church is a reformed church across the street from the Paardenwater pond.

Astrid calls it the "black-stocking" church.  :)

But what I really wanted to catch that day was these Eurasian Magpie birds!  Ekster in Dutch.

I see them all the time but they only sit still in the trees for capturing...600-1200 mm away.

If ever I catch one even 100-200 mm away, I'll be in heaven.

They're so beautiful, especially in flight.

The ubiquitous pigeons, of course, you usually can capture up close.

But these, too, are 600-1200 mm away.

As I said, I just want to see what my little camera can do. 

Of course, there are always the views that catch my eye.
"What can I make of that," I'm always thinking.

I love that there's a skate-boarding park nearby...with soccer goals.

 And always the bridges that give us these sweet views along our canal.
Yup, that's the same fire station in the background.

All in a sunny day's wee-little walk in our lovely Gorinchem where we live!

Happy February to everyone.  We're still waiting for winter....

Our Gorinchem Citadel Walk

We had intended to be out-n-about this past weekend for a new photo hunt, but after a week of heavy rain, and more forecast, we stayed home and relaxed.

That's when I decided to take you on my citadel walk where we live in Gorinchem, Netherlands! It's been something in the wings for a long time, so here it is, with pics from the last 1-1/2 years.

Gorinchem's city center is surrounded by water and walls, making it a perfect, fortified city center. There is even a tour you can take around the citadel, explaining all about the walls, which you can see here. We have yet to take it but "most of the town walls from 1600 are in more or less original shape."

See that big red dot near top center? That represents where we live here at De Lindeborg, inside the citadel. At least 4 days a week I walk around one half or the other, cutting back through city center: 40 minutes to the left, 30 minutes to the right. If I walk the entire loop at a brisk pace, without my camera, it takes 45 minutes. Sometimes Astrid and I do that together, as we did yesterday.

And what a walk it is! I still pinch myself because of what is here at our fingertips.

First of all, there are 4 main landmarks, all of which I have shown from previous posts, but here they are as seen from the citadel walk: two windmills, the Grote Kerk, and the water tower.

First off, and only a block away from our back door, is the Nooit Volmaakt (Never Forget/Never Perfect) windmill, from 1718. That top-left image is my laptop's wallpaper, so soulful with a light dusting of snow.

Today, let's turn to the right towards the windmill and follow the citadel wall clockwise.

On the backside of the windmill is a staircase that takes you down to the canal that runs through city center and where all the old-timey houseboat barges are. I almost feel like I'm trespassing because I'm in their front yard as I pass by. Then I climb another set of stairs to cross the bridge before continuing on along the wall.


Then I pass Old Sannie on the left, sitting on his own little island in the Paardwater.
(See how this comes together from past posts?!)


Then starts some of my favorite views along the city wall.
See the ice skaters? They were there my first year here, early 2010.


This is the part of the walk where you can find the little "munchkins" from the artist Erik Buijs. All these fellas sit on poles at eye level, at regular intervals along the walk.
Each one is about 7 inches tall.


About this same time, off to the right, is when you see the water tower from 1886, now an apartment building.

It's at this point, on my short walk, that I turn into the city center to go back home, with the second windmill straight ahead. I don't pass it on the short walk, but I see it and that's enough.

Now, since it's too much like craziness to continue clockwise around the citadel (isn't it strange how our brains work!), please go back to the big red dot on the map and go left with me counterclockwise to finally meet up where we last left off and complete the loop.

I always think of last December's Santa Run (remember?) when I start off on this longer of the two walks. This was where we went then, through the huge, over-arching trees.


This is also where I start seeing the cannons because the huge Merwede River is before me, with freighters passing daily back-n-forth to Rotterdam. Remember, this is a citadel and the cannons remain as reminders of a rich history of defense.


And there she is, the Merwede River and bridge in the background, with Gorinchem's outside harbor (outside the citadel wall, that is) in the foreground.
See the walkway? That's what the whole walk is on...like asphalt.
And see how raised it is? That's the city wall, on which we're walking.


It's in this neck of the woods, looking inside the city, that you see some of the best views of the Grote Kerk.
It's only two blocks down the street from where we live (with its tilted tower).


Then, within minutes after the boat harbor, you come down off the wall to the Merwede River where the water taxis are ready to take students, workers, and visitors from one city to the next.
Sometimes cheaper than owning a car!
There's also a huge grassy area for all kinds of activities and festivals throughout the year.
A great meet-up place. Even a beach for swimming.


See the gigantic "munchkin" on the pole there at the waterpoort?
Yup, it's done by the same artist, Erik Buijs, as along the earlier walk.

Right after you turn left at the waterpoort, and then follow past the restaurant (top-left image of the collage before last), you turn right....

...and cross over the Linge Harbor to the left...the city's inside harbor, as in inside the citadel wall. It's the harbor where Sinterklaas enters the city on 5 December every year from the Merwede River.
No boat can enter until the sluice is opened, so it's totally protected.
It's also fun to stand there and watch the boats come through. In fact, if the sluice is open on the walk,
you can't cross over til it's closed to continue!


After passing the inside harbor, with city center there on the left, you climb stairs up to the wall again and see the Merwede River continuing on the right.
Across the river is where you can see the church and windmill of our sister city, Woudrichem.
And also, in the distance, the Loevestein castle (all with my 300mm lens).


This is also the stretch where I see the most dogs running around.
I actually see them all along the citadel wall. What a great place for exercise!
It was on this walk when I first met Ernie and his beautiful dog, Laika.


And then you see her, De Hoop (The Hope) windmill from 1764.
Magnificent. Majestic. There for the world to see not far inland from the Merwede River.


You actually pass the Dalempoort first, before you pass the windmill, continuing the walk.
See the water tower behind in the top-left image? Everything is really that close.


One of Gorinchem's most famous scuptures sits there at the Dalempoort: the salmon fisher.
It's a reminder that years ago the Merwede was full of salmon. Sadly, no longer.


Often in the area of the Dalempoort and De hoop windmill there will be an art symposium.
Art displays come and go throughout the year. But other pieces around the citadel are permanent, as testament to a rich culture full of surprise and intrigue.


And there you have it!
I head back home into the city center, having seen a little bit of everything.
In the center image above, way back at the end of the road is De Lindeborg's back door.
Home Sweet Home after a nice walk to die for.

When YOU come to visit us, this is one of the first things we'll do: go for a walk! There are plenty of benches all along the loop. No hurry. No rush. We can take as long as you'd like.