237. Europe Bicycle Trip--Wheelchairs, Bunkers in the Dunes, and Norwegian Family

Although it was an overcast, drizzly day, I was enjoying following the bicycle path along the coast going north. The wind was on my back for the second day in a row which was "sweet".

Near The Hague, I came upon a parade of wheel chair athletes who had started their ride way up north in Den Helder. I videoed and photographed them.

Entrance sign for Westduinpark en Bosjes van Poot-(West dunes park and Groves of Poot)These are nature areaswithin the city limits of The Hague. Together they cover 235 hectares. There is a lot of biological Variation in the dune park, with dense forests and open plains, steep slopes and viewpoints to more than 30 meters above sea level. The largest animal is the fox and there are many species of birds, including the nightingale. Many plants thrive in the nutrient-poor sandy soil. The Groves of Poot are named after gamekeeper, Willem Poot (1857-1932). The groves consist dunes rich areas planted with pines and oaks.

Entering the park dunes on a "sweet" path

This sign tells people that in the dunes are may bunkers built before and during WWII . Most are covered with sand. Many "Vleermuizen" (bats) have made their homes in the bunkers.

Two bunkers-one on the right top and one on the left middle of the photo

A pathway veering off toward the beach of the North Sea

Three bunkers-right, middle and left

Rose hip bushes along the path

A little farther north past The Hague (Den Haag) I came to the city of Scheveningen and took a photo of this three wheeled cargo bicycle. Another little bicycle is leaning on the back wheel of the cargo bicycle.

The green bicycle has an interesting frame.

"The residents of Koppelstok Street wish Netherlands soccer team very much success.

A photo of the orange decorations of the street made the local newspaper in Scheveningen. Tonight is the big Quarter final game between Netherlands and Costa Rica. That is the reason why I am going all the way to Hoofddorp today to Dick and Carla's house. I could not get a room at anyone's house on the way because they were all going to be busy with the soccer game tonight.

This  Board store in Scheveningen looked interesting because.......

...there was a bicycle with a special board holder attached to it in the rack by the store.

An old water tower

Back  in the dunes--When I arrived neat Katwijk I was back in an area of the dunes that I had cycled back on May 8th when I had left Oegstgeest and cycled to the dunes to head north toward Akerslot. 

I stopped to eat my lunch and this family from Norway stopped to talk to me. They drove their car to the Netherlands and are doing short overnight trips with their two daughters. His father was Dutch.

In Katwijk I passed this memorial to fishermen who kept things going during the war years, 1914-1918.

Katwijk-a seaside resort town located along the North Sea where the Oude Rijn River flows into the sea.it is 16 km north of The Hague and has 63,000people.

Many sailboards to be seen today because it was windy.

8 more kilometers and  I arrived in Noordwijk , another seaside resort.

These security personnel didn't mind being in the photo of all the resort hotels. From Noordwijk, I would now follow the bicycle paths inland and toward Hoofddorp.

236. Europe Bicycle Trip--Vopak, Hoek Van Holland, Kindertransport Memorial and Port of Rotterdam

I woke up and visited with Luc and Nelleke. She filled me in on her sister, Caroline's family. Caroline has 3 sons. 1.Martijs with two children, Reuben and Linde: 2. Tomas in college studying operator engineering and 3.Anne (male) who just got married recently. We had breakfast, took some photos and said goodbye.

Luc and Nelleke-a lovely couple

Thank you for your hospitality, Nelleke

Thank you for everything, Luc

I was on my way down Maarland street again and the canal by the street was still and quiet this early in the morning.

I had to turn where the two canals meet and go over the drawbridge again.

Statue by the canal

A small windmill

Goodbye to the island of Voorne-Putten

I crossed over the Brielse Meer and then a small bridge over the Hartelkanaal and into land owned by Vopak where Luc works. It started to drizzle so I stopped and put on all my rain gear and the rain protection for Silver.

Some of the many tanks for petroleum and crude oil.

The Vopak Company sign

I bicycled through the town of Rozenburg to where the ferry would come that I would have to take to cross the Nieuwe Waterweg (waterway) ship canal to Maassluis, a city of 32,000. It started to rain heavily while I waited and I was blessed to have a bus shelter nearby that Silver and I went into.

Silver on the ferry.

A postman with his bicycle was also crossing on the ferry.

