Northern Europe – Aug-Oct 2024 – Page 2

Reitsum to Rossum

This morning after breakfast we drove into the town of Dokkum. Along the way we stopped by the side of the road so I could get a picture of a farm. Almost every barn we have seen has been big with a steeply sloped roof. A lot of the barns have thatched roofs. A typical farm that we have seen in Friesland has a beautiful house attached to the front of the big barn. One of the great things about Friesland has been how unique the landscape and buildings are.

In Dokkum we parked and went to the museum. Then we walked along the canal surrounding the town. Several villages in Friesland are laid out so that they are surrounded by canals. You can see one of the layouts on this map of Dokkum.

Current map of Dokkum showing the defensive canals.

From Dokkum we left Friesland and drove south and east almost to the German border to the town of Rossum where we are tonight

After a bit of a rest we went for a three mile walk around the 17th century stately mansion of Singraven. It’s only a few miles from where we are staying.

For dinner we drove into the nearby town of Oldenzaal. We ate at Grand Cafe de Dominee. On this trip we have had a lot of good meals. But we have had surprisingly few great meals. Tonight was a great meal. Duke had a ribeye steak and I had cod. We shared a trifle for desert.

Reitsum day 2

Today we explored a bit of Friesland. It is a beautiful and fascinating area. Not far from where we are staying is the De Heining Pumping station. It’s one of the giant pumping stations that is used to pump water from the lakes and canals and reclaimed farm land out to the salt marsh on the other side of the dike.

Next we went to the village of Minnertsga where one of my distant ancestors, Hendrick Epke Banta was born. The writing on the stone next to the door of the church says the tower was built in 1505. The drive through the villages and farmland to get there was fun.

The sandstone plaque by the front door

Our last stop on our exploration was the Fries Museum in Leeuwarden It all about the history and people of Friesland.

Originally the towns in Friesland were built on mounds to protect them from flooding. Now the mounds provide archaeological finds.

We had dinner in the nearby town of Dokkum at Grand Café de Waugh

Amsterdam to Reitsum

Today it rained non stop until about 3. But somehow it just gives more romantic atmosphere to Amsterdam. We walked around a bit to find a coffee shop for breakfast.

After breakfast we packed up and walked to the rental car office.

A cat and a window seen on the way to the rental car office

We had a few problems with the rental car process but eventually we were on the road out of Amsterdam.

Driving along the 20 mile long Afsluitdilk causeway. Those are sluice gates

Another picture on the Afsluitdijk. A lot of it just looked like a big grass berm.

Tonight we are staying in a former church in the tiny town of Reitsum in Friesland. One of my immigrant ancestors, Hendrick Epke Banta was born not far from here in 1655. It is absolutely beautiful country.

Hanover, Germany to Amsterdam, The Netherlands

We had a busy day today. We went out and found a great place for coffee and pastry.

Our coffee shop for breakfast, Machwitz Kaffee

This very cool building was right across the street from our hotel

I’m going to miss fresh croissants for breakfast!

Our train leaving Hanover wasn’t until about 4 so after we checked out of the hotel we stored our bags and went exploring.

Because it was a weekday the town hall was open. Inside we walked around a bit. They had 4 large scale models of Hanover over the years.

In Opera House Square outside the coffee shop we went to.

We stopped for coffee and a snack.

Although we had first class train tickets we did not have an assigned seat. After we got on the train we found a place in second class to stow our bags and then, after we had pull out of the station, we found a conductor in one of the first class compartments. She found us seats even though almost every seat was taken. The train ride from Hanover to Amsterdam took almost 5 hours.

Duke’s seat. He has gone to retrieve our bags and stow them on the luggage rack in our compartment

In Amsterdam we walked to our hotel and then found a Dutch bar where we could have beer and a meat and cheese board for dinner.

Hanover day 2

This morning we went out looking for some breakfast. Because it was Sunday morning many places were closed.

The building we were originally headed for.

These dragons were on top of the building we originally thought might have a bakery open

When the original location we checked out wasn’t open we kept walking and eventually found this place.

Then we went for a walk. We walked around the New City Hall (Neues Rathaus) and the nearby lake.

Then we sat and people watched and enjoyed the sun in front of the city hall.

Today the Hanover 96 Football Club was playing in the stadium right next to the lake. We could hear the singing and cheering as we drank our beer. We saw lots of fans.

For dinner we ate at Brauhaus Ernst August.

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