Germany / Netherlands - June/July 2013

Our visit to Koblenz, Germany was very short – really a chance to break-up the trip from Arusha, Tanzania to Utrecht, Netherlands.  Especially since we had an overnight flight into Frankfurt with a quick refueling in Saudia Arabia enroute (we really didn’t sleep a wink on the plane) and then immediately took a train to Koblenz.

 

Koblenz is a wonderful city situated at the convergence of the Rhine and Mosel Rivers.  Its history dates back 2000 years although much of the older buildings are circa 17^th to 18^th century.  Our arrival was spent enjoying a stroll through the old town and then taking in the café culture in one of city squares. 

To further blend in, we did what the locals do on a Saturday night – drink beer, snack on a ‘wurst’ and listen to the ‘oom pah pah’ bands.  And Sunday we were out with the crowds walking along the Rhine, admiring the scenery and taking note of all the cyclists and their touring bikes – quite a few with a small battery for assistance up the hills (hmmm – what a concept for our move to Kelowna).

 



We did finally make it to Utrecht, and being ‘homeless’, we had decided to rent an apartment here for 7 weeks before returning to Canada.  The location has turned out to be ideal – right along one of the main canals in the old city. 



The atmosphere is lively with people everywhere – outdoor cafes/bars/restaurants, and on foot, bicycles or in boats/kayaks/canoes/anything that floats plying the canal.

 

Our first week we concentrated on getting ourselves oriented to our surroundings.  A couple walking tours took us through the alleyways, along the canals and wharves and buildings dating back to the 1600’s that used to provide housing for the poor and needy.  Then there’s the mini ‘Red Light District’ right around the corner from our local grocery store. 






And you would think that grocery shopping is a mundane task.  Well…think again.  We are in the store and Gilbert laughs at something I said.  This huge Dutch guy looks at Gilbert and says something in Dutch to him.  Gilbert tells him he only knows English so the guy says – ‘Are you laughing at me’ in a voice and body language that says he’s ready for a fight.  The incident took us by surprise but fortunately we did not end up with an altercation in an alley.  In general, the people have been extremely friendly and helpful so maybe we caught someone just having a bad day.

 

Truth be told - the real reason we are here in the Netherlands is to get a couple of bicycles and take day trips around the countryside.  And without delay that is what we have done.  We are starting out with shorter rides just outside the city and working our way up to more long distance riding – Gouda (36 kilometers one way) and  along the Vecht Canal to Amsterdam/Bussum/Naarden (40 kilometers one way)

 

The country is ‘cycling heaven’!  It is so flat with cycling paths that crisscross the country everywhere.  It is virtually impossible to get lost – routes and directions are clearly marked.  And it is so safe – the paths are separated from the cars and pedestrians – so we don’t need helmets.  There are people of all ages out on bicycles, ranging in age from 4 to 80 years, or on a variety of wheels – use your imagination – its been thought of and it’s out there.

 

When possible, we choose a route along a canal – fairly easy to do since there is water and canals everywhere. 

 

West of Utrecht - Haarzuilens and De Haar Castle – our first ride (about 8km one way) giving us an indication of just how enjoyable riding is.  Our first stop upon reaching Haarzuilens is an outdoor café which seems to be popular with cyclists.  Everyone has a cappuccino and home baked Dutch apple pie which is just too tempting to pass up.  This will set the stage for future riding – always a stop for a ‘cuppa’ and treat which we feel we have earned.  The town itself is small and charming – the buildings and houses all have shutters painted in a red and white diamond pattern.  We came across a mini castle replica but the real De Haar Castle is impressive to behold from the cycling path.

 

North of Utrecht - Vecht Canal – by far, cycling along this canal is our favourite route.  It is extremely scenic with beautiful houses and buildings ,including well manicured lawns and flowers in bloom.  Often there is the scent of roses as we pedal on by.  Some of the house boats are quite upscale, although to our surprise, there is a large ‘red light’ house boat district along the canal as well.  We will ride this route numerous times eventually making our way up to Markermeer (Lake Marken) near Amsterdam.  A bit of trivia – Brooklyn, New York was settled by the Dutch and named after Breukelen, one of the cities we frequent along the canal.

 

South of Utrecht – Houten to IJsselstein – we decided to ride to Houten as it has the distinction of being chosen ‘bicycle city of the Netherlands’ in 2008.  We could certainly see why as most of the streets around the city and centre have been converted to bike paths.  From there we took a round-about-way through Schalkwijk, Tull en ‘t Waal, Nieuwegein to reach IJsselstein.  It was interesting as we must have seen every kind of drawbridge that has ever been made – ‘ye olde’ hand cranked models to the more modern day push button electric ones.  We even took time to watch some ships passing through a lock on a canal.  Then at IJesselstein, the unthinkable happened – the pedal fell off my bike and could not be put back on.  Somehow I managed to pedal one footed, with Gilbert sometimes pushing me, the 10km back to the bike shop where we traded it in for a better model.  That sure was exhausting for both of us, to say the least

 

East of Utrecht – Theehuis Rhijnauwen (Rhijnauwen Teahouse) – what could be better on a sunny Sunday morning than a 20 minute ride to the countryside to enjoy a traditional pannekoek with apple and kaas (Dutch apple and cheese pancake).  It was Delicious (and yes it deserves a BIG D).