Due to the rain, it was rather dark and gloomy out. In the distance I could see part of the industry of the Europoort. I crossed on the ferry and avoided the big city of Maassluis and cycled west along the waterfront. I would be going all the way to Hoofddorp today which was due north but I wanted to bicycle in the quiet of the dunes rather than through all the cities so I headed west first toward the town called Hoek van Holland at which point, I would turn north.

Arriving at Hoek van Holland (Hook of Holland) or De Hoek, a town in the southwestern corner of Holland proper.It is at the mouth of the Nieuwe Waterweg ship canal into the North Sea.During WWII, this was one of the most important places for the Germans to hold because of the harbour.

Part of a big ship of the Stena Line

The lighthouse in the distance

Close up of the Stena Line ship that takes passengers to Harwich, England

Close up of lighthouse

Fishermans Statue along the pier--"translation--Dedicated to the memory of the fallen heroes of the sea by the residents of Hoek van Holland, 16 January, 1931.

A statue commemorating the last Kindertransport to leave Nazi-occupied Europe created by internationally acclaimed sculptor Frank Meisler. Kindertransport is the name given to the rescue mission that began 9 months prior to the outbreak of WWII. The United Kingdom took in nearly 10,000 Jewish children from Nazi Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia and the Free City of Danzig.The children were placed in British foster homes, hostels and farms. In gratitude to the people of Great Britain and in commemoration of the 1.6 MILLION children murdered in the Holocaust, four memorial sculptures were erected along the children's route to safety.Chairman of the Kindertransport, a Special Interest Group said,"It is little known that some Kindertransport was able to continue even after the start of the Second World War and this statue honors the heroic actions of the Dutch people who helped save the lives of Jewish children fleeing persecution. The statue is also a fitting memorial dedicated to all those who perished at the hands of the Nazis and will be a permanent reminder of the continuing need to fight intolerance, racism and anti-Semitism." The four statues are: 1. "The Departure" at the railway station in Gdansk-Danzig, Poland: 2. "Trains to Life-Trains to Death" at the Friedrichstrasse Railway Station in Berlin, Germany: 3. "Crossing to Life" at the ferry crossing at Hook van Holland and 4."The Arrival"" at Liverpool Street Station in central London, England.

I ducked under a bit of a shelter along the pier until the rain subsided and read this information about the Port of Rotterdam.The Port of Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe. Until 2002, it was the world's largest but it has been overtaken by Singapore and Shanghai. In 2012, it was the world's 6th largest port in terms of annual cargo tonnage. It covers 41 sq. mi. or 105 sq. km.

Most important for the port of Rotterdam are the petrochemical industry and general cargo transshipment handlings. Most of the container loading and stacking in the port is handled by autonomous robotic cranes and computer controlled chariots (automated guided vehicles). These AGV are unmanned and each carry one container. The chariots navigate their own way around the terminal with the help of a magnetic grid built into the terminal tarmac. Once a container is loaded onto a AGV, it is identified by infra-red "eyes" and delivered to its designated place within the terminal. This terminal is also named "the ghost terminal"

The end of the train line! It is close to the Stena Line ship, close to the 18 km of beach found here and close to the town center.

I cycled on along the bicycle path and passed all these greenhouses that are probably part of a business called Intratuin 's Gravenzande.

The greenhouses stretched on in both directions.

Panorama of greenhouses

7.6 km from Hoek van Holland, I came to Ter Heijde. This area has a population of about 690 people. I saw one lady in costume but she moved too fast for me and I did not get her photo. Ter Heijde is a popular beach resort.

Ter Heijde is known for the Battle of Ter Heijde (also known as The Battle of Scheveningen). This was the final battle , in 1653, of the First Anglo-Dutch War, which saw the death of Admiral Maarten Tromp. In remembrance of the battle, there is a monument in the village. In 2003, 350 years after the battle, the Tromp-festival was held.

It was my intention to bicycle in the dunes and avoid the congested city of The Hague. Maybe on another trip without bicycle , I will tour all the big cities. The rain turned into an on and off again drizzle which was bearable  to cycle in.

235. Europe Bicycle Trip--Nelleke and Luc Mulder and Family in Brielle

After 89.36 km of bicycling on a hot day with the wind on my back and after seeing all the dams connecting the islands of Zeeland and then South Holland, I finally arrived in the town of Brielle, my stop for the night. I had departed Middleburg at 8:30 am and arrived in Brielle at 3 pm.

