TRAVELLING NORTH BACK TO KUIKHORNE

On our way north we called into Joure to catch up with Irene and Jan in the marina, Irene’s brother lives in Perth so it was time to take photos for back home.

We arrived in time for the Yearly Collectors Fair which is partly collector’s stalls and partly antiques or upmarket stalls. It was really interesting to see what collectors collect.

There were the most amazing displays. This fellow had a display of toy poker machines.

There was even special poker loo paper


Andries Timmerman collects fire alarm sprinklers and shows them all over Europe. He said he would love to get in touch with anyone in Australia who collects them so he can swap.



The man on this stall made the most beautiful cutouts. I love the idea of the family tree.



Our friends Max and Geertje live in Joure and came over for drinks and Diane and John arrived in their boat Dijon and joined us.

One of the many ballooning companies around Joure lifted one of their balloons in the evening from the grassed campervan area beside the marina.



Next stop was Kuikhorne and Eibertsnest Marina where we will leave the boat until 2011.

Hans has a marvellous hydraulic lifter to take the boat out and transport it to the hardstand, it is so much better than having it wave in the breeze on straps.


Courlis is now back up on hardstand and all winterised ready to leave.

Edi and Otto were in the harbour so it was lovely to catch up with them. Edi cooked us some lovely german meals and were great company as we packed up and winterised the boat.



We said our goodbyes and caught the train to Ijmuiden to spend a few days with Liz before heading home, of course being Australian Liz had vegemite was on the table to remind us of home.


While there we visited Amsterdam travelling down the Nordzee canal by Hydrofoil ferry.

It was raining and everyone had raincoats on even the bicycles. I like the blue coat which is like a wearable umbrella.


We spent the day wandering around seeing the sights of Amsterdam.
A typical scenes along the canals.



Making use of every bit of outdoor space for summer gardens.


Sightseeing in Rembrandt Square.
On the way to the markets Kevin visited the boys room on the street. If only it was so easy for girls!!



In the markets we saw some interesting T Shirts and other things.




Foot is sporting a little black number now and going well.

Soon it was time to say goodbye to Liz and make our way to Schipol and the flight home.




Another wonderful year in the Netherlands.

TWENTE CANAL

From Arnhem we have decided to take Courlis back to Eibertsnest Marina in Kuikhorne, Friesland to leave her for the Winter. We wintered here again last year when we returned from Germany and are very happy with the service there. Hans and Jitty live at the marina and both speak English which is a real bonus. Also Hans will take the boat out or put back in at any time which is much better than the take out in October and put in April that most places offer.

TWENTE CANAL
The river Ijssel is running fast and at our normal cruising of 10kph we were going about 16 kph. We decided to take a small set of canals on the way back north which start just north of Zupthen on the Ijssel.

We spent the night in Zupthen and took the Twente Canal east which went to Almelo then north to Gramsbergen across to Covorden and back through Hoogeveen to Meppel. This canal will become the southern route for the new connection canal through to Ter Appel and into Germany.

As we entered the Twente Canal and the 8 metre lock, the keeper gave us an information bag with advertising for the new campaign to educate skippers to keep out of the way of the barges on the narrow canals.

The usual blue board rules apply but some smaller boats still want to rush past as we head for the other side.

The new education of skippers is for the smaller boats to change to the other side of the canal when a barge comes from behind so it doesn’t have to drive around them. The cartoons are rather cute.


We arrived in Almelo on Sunday and made a trip into town after we had moored to look around as we wanted to leave next morning. While in town we broke one of our rules and decided to get some money out of the ATM in the square. Usually we only use ATM’s when we are in a bank and it is a weekday in case anything goes wrong.

As usual Murphy’s law came into play we used a machine which had been scammed. Our card disappeared and wouldn’t come back out, fortunately Kevin always keeps his hand over the keys when he puts the code in and this apparently saved us. While waiting to see if our card came back out the passing parade of bicycles was interesting.

The young lady has high heels and we wished we had seen her run alongside to pop onto the carrier, they always look so elegant riding side saddle.



Anyway after a trip back to town early next morning, the bank went and checked the machine for the card, couldn’t find it, found out that their machine had been out of action for a couple of hours, checked the cameras and saw someone interfering with the ATM. Thankfully we cancelled the card and nothing was taken out.

We set off late afternoon for the rest of out trip through this small but pleasant set of canals. On the way we are passing through large glasshouses which stretch as far as the eye can see away from the canal.

And of course we pass the seniors out for a picnic, no wonder people look so healthy over here they are always out getting exercise. No cars used here for going on a picnic, but of course the bicycle paths are fantastic.

We stayed in Gramsbergen which in the past was a smuggling town as it is only about a kilometre from the German border. The next morning brought the rain which stayed with us for days.

