Day 7 cont.. Den Haag
Arriving in mid afternoon I decide to check out the Tong tong fair advertised on posters, its a indo Pacific / Netherlands heritage event, essentially loads of stalls selling handicrafts and food (nice), with cultural performances. I guess I missed the good ones. However did sit in for some musical theatre about netherlands relationship with Indonesia, through the empirical and trading years and how impacted by ww2, which was very good althiugh couldn't understand the words, could get the gist.
Terrible nights sleep due to multiple snorers in the hostel dorm. That's the lottery.
Day 8, day off.
Today was a proper tourism day.
Lots of nice architecture but the blinding sun always seems to be coming from the wrong direction for photos!
First the Panorama Mesdag. Absolutely amazing piece of art from 1890 showing a 360 view from a high point on the sand dunes. The thing is over 100m in circumference and the perspective is cleverly designed so actual sand in the for ground blends into the painting.
Better than being there for real!
Next the Escher museum/ gallery, which was equally mindbending and interesting to see some earlier landscape works
Then a long tram ride out to see the Celestial Vault, a combination of bowl shaped earthwork and an almost altar like stone on which you lie to look at the sky, seeing it as an orb due to the curve of the horizon.
The sky looks like the earth from space. Clouds swirling over the Pacific... Its super medititive, until a noisy youth club turns up anyway.
Finally in the evening, the Caravan gig. (Canterbury scene prog rock) These guys are celebrating their 50th anniversary of touring next year but they still rock a groove like it's 1972. Brilliant musicians including a solo on spoons and washboard!
Earplugs on standby for snoring round 2.
Little beautiful south reference there, couldn't resist.
Targeted a free "pole camping" site for tonight.
Turns out to be a horrible little patch of mud with someone already pitched and dubious tissue paper in a fire pit, so I sell out and go to a commercial campsite, by which I mean families in campervans. But they have ice cream and showers so I'm embracing it
Earlier passed through Gouda, of cheese fame, but where today was ceramics fair, with stalls of sculptures from around Europe including Penrith. Competitions to see who can make the widest plate and tallest vase in 5 minutes. All very nice
It was a public holiday for ascension day, and the whole population was outside cycling, playing petanque, baseball, (side note, definite sub culture of Americana, have passed a number of classic muscle cars and restored pick up trucks) swimming, hanging out at brasseries etc
Great windmill in canal reflection.
Quite a lot of windmills by now, novelty wearing off a bit...
Day 7
Windmills.... Windmills SPINNING! that is a first
Lunch at Rotterdam central park, swans taking off and doing ponderous circuits like Vulcan bombers.
Central Rotterdam turns into a typical city, trams cars buses bikes people everywhere, and after a stop at the docks for the maritime museum (interesting selection of cranes) I escape to the more tranquil touristy haven of Delft. Which is very nice, but after Utrecht and Gouda its feeling a bit like deja vu.... Ice cream and onwards to den Haag...
Targeted a free "pole camping" site for tonight.
Turns out to be a horrible little patch of mud with someone already pitched and dubious tissue paper in a fire pit, so I sell out and go to a commercial campsite, by which I mean families in campervans. But they have ice cream and showers so I'm embracing it
Earlier passed through Gouda, of cheese fame, but where today was ceramics fair, with stalls of sculptures from around Europe including Penrith. Competitions to see who can make the widest plate and tallest vase in 5 minutes. All very nice
It was a public holiday for ascension day, and the whole population was outside cycling, playing petanque, baseball, (side note, definite sub culture of Americana, have passed a number of classic muscle cars and restored pick up trucks) swimming, hanging out at brasseries etc
Great windmill in canal reflection.
Quite a lot of windmills by now, novelty wearing off a bit...
Day 7
Windmills.... Windmills SPINNING! that is a first
Lunch at Rotterdam central park, swans taking off and doing ponderous circuits like Vulcan bombers.
Central Rotterdam turns into a typical city, trams cars buses bikes people everywhere, and after a stop at the docks for the maritime museum (interesting selection of cranes) I escape to the more tranquil touristy haven of Delft. Which is very nice, but after Utrecht and Gouda its feeling a bit like deja vu.... Ice cream and onwards to den Haag...