Brielle  is a very old, fortified town, municipality and historic seaport in the western Netherlands, in the province South Holland, on the north side of the island Voorne-Putten, at the mouth of the New Maas River. The population is about 16,350. The name is derived from the Celtic word "brogilo" meaning "closed area" or "hunting grounds". "Bril" qalso translates to "glasses."

A canal and fountain

On this hot afternoon, many young people were on the bank of the canal.

I had to follow the street toward the drawbridge.

Then I had to go over the drawbridge toward another canal adjoining to this one.

I had two problems: First, I had the name of the street but not the proper number, only the letters ZZ and Second, it was beginning to rain. Finally, I met a lady on the street and asked if she knew where the Mulder family lived. She did not but she went inside her house and looked in the phone book and found the house number. As I proceeded farther down the street toward the number, I had to stop and take a photo of this old pirate ship. I found out later from Nelleke that every year they reenact the fact that during the Eighty years' War between the Netherlands and Spain, the Capture of Brielle on April 1, 1572, by Protestant rebels marked the turning point in the conflict, as many towns in Holland then supported William of Orange against the Spanish Duke who was sent to pacify the Netherlands.

Nelleke and Betsy

When I knocked at the door, there was no answer and I thought that I would go sit along the canal for a while but just then a pretty lady came cycling toward me and it was Nelleke Mulder coming home from work. Nelleke is the cousin of my friend Caroline, in Canada. Their mothers and Tante Anneke who I visit with Caroline, were sisters. Nelleke welcomed me warmly and we brought Silver into the house and unloaded some of my things for the evening. Nelleke and her husband, Luc have 4 beautiful children who are now young adults living at home. Identical twins Gijs and Bart, 21, (both going to Delft University studying engineering) Stijn, 19 (studying to be an operating engineer in factories) and Betsy, 14. (who wants to become an industrial architect after high school)

Nelleke has an interesting laundry room where the washer and dryer are behind the cupboard doors-very neat! Nelleke works in the finance department of the high school that her boys attended. She is an amazing woman as she has worked full time even when all her children were small. In those days, she had a job that required lots of driving and she hired one person to watch her children and another to clean her house. She really likes it now that she can just cycle to her nearby job.

Gijs---It is Friday evening so everyone is going out. As Nelleke and I were sharing a drink, I got to say hello them all.They were all very friendly and polite.  Then Gijs said goodbye as he was headed out to a party. Stijn, who I never got a photo of,  went to the movies and Betsy had an early supper and left to go to a young people's meeting. She would be sleeping at a friend's house tonight so I could use her bedroom. I was very thankful in this busy home to be invited to stay overnight.

Green beans, fried potatoes and sausages

Nelleke , Bart and I had a delicious supper of green beans, potatoes and sausages, hamburger and pudding for dessert.. Luc was at work and would come home late in the evening.  Bart told me about how when he and Gijs were younger, they both represented Netherlands in snowboarding. They practiced at a local indoor snow hill. They also do downhill mountain biking and practice on the hills in France. What unusual sports for boys growing up in the flat Netherlands. Nelleke added that both boys have had every kind of injury and broken bones but have recuperated from all of them. They are tough! They build their own downhill bikes ordering all the parts over the internet.

The outside patio and yard--Bart also went out later to enjoy the evening and Nelleke and I talked. She told me about the boys and their sports and also about Betsy and a very bad boating accident when she was 8 and fell off the boat and was injured by the propeller but that she has miraculously recuperated from it all. She told me about her sister, Caroline who lives not far away and teaches 4 and 5 year olds. Caroline has 3 sons and is busy now with a new grandchild so I won't be able to see her.

We sat at the table and worked on our computers after it was dark. Dave skyped me and got to say hello to Nelleke and Bart. Nelleke and I also talked about the environment and politics. .

After 11pm. Luc arrived home on his bicycle from his shift work . Luc works in the computer department at Vopac Terminal Europort in the Port of Rotterdam. Vopac deals with crude, petroleum products and diesel and has 99 tanks  and 7 berths for vessels and 15 for barges. They have world wide locations. We stayed up and visited for a while and then I went to bed.

I thought this deer head looked festive with its decorations.

A photo of Nelleke's mother and father when they were young. She is very knowledgeable of her family history.