 North-East of Utrecht - But the competition is stiff for the ultimate pannekoek as we came across another Pannekoek Restaurant in Lage Vuursche.  They get my vote, hands down, as the best pannekoek  - it was cooked to perfection.  A local bike rider told us that the former Queen Beatrix lived in the neighborhood but was vacationing right now in Italy.  He said he would tell her that we had been in the vicinity and maybe we could visit her next time – Ha!  Even though Lage Vuursche is small (pushing 200 inhabitants?) it is popular with cyclists, hikers and horse riders alike as it is located in a forest with paths everywhere.

 

West of Utrecht - Gouda – as its name suggests, it’s all about the cheese.  Every Thursday during the summer there is a re-enactment of a traditional cheese market as took place during the 17^th century. At that time, the Dutch cheese farmers brought their cheeses to market where buyers and sellers negotiated a price. Today it’s a beehive of tourist activity with locals in costume and an organ grinder belting out music, but fun to see all the same.

 

West of Utrecht – Woerden – another town known for its cheese market.  I had read that their market is on Fridays so we rode there only to discover it is on Wednesday.  We were hardly disappointed as there were some excellent shops for browsing.  We were able to sample a variety of local, homemade cheeses (extremely tasty) and brought ‘home’ some delicious pesto and tapenade spreads.  Yes – we have found a bit of Italy amongst the ‘cows’.

 

North of Utrecht – Naarden – we had a goal in mind when going to Naarden – check out the 2 houses that Gilbert’s mom lived in during part of her childhood in the Netherlands.  The first one is at 36 Juliana van Stolberglaan.  We had heard the World War II stories of the railroad tracks behind the house and how her family helped some of the Dutch boys on the trains escape from the Germans through their house/yard.  The house and tracks are still there giving us a sense of history coming to life.  We did try to speak to the owners but unfortunately there was no one at home.  The other house is at 65 Rembrandtlaan.  We had seen this house years ago but enjoyed seeing it again.  We met the current owners who have been in the house since 1971.  They purchased it from a couple whose last name begins with an S (Gilbert’s mom’s last name begins with an M).  Since the house was built in the 1930’s (either 1933, 1936 or 1939 – we can’t quite remember) we think Gilbert’s mom and family probably were the 2^nd owners.

 
But there is an aside to the house at 65 Rembrandtlaan – I am convinced it is cursed.  Years ago when we first saw it, we had the address wrong and took pictures of the wrong house.  Well, it happened again.  I inadvertently wrote down the wrong house number and we took pictures of the wrong house.  We had to make a trip back to Naarden the day before we left to correct the mistake.  But the journey gave us another chance to stop over in Lage Vuursche for one last pannekoek and another tasty Dutch treat – poffertjes with strawberries and whipped cream.


 

 



 South West of Utrecht – along the Lek River – our intended goal was the town of Schoonhoven which we never made.  Maybe it was the fierce head wind that kept us from our destination but we made it as far as Lopik before bailing.  However, the ride was amazing.  Just before Lopik, at Jaarsveld, we came across a World War II memorial.  It is to commemorate the crash of a Halifax-bomber (Canadian aircraft) at this sight and has the remains of one of the engines and a list of the crew – 5 who died and 2 that survived.  Well, one of the survivors was a close neighbor of Gilbert’s family when he was growing up in Kitchener, Ontario and they have kept in touch throughout the years.  Call it a fluke or perhaps destiny that we even saw this memorial as the previous day we had decided we weren’t going to attempt this bike ride.  Our return took us through Polsbroekerdam, Benschop and Montfoort (gorgeous farmland, houses and canals along the way) where we stopped for lunch and our usual cappuccino.  Having been on bikes for a good 4 hours we decided we deserved some dessert – of course, homemade Dutch Apple Pie.  Gilbert claims it is the best one to date but I’ll argue the one we had in Wijk bij Duurstede was better (it’s all about the shortbread crust for me!)

 

Our biking days and the Netherlands are quickly coming to a close.  We figure we have logged about 1000 km over 5 weeks and hopefully shed a few pounds along the way.  We are not too saddle sore anymore although we do still experience some tenderness if we are on the bikes for extended periods of time (3-4 hours or more).  We have enjoyed the bike riding so much that we plan to come back another time.  However, we will rent in another city just to see a different part of the country and we’ll bring our own touring bikes equipped with better suspension and softer seats!  (And maybe a battery for extra distance.)

 

During our 7 week stay in Utrecht, we rented a car for 3 days and drove to Berlin for a brief visit.  We have heard positive things about the city so wanted to experience it firsthand.  It also gave Gilbert a chance to reconnect with a childhood friend, Mike, who he has known since they were both 7 years old.  We had a wonderful visit with Mike, his girlfriend, Nele and his 2 boys.  We caught up with old times while learning all about Berlin and some before and after history of the Berlin Wall and its effects on the citizens and city.  There is construction everywhere so Berlin is a changing city.

 

A detour on the way back from Berlin took us through the town of Breda in the south of the Netherlands.  We had also been here before as Gilbert’s dad spent his childhood here.  Our memories of a wonderful old town with cafes spilling out onto the cobblestone streets still ring true.  And the family home at 16 Wilheminapark is intact, as is the old tank in the park that Gilbert fell off as a youngster, resulting in a concussion at the time.  We hope to spend more time in the area if we do indeed return to the Netherlands, as is our future plan.

 

We are back in Canada for most of August and then it is off to China once again.  Not much blogging from Shanghai since we have been there many, many times.  But if something interesting does come up I’ll be sure to post it.