Day 5 Kinderdijk and the Windmills

The morning was a very relaxed morning, as we did not have to tour until the afternoon. That tour was to visit the World Heritage site of  Kinderdijk Windmills and polders. In sailing to the site we were able to see much of the countryside between Arnhem and Kinderdijk as it was in the day time.

Our tour guide for our group was a 65 year old lady named Aly, who lived on these polders since birth.  (Each of our groups is assigned a guide with each person in the group (about 15 people) having a separate earphone that is connected only to that guide).  Aly was delightful with the personal history of the dikes themselves, and especially the polders. The polders are a "holding tank" for the water that is gradually raised (by the windmills previously to this century) and finally deposited into the main rivers on their way to the sea.
Holland (I will use that term from now on for the Netherlands) is the depository , if you will, of the many rivers that come from mainland Europe including but not limited to , Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Hungary, etc. That means that not only does Holland have to keep out the water from the "Noord Sea", but has to control any high water and flooding that comes from those rivers in Europe.
So, some 500  years ago they began this system of polders to send the water that was under the sea level (There were dikes built to hold the water out  which put the land under water ) up in gradual steps, (THREE STEPS) raising that water enough to finally raise it to the height that it could be placed back in the rivers going to the sea.  The windmills were the first mechanical devices that were used to do that. They do spin around to face the wind. They had to be covered by canvas by hand when the wind was light (>7 mph)
Each of the 'holding polders" is one foot higher than the previous one, enough to get it back to the rivers if they are not flooded (That is another problem). The "holding polders" are filled with water (see photo) and the third one is filled with "floating" reeds.These are useful in many ways including thatch for housing and mats and baskets.

There are 14 windmills at this town of Kinderdijk. Most of them were built in the 1600's and maintained since then. It is a complicated system of gears, plates, dowels and levers that allows them to spin in the wind moving the water upwards. See photo.

The walk through the steam plant, and the facilities was a long one for us, so Ruth elected to stop before the long walk to the windmills. I thought she had walked back to the ship "Baldur,", docked nearby, but when I returned from my tour, I found out she had seen small boats taking people down the polder (water)  to see the windmills and secured a ticket to do so, so she got to see from the water  ALL the windmills (14 of them) . So between us we had a very complete tour(s).

In the demonstration windmill I was able to climb the ladders into the "works" and see the machinery inside that turns the paddles of the mill. The family slept there and stayed there and Aly stated that because of the very large families (She was one of 11 children) it was crowded. During the WW2 the families hid the Jewish people and were never discovered by the Nazis even though they attempted to root them out at one time.The Underground militia protected them.

One of the buses did a double trip and went to a cheese making demo, and we picked them up further down the river (WAAL River), about supper time.

At this writing we are moving through the dam at Philipsdam and locks (lower to upper movement). We have had three dams on the rivers thus far. .Here is a brief description of the dam.

Philipsdam is a dam that belongs to the Delta Works in the Netherlands. It separates water of the lakes Krammer and Volkerak from the Oosterschelde. This dam connects the Grevelingendam to Sint Philipsland.HistoryConstruction began in late 1976 by erecting an artificial island on the sand Plaat van Vliet. 

The locks are technically sophisticated because they must avoid the exchange between the freshwater Volkerak and the brackish water of the Oosterschelde. The locks are designed so that there is no influx of saltwater that enters the Volkerak and only a little fresh water in the Oosterschelde. The locks rely on the physical principle that saltwater is denser and sinks, while freshwater rises. By a complex system of pipes and pumps the saltwater is pumped from the bottom, or conversely, freshwater is pumped from the top, depending on the direction of the ship.

It is 270 meters in length and 24 meters wide. There is one more dam tonight that we will traverse.

The meals have been terrific with three choice for appetizers, three dinner choices and at least 5 choices for desserts which always includes ice cream and there is also a side menu at dinner  to chose from. Breakfast is a buffet with many options and your personal omelet if you wish.  I did get a chance to talk to the chief chef from Bulgaria and that is another story for later. Coffee is available at all times.
The ship uses 4,000 gallons of water each day for 180 people. Fresh food supplies are picked up each 4th day and other staples every 10 days.

