Zaanse Schans

Today we left to visit the Zaanse Schans area. Unfortunately I left my phone on the house boat so I have no pictures. The Zaanse Schans area has about 8 large windmills with other smaller ones. One cuts wood. One pulverizes materials for paint pigment. One is a mill. We walked around this large site for hours. Our first stop was the museum which explained what life was like there in the 1800's. This was very interesting. Part of this museum has a chocolate factory. We visited the chocolate factory and learned the process from grinding cocoa beans to making chocolate covered cookies. And we got a free cookie! After the museum I walked up the stairs of a tall observation deck. I saw a horned grebe swimming. I tried to get a picture with my cousin's phone but that bird was camera shy. We walked on to a weaver's house. The weavers in this house weaved sail cloth for ocean voyages out of hemp. After that we walked on to a windmill that ground pigment for paint. As we climbed up the ladder and out the door I was frightened as a large windmill blade swung through the air right in front of me. Most of the other windmills were not open yet but we walked down the length of them. At the other end the windmills looked better because they were facing us. Back near the museum we stopped at a famous restaurant that served pancakes as big as your plate. I had a pancake with apricot preserves and whipped cream. All those carbs but I have to say it was good. The pancake was more crepe than pancake. After that we stopped at a wooden shoe demonstration where a guy showed the audience how the shores are made with the help of machines. They had a great supply of wooden shoes to sell but I know better. I used to wear Dr. Scholl sandals so I know what walking on wood feels like. We took the bus back into town and got off at the Centraal Center. Outside the Centraal Center are ferry boats that will take you across the bay at no charge. We took the ferry boat that was crowded with pedestrians and bicyclists with their bikes. We walked to a tall building that we saw yesterday with swings at the top. This is the love tower. When we arrived in Amsterdam we bought the I Amsterdam city card which pays for many museums and buses and trams and subways (but not trains). We got to go up the tower in the A'Dam lookout. As the elevator rises 100 meters high a light show is at the top ceiling which we can see through a glass roof on the elevator car. We walked around the balcony on top of the building but chose not to pay extra to ride on the swings. Food and drinks are also available up there. As we left we saw an eye museum across the street. Our I Amsterdam city card paid for our admission here too. An exhibit showed the history of how movies are made. We got to watch a couple old movies as well. We had another great day in Amsterdam. 

Keukenhof Gardens

Today we took a tram, the subway, and a bus to Keukenhof Gardens which is the largest flower garden in Europe

Here is an organ with moving characters that played happy circus music.

The gardens are meticulously groomed.

Tulips galore.

Each section of bulb flowers is surrounded by green lawn.

They had a wooden shoe boat in a pond near a miniature windmill.

This working windmill was moved here from somewhere else. The whisper boats (run by electric motors) were right behind this windmill.

The whisper boats take 20 people through the canals between fallow fields and fields of tulips, hyacinth, daffodil and crocus flowers.

We saw acre upon acre of flowers. Geese and ducks and coots swam in the canals.

We were cold after the boat ride so we went indoors to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate.

We got there early before the crowds.

By afternoon the place was crowded with people.

March 19th through May 10th is the time to visit when flowers are in full bloom.

They offered bulbs for sale but spring is not the time to plant tulips so we didn't buy any. Keukenhof Gardens is a great place to visit.

 

Van Gogh

This morning we returned to the Centraal Station to take the tram to the museum district. We needed to be there by 10 a.m.  We had time for breakfast in the Centraal Station.

The Van Gogh museum is so busy they schedule patrons to come throughout the day.

We toured the museum for 90 minutes.

We walked about 8 blocks to a park that was very beautiful and crowded with people. So many bikes here! Those yellow flowers in bloom across the water are marsh marigolds.

Then we took another tram back to Centraal Station to take a canal ride. We bought an Amsterdam City card for 4 days so our tram rides and canal ride were included with the card. From this bridge you can see 7 other bridges in the distance. Sorry about the poor picture.

We came to one intersection that is so busy the boats have traffic signals (red and green only).

Our 90 minute canal ride was very relaxing. With the wind we were glad to be in a covered boat.

We have the first third of this house boat. Our hostess has the rest of the boat. It's very nice.

 

Netherlands

Traveling is getting to be a chore. I traveled from Winona to Minneapolis to Dublin with a final destination of Amsterdam (or, as the pilot calls it, The Amsterdam). The older I get the more difficult it is to lift my luggage into the overhead bin. The older I get the more my legs swell. The older I get the more uncomfortable compressions socks feel. The older I get the less comfortable I feel with pressurized air filling my intestines.  A gate agent in Dublin told us our gate was 305. We waited at 305 from 8 in the morning until 1. Our actual gate was 407 so we missed our connection. We had to go through customs to buy another ticket. We told the customs man what happened. He suggested we buy the tickets and then buy some lager. We took his advice and bought a half pint of lager and a glass of wine. As I waited for the bartender to fill my order I told the young guy next to me that this was my first time in an Irish pub. He told me I was definitely not in an Irish pub. I was in an airport pub in Ireland but not an Irish pub. Whatever buddy, I an considering this an Irish pub. Then we waited patiently at our gate until they moved it to another gate. We got on our plane and landed at Schiphol Airport. We took the train to the Centraal Station where we had planned to walk with our luggage a thirty minute trip to our houseboat. But since it was dark and raining we decided to take a cab to our houseboat. Our hostess was very gracious and we were happy to be in the Netherlands at last.

 

 

 

Forensics

This time I read a non-fiction book. Val McDermid is a crime writer and she also wrote Forensics The Anatomy Of a Crime. Each chapter has a different area of forensic medicine. The first chapter was about bugs. The age of maggots can help determine the time of death. The was a chapter on blood spatters and a chapter on DNA evidence. There was a chapter on finger prints. She lives in Scotland so many of the cases are from Scotland. She interviewed forensic experts all over the world. Several of her experts have done work on mass killings like the one in Kosovo. Several of the more famous forensic experts of the time were wrong. The last chapter was on court room drama. A forensic expert has information crucial to the trial but if the lawyers don't ask the right questions the truth does not come out. And sometimes juries make fickle decisions.

 

 

Belgrave Road

Belgrave Road is a novel written by Manish Chauhan. The story is about Mira and Tahliil. Mira was living in India with her family when her parents agreed to an arranged marriage. Mira traveled alone by plane from India to England. Now she resides is a small house outside of London with her husband and his parents. If she remains married for five years she will be able to be a citizen. Her husband and his parents grossly misrepresented their wealth. After taking an English class and gaining confidence, she gets a job at a restaurant. The restaurant is next door to a small market. Tahliil works at that market stocking the shelves and moving merchandise. Tahliil and his sister moved from Mogadishu, Somalia to England to care for their mother. Tahliil and his sister are applying for citizenship. Tahliil and Mira meet during their lunch breaks behind their shops. Both are searching for better lives. They hope to be together someday.

 

 

When The Lights Go Out

When The Lights Go Out is a mystery book written by Mary Kubica. Only she turns the R around in her first name like Toys R Us. The story is about a young woman named Jessica who is nearing the end of high school when her mother, Eden, discloses that her breast cancer has returned and she is now terminally ill. Jessica gets insomnia; really severe insomnia. She goes for a week without sleeping. This part of the story is told slowly and in great detail. I think there was too much of the insomnia symptoms. Also, Jessica goes to apply to college and is told her social security number lists her as deceased. She has no birth certificate. Jessica suspects her mother of stealing her as a child. The ending was ridiculous. Loose strings all over the place.