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.