Each evening there is a talk or presentation of music, language, local culture or tomorrow's events. This particular cruise is almost entirely Americans and a few Canadians.

Tomorrow will be a visit to Antwerp with UNESCO Hq. the foods and some culture in it's history and buildings.

Enjoy the photos from today and some of yesterday.

Some of the 14 Windmills at the Kinderdijk site (UNESCO)






  A close up of the design and shape of the windmills built in the 1600's


Along the Rhinekanal are many sheep grazing on the dikes.

 

Our guide , Aly, was born on these polders a few miles from here.

Stephan one of the chefs prepared the Omelettes each AM

Many choices for breakfast in breads, vegetables, fruits, cereals, eggs, and all the trimmings. 

This is the view of the polders... the green are the old ones and useable. The water ones hold the water and are at two levels and the brown ones grow reeds and hold the overflow water to be redistributed into the rivers. (It is valuable during flooding.) Aly's home is near the top circle.

The archimedes wheel moves the water these days from the lower level to the higher level to be removed into the rivers.

 

A very unusual sight  of a barge with watering spigots sprinkling water on the cargo What is the cargo?

 






Some of the windmills at the Kinderdijk  World UNESCO site.

 Below Aly, demonstrates how the "keeper" would stop the blades from spinning when necessary by stepping on the wheel spokes.

The sleeping quarters  (below) for some of the 12 children the keeper had in his family.

The quarters on the first floor is for the eating of meals and ALL housework. It is only that wide.

See you tomorrow in Belgium--Jim

Day three "A" 4-17-17 (Mondag) at Arnhem..."A Bridge Too Far".

Ruth has gone on her own this morning to the "House of Orange" in Arnhem, while I will go this afternoon to the Arnhem Airborne Museum and Cemetery. It will be the only time we will go separately, but with the walking we find that not doing every walk helps with the energy reserve.

The ship has docked just outside Arnhem, and the Frost Bridge (A bridge Too Far), is only 500 feet from where we are. Across the river, (Nederrijn, but essentially the Rhine ) are some sandy spots along the shore and long "dikes " leading from the roadway. I can picture the troops waking their way in the battle leading up to the bridge while the book of the same name  gives detailed accounts  of the progress or lack of , of the British/Canadian and Polish troops as they approached the bridge. The pillars and post of the original bridge are still intact and used in the modern steel bridge that was built later on the same site.  This view out my stateroom window (a sliding glass door) is looking south across from Arnhem, where now apartment buildings are built. In 1943-44 the troops moved through this area which was then all farmland and vacant property. So I look forward to this afternoon to review the attempt to free the people of Arnhem (Netherlands) from the Nazi rule.

Backing up a bit to yesterday and Friday,  we certainly saw the effects of good stewardship but found out that the Netherlands still has only about 5%  renewable energy sources, and has a goal of 20% by 2020 which they will not reach.  They are lagging behind most of Europe in this effort. There are many wind generators around and the thermal is limited in practice. There is some solar  but it is not as viable as the USA in those sunny areas of the country , as Netherlands has many more cloudy days off the North Sea. Projects are "in the works" but politics slows down the actual completion of them.
There actually of .03% of heat recovery from "milked milk" that produces renewable energy. (Bet you didn't know that! Neither did I.

Today the sun has come out early in the day and although we have not had much rain, and only a few sprinkles, the next few days is predicted to be sunny. That would be a bonus as we expected rain each day.

The meals are terrific. So many choices of main dish, (entree) and desserts, as well as choices of side plates (cheeses and salads). I'll put is a sample menu as we go along for a visual. The wait crew is excellent and each room is cleaned each day by the stewards. Ours is  'Tomas'  a young 20 year old., from Hungary.  Very friendly and comfortable to be around.

