0300 It was a hot and steamy morning. I only managed 2.5 hours of sleep before I was awaken by the rustling sound in my room. Scheisse! Time to wake up.
Got to Stansted around 0500, plenty of time to spare. The flight was rather speedy, I think the pilot stepped on it – it took only 40 – 45 minutes before we arrived in Eindhoven. Had some problems with National/Alamo car hire – no auto & the PIC left! Thank to Ruud from Avis we managed to get an auto/manual Fiat Punto – gosh! Brand new with only 2600 km clocked. (Note to self: Rempedaal to get in gear from neutral!)
Skirted Antwerp and went straight to Brussels. Parked at Atomium for free. The structure was designed by the engineer André Waterkeyn for the International Exhibition of Brussels, that took place in 1958. It is a structure that is half way between sculpture and architecture, symbolising an iron crystal by the scale of its atoms, magnified 165 billion times.
Nice & breathtaking, but nothing much around the area. We didn’t even go in. It costs €9.00 per adult and free for kids below 12.Tried the Metro from Heysel to Centraale – Fast!
Checked out the tourist area esp. around the Grand Place (Grote Markt - Market Square). It’s a very old town with beautiful set of Guild houses dominated by the Town hall and the King's house.
We were awed by the exquisite and detailed decorations on the buildings and the kids were awed by … heart shaped papers. There must’ve been a wedding ceremony at the town hall just before we came, and there were red heart shaped confettis everywhere plus rice on the ground, not unlike our tabur beras & bunga telur I guess - as a symbol of fertility.Walking .. walking …
New York has the Statue of Liberty, Paris has the Arc de Triomph and Brussels has the ...... Manneken Pis. This statue of a little boy doing what? No price for guessing, pissing. I suppose it was just a decoration on a fountain but wow, its been been a major tourist attraction in the city since several centuries. Tapi pakai baju lah pulak .. I was hoping to see it in its au natural state. Oh well.. now I know that the manneken-pis is very often dressed. At the moment he has a wardrobe of more than 600 costumes, which are all preserved in the King's House, or City Museum at the Grand-Place.
In Benelux (I’m assuming Luxembourg has the same peculiarity), toilets make money! You pay to go in usually €0.40 - €0.50
Good: You don’t have to hold it in, you can “go” anywhere you want as long as you pay
Bad: Even patrons e.g. at Shell, McD still have to pay – weird!
Anyhow, it was a glorious day at 27 degrees Celcius.
Managed to arrive at Duinrell Caravan Park around 2000+. Along the way, I was unsure whether a speed camera flashed on us or another car. I was told the fine is €40.00. Arggh!! £@#< it!!
This is our cabin.10 May 2008
We targeted to be at Keukenhof at 0800 but only managed to be there around 1030. Didn’t know preparing kids and cooking breakfast would take so long. Anyway, another beautiful day. 33 Celcius.
Keukenhof, believe it or not, means The Kitchen Garden. In the 15th Century this area consisted of woods and dunes and belonged to the Countess of Holland, Jacoba van Beieren. Here games were hunted and herbs gathered for the castle's kitchen. The present Keukenhof Park started in 1840 and was initially designed by horticultural architects Zochter, father and son. In 1949, Mayor of Lisse Mr. Lambooy, with dozens of prominent flower bulb and tulip growers, developed the idea for an open-air flower exhibition and started the flower garden of Keukenhof of today.This is probably the most photographed place in the world. Since it was so warm, it was akin to sunbathing but in the glorious colours and shapes of 7 million bulbs. A 3 hour planned trip turned to 5+ hours. No regrets!!
Volendam
This sleepy fishing town is kinda my favourite part of the trip. The fisherman’s cottages, the harbour, fish markets, old and new boats and yacts almost stroking each other. What a serene ambiance.
Met 2 working Malays there going to the local supermarkt. Also met 2 working girls (not that kind lah!) I mean they were not students as I thought. They were on a “Rombongan Cik Kiah” from Ireland. Had “lunt” (Lunch-Tea?) – Kibbling for us and pizza for the kids. Nice!
Something familiar here. Check out the bottom left of this stall.Marken
Another sleepy village. Marken is actually an island linked to the mainland by a dike. It was a cool drive. I wish I could live in one of these villages & do my reading, writing and surfing. Lotsa traditional Dutch houses, mainly green. Small canals with bridges (brug) named after royalties. visit. They say some of the inhabitants still wear the traditional Dutch costumes.
Got back around 2100, supermarket at Duinrell was already closed.
Had dinner outside since it was still quite warm.
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