A Carpe-Diem Overnighter to North Holland

Actually, it was more like a Seize-the-Weather trip that Astrid thought up!  Last week Wednesday she told me the weekend was going to be sunny and warmer (up to 60F) and maybe we'd like to use the Fletcher hotel voucher we had to visit the Alkmaar area north of us.

She didn't have to ask me twice, nor did it take long to plan our Sunday-Monday escapade!

But first, just for the halibut, here's a quick geography lesson that usually helps me get my bearings:

There are 12 provinces that make up the Netherlands.

Gorinchem, where we live, is in Zuid/South Holland, on the North Sea.
(That is, the province is on the North Sea, not Gorinchem.)

Noord/North Holland, just above Zuid Holland, is also on the North Sea, with lots of coastline.

The Germans east of us are known to drive across the Netherlands just to visit this Dutch coast.

It's known as the German Invasion during the warmer months of the year.  Seriously.

Amsterdam is in Noord Holland, as is Alkmaar, where we wanted to go.

Our hotel was a bit NW of Alkmaar, on the North Sea, in Callantsoog.

Going home on Monday, we drove along the coast south.

Okay, then.  Just enough to get our bearings for our wee trip from Gorinchem to Alkmaar (62 miles), then eventually to Callantsoog (another 15 miles).  In the American sense of distance, this is nothing, right?  But in the Dutch sense, and at the speed we drive over the back roads, stopping at every weathervane or point of interest along the way, it can take all day.

 So, speaking of weathervanes, let's get started!

These are the ones we saw along the entire trip, Sunday to Monday.

Even the ones on top of churches or city buildings are important to me,

though you can easily tell the difference between them and the domestic vanes.

You know the gable stones also grab my attention, of course,

so while we're at it, these are the ones we saw along the way.

Gable stones are always harder to process than weathervanes because...

well, because the corners are almost never square, or tilted properly.

(But you already knew I was Ms. Perfectionist, right?)

Alright.  Enough for now.

This was a teaser and easy to "get out of the way" before moving on with the rest of the trip.

Coming up is Heiloo, Alkmaar, Schagen, St. Maartensbrug, Callantsoog, Camperduin 

and Egmond aan Zee (with a lighthouse we don't usually get to see).

Do you know how good it feels to be back on the road again????

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

My 9-week post-knee-replacement-surgery celebration today:
For my first time, I WAS ABLE TO CYCLE FORWARDS, for 5 minutes.
I actually was afraid to stop, lest I couldn't do it again.
Color me Surprised by Joy!

A Weekend of Friendship

Or, when it rains it pours.

Astrid and I can probably count on one hand how many times we meet up with friends in a year's span, not counting our trips abroad or guests "tripping" here.

So when we have two days in a row on a weekend, hobnobbing with local friends, that's a big deal.

It happened last weekend.  First it was Saturday with dear friend Margreeth (from nearby Giessenburg), with whom we have had several happy memories.

First, we went to eat lunch at our nearby Metropole Restaurant  (now open for both lunch and dinner).

It's one of our favorite restaurants here in Gorinchem, a 10-min. walk away.

Since 2009, the restaurant has partnered with the Syndion group,

offering jobs to mentally-handicapped adults.

It so happens that Emiel (close to age 40 with the mental age of around 12-14)

has been a friend of Astrid's since he was 12.  We LOVE him.

And no one could be prouder of his job than he is!

He was delighted that I took his picture:  "Now I'll be famous!" he said.

Waiting is always worth it when you're with a friend.

And when the food comes, we're never disappointed.  N E V E R.

Margreeth had the burger (something we've not yet tried).

Astrid and I shared the carpaccio salad and the grilled salmon salad.

From lunch we walked another 10 minutes to our Grote Markt.

That's where the old city hall is, housing our city's Gorcums Museum.

It was Margreeth who convinced us a year ago to buy the annual museum pass, remember?

 We headed straight to the top floor to first see the exhibit of the Gorkum Martyrs.

I had no idea about this part of Gorinchem's history.

19 Dutch Catholic clerics and friars were hanged by the Calvinists in 1572.

These religious wars are enough to break your heart open.

Walking down the stairs to the next exhibit, I was lifted up a bit...

to prepare me for 100 years of the chair!

This exhibit of 90 chairs is compiled by French expert Leidelmeijer.

 You want to see chairs? 

 Can you imagine sitting in them?!

 Some of them, NO.  Some of them, YES. 

 At one point, I had to put my feet up (at 7 weeks post-knee-replacement!),

while the ladies continued on for one of the permanent displays I'd already seen.

Looking out back from the museum you can see the Grote Kerk.

Looking out front you can see the fountain and main square.

Pay special attention to the middle-left image with the wee little cart....

because that's where we ended our day, with our must-have treat.

Our Venezia Ijssalon opened that day for the rest of the year.

We wouldn't have missed it for anything.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

That was Saturday.

On Sunday, we walked to nearby Femke's and Jeannettes's for a delightful afternoon.

This was the second time to build our friendship around food.

And what we're discovering is that the bridges just grow and grow.

Femke is the gourmet cook.  Jeannette is following in her footsteps.

See what I mean?  And we didn't even start with this!

I didn't grab my camera soon enough for the fig and raspberry liqueur from France,

followed by a homemade cheesecake, thanks to Jeannette.

O.M.G.  Eat dessert first!  Always.  Whenever possible.
But don't forget to take a picture of it first!

As if that weren't enough, Femke comes out with a quiche.

I think we all could have died and gone to heaven,
in spite of the voodoo toothpick holder.

See how she/they display their cookbooks?  I love it.

J&F.  And as we left, the waxing moon smiled down on us.

Most weekends don't come packed with friends like this.

Are we lucky or what!