Thankfully we have good wet weather clothes so locking wasn’t a problem as we now had a fairly tight schedule to get back to Kuikhorne. The bridges are opened by travelling keepers who worked rain or shine. We thought our lady on one section was very good at riding her bike with one hand on the handlebars and the other holding up an umbrella as the rain poured down.


Coming into the last lock we came across a group of seniors out for a ride.

and had quite a conversation as to why we were travelling through the back blocks of the Netherlands on a rainy day and not back in Australia where they were sure the sun would be shining.


Soon we left the small canals and headed north again.As we passed through the lock onto the Tjeukemeer it was very windy and the waves were slopping us around, it always reminds me why I like the canals better than the ocean. This couple flying the German flag in his and hers dinghies packed to the hilt with their camping gear were in front of us. All I can say is she must really be in love to follow him anywhere, I bet he said they were going on a cruise of a lifetime and would have an outside cabin!!

ARNHEM

We left Utrecht in the afternoon and went back to the lock out onto the Amsterdam Rhine canal then down 20 k to the Neder Rhine. We had a very good trip with hardly any big barges, what a relief as I still have the Maarsen exit in my mind. The harbour of Wijk ij Duurstede was just around the corner as we entered the Neder Rhine so we pulled in for the night. We had a pleasant drink in the café overlooking the harbour which sits high on the town wall. There were two passenger ships in the harbour so we went to look them over. The largest, the Prins Willem Alexander had 25 large windows along each side and as we looked in the windows we were surprised to see each cabin had a bed with equipment to help a person get out of bed. We understood why when we read the information board which said it was a Hospital Vacation Ship with rooms for 50 passengers and 50 volunteers. There were wheelchairs and walkers waiting for the guests. What a wonderful idea the guests can lay in bed and watch the scenery as they go by. Next morning we continued up the Neder Rhine with the current about 4kph against us. The ferry boats crossing the river are attached to little weighted boats anchored in the river so they don’t get swept down when crossing. Arnhem city has almost all modern buildings as the old city suffered when it was bombarded from both parties during the battle of Market Garden in WW2. We passed under the John Frost Bridge made famous in the film ‘A Bridge Too Far’ and drove into a side arm of the river which is out of the current. We stayed at the Jason Rowing and boating club which is about 2 k from the city. Arnhem is quite a meeting spot as there are only 2 small clubs so from the high wall it is easy to see who is in port. We met Jackie and Paul on their lovely barge ‘Kolibri’ called after the hummingbird. They have beautiful little hummingbirds all over the boat in various forms. Liz arrived to stay with us and each day we were kept busy seeing the sights around Arnhem. The old part of the city sits in beside newer buildings but it still has the beautiful squares lined with outdoor café’s that are as much a part of the Netherlands as windmills are. We visited the Battle of Arnhem information centre near the bridge and the man in attendance that day was a former paratrooper and explained all about the Battle of Market Garden. The fact and fiction recordings around the room tell the real story which is different to the film ‘Bridge Too Far’. Then we caught the bus out 10 k to Oosterbeek to visit the Airborne Museum which is housed in the ‘Hartenstein Hotel’ which was used as the Staff Headquarters of the British 1st Airborne Division during the battle. There is a plaque in the gardens commemorating the help given to the allies by the citizens of Oosterbeek. The museum is very good with an excellent film in english or dutch. The wall posters around the rooms are from actual photographs taken during the battle and the quotes are very poignant. The basement has been made like a walk through a battle zone, the equipment, sound and film make it scary as it is so realistic as you walk through. Video 1 arnhem
Today is Kevin’s 70th Birthday and he is receiving calls from home all day. Bob and Lois have arrived in ‘Anemoon’ now we have two Aussie boats in port. English friends Terry and Carol on Silver Star arrived also. We went a 100m to the next marina to the Restaurant Valkenburg to celebrate Kevin’s birthday. It is in a really cute boathouse which is filled with all sorts of treasures. Today was girls day out in town while Kevin did some more Battle stuff. Tonight we celebrated Terry and Carol’s new boat ‘Silver Star’ by washing down several bottles of red while we tried to decide which was the best buy and taste.
Next morning Carol and Terry left Arnhem

And Diane and John arrived in ‘Dijon’ from Maasbracht and Nimegen after braving the Waal, so the Australian Navy is growing.

After the sadness of the Airborne museum we spent another wonderful day by catching the bus out to part of a huge natural park to the
We came here especially to see a huge collection of Van Gogh paintings and drawings as well as many other famous artists. I was in heaven as the Café la Nuit and the Pont were both here and I have previously been to Arles to see where Van Gogh painted these and now I am seeing them in real life. What a Joy!!! While in the park you can use one of the free white bicycles to visit other areas. There is a large hunting museum here also.

On Friday, Penny and Russel in ‘Arcturis’ arrived in Arnhem via the Rhine from Germany where they have spent the last 3 months. Now we had four Aussie boats in Port.

After a great night out in the Jason Boat Club Restaurant we left Arnhem next morning for the Ijssel heading north.