Thursday 11th June 2015 –
Heemstede – Day 9
Haarlem has
a rich history dating back to the Roman times and became one of the important
cities in the Netherlands. During the
Eighty Years’ War, Haarlem fiercely opposed Spanish rule. It became the settlement for many Flemish
people, famous painters and architects have over the years added to the
richness of the city.
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| Haarlem quayside |
Our backdrop;
the ‘Nobel’ grand cafe on the quay situated in the historic building, ‘De
Korenbeurs’, with the imposing St. Bavo’s Church dominates the skyline.
We would
watch cars disappear underground just the other side of the quay and in the morning we went too investigated.
Below ground, there is a car park situated on two levels, amazing way to
keep the city centre car friendly. Maybe
our city planners should come and learn.
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| St. Bavo's Church |
A visit to
the church which houses the famous Muller organ is very impressive and every
now and then, it would burst into life filling the church with the richness of
its sound.
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| Muller Organ |
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| Models |
The church
has the tombs of the rich and famous from the city along with models of the old
sailing ships which traded to and from this city.
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| Grote Market |
We stopped
for a while in the Grote Market Square for lunch, watching people going to and
fro, while the bicycles manoeuvred their way around them. I have never seen so many bicycles of all
different shapes and sizes but of course we are in Holland.
We did
witness a bit of a do, while enjoying the view.
Many bicycles were parked up against the church, one youth decided he
would have one, but was quickly wrestled to the ground, cuffs put on him and
slung into the arriving police car, all to the cheers and applause of the
on-lookers. We later learnt, this is a
very common crime, with a 1000 bikes a week being stolen in Amsterdam alone,
and most ending up in the canals.
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| Wooden bike outside ladies shop |
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| Ultimate Cheese Shop |
A walk
around the shops which are many and varied, a bit of a shopper’s paradise but we
had other things to see.
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| Happy Home |
An unusual
nesting place for these ducks and their chicks
A short
distance along the quay from our boat is the Teylers Museum which is the oldest
museum in the Netherlands (1779). It is
named after Pieter Teyler van der Huist, the founder, who was a wealthy silk
merchant and banker.
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| Oval Room |
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| Art Gallery |
The oval
room which is the jewel in the crown, the museum is full of minerals, fossils,
drawings, paintings, scientific instruments and coins.
Jack can be seen being inspired by it all.
Unfortunately,
we had a scheduled to be kept to and had to leave Haarlem, a place which should
be visited again.
We left the
quay at 14.45 with four bridges to pass through. Melkburg (swing bridge);
Langeburg (draw bridge); Buitenrustbrug (double draw bridge); Schouwbroekerbrug
(draw bridge).
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| Spaarnborghaven (wrong) |
It only took half an hour
to do all of these bridges and we turned sharp right into a small marina called,
Spaarneborghaven, but we were in the wrong marina, time for a cup of tea.
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| Cruquiusbrug |
We left at
16.30 and headed south and went alongside the lay-by for the Cruquiusbrug (draw
bridge) and called the operator who informed, the opening would be at
18.00.
At 18.30, we
were alongside Van Merlenhaven Marina next to the Havenmeester motor cruiser.
He told us
where to go for a meal and after a 15 minute walk arrived at ‘Hof Van
Heemstede’.
We had a three course meal for 20 euros, consisting of thick creamy
mushroom soup with real bread, chunks of meat on skewers with salad and chips,
finished off with butterscotch ice cream with baileys, excellent all round in a
wonderful pub.
Back on
board for midnight and what a magical day, things went wrong, most of it went
right but most of all, it was enjoyable.
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