The Heritage Railway from Hoorn-Medemblik... Today, the railway is operated as a tourist attraction. The centrepiece of its collection is the former Nederlandse Spoorwegen locomotive 7742 Bello, the only preserved light steam engine in the Netherlands. Other steam locomotives in running order include three tramway engines, two of which are enclosed tram engines (steam dummies). The remaining ones are: three industrial engines; a German engine which is now being rebuilt as a replica of a Dutch railway shunting engine (of a series of which several also served on steam tramways); and a locomotive of industrial type which served at a steam tram company in Zuid-Holland, still awaiting restoration.

This is the 7742 Bello which pulls the trams, circa 1876. We rode about 6 miles through three stations, stopping traffic on all roads at least temporarily. At non guarded crossings the men had to get out and stop the traffic. 

Inside the trams , note overhead transoms for ventilation, and can you smell the coal smoke?

Today was also resupply day. So when the truck came to bring the supplies it was "All hands on deck" in order to unload the supplies and get them into storage and the places they belonged. The crew is good natured and we heard many laughs and joshing. One of the storage places was across from our stateroom.

The truck arrived just as many passengers left for the morning tours.

The staff begin to unwrap and load the supplies onto the ship

Each one has a part to play in the chain that moves the materials into the ship and storage.

All sorts of "necessary " supplies of course.

And, recycling the bottles is part of it and the truck takes those back out.

Ruth will add some thoughts after her trip to the House of Orange. Did you know that William III married Mary , his cousin, the niece of Charles II. Hence the school named "William and Mary".

See you later .

Day 2 Sunday April 16, 2017 at Hoorn Netherlands. 'Agri' greenhouses

Hi all,

Rather than give you a lot of verbiage, I will post some representative photos of the last two days especially the port tie up this morning at Hoorn. I was privy to watching the crew that guided and completed the securing of the ship before most were up for the day. Hoorn is the oldest port since there was a Netherands in tht country  (1500's)

The Agri greenhouse (covers three hectares)  was amazing using Thermo to both produce heat and gas as well as selling electricity back to the power grid , making an amazing business while raising Orange peppers by the 10,000 kilos EVERY DAY! (actually 66,000 kilos)

The train ride was unique and I will look up more on this 1879 engine and system that we rode briefly (8 miles) on.

So here are a few snaps

Many ships (sailing) went out today on the 4
day Holiday.

A Grey Heron, very common here.

                                           A Red Breasted Merganser

The 3 hectare  orange pepper greenhouse
One of many in the area.

The workers must wear sanitary gear to work in the "all green" work environment

                                           A few of the 66,000 pounds of peppers they pick (everyday!).

Row after row, automated system of handpicking

 The greenhouses were thermo heated, gas drilled was sold, and salt water returned to the earth.

A ride on a steam train (1876) was thrill not often repeated.  All volunteers refurbish and run the train system

Complete with conductors who even punched your "ticket". and told stories of the "old days".

A view of the exquisite wood and brass accoutrements.

The original train station at Hoorn (on the intermet)

The morning we docked at Hoorn , we watched the entire process. This is the retractable wheelhouse  used when there are low bnridges.

The assistant pilot brought us in with the use of the "alternate" controls . 

The alternate controls include guiding a 360 degree propeller that can move the ship sideways. Ever so close to tie up to a second ship.

Tying up the ship to a second requires coordination and cooperation  and it is the law among the ships.

Of course the crew gets to do "ALL" the duties including cleaning the glass ceiling of the lounge area.










More of the sailing ships that embarked onto the Markermeer on Easter morning.
Even (below) individually manned ships moved out in the light breezes.

Fun on Easter morning.

THat's it for today and tomorrow we head for my favorite ...the "Bridge Too Far" in Arnhem where the British lost the last bridge to the German's (so to speak)

Day 48, Friday May 20, 2016, From MD through PA to OH

Day 48, Friday May 20, 2016, From MD through PA  to OH 

This will be the last blog of the trip.  Sorry to end, and as Ruth said, “Can’t we keep on going”?

But it has been a great trip with notably the birds and lighthouses, and wildlife and backwoods roads, but also the people we have met along the way. I especially love to meet the clerks and wait staff and workers in the businesses. Today is good example. I needed to put my spare on  the right rear trailer tire as it was wearing very strangely. The young man who assigned the job in the HSL tire store near Belafonte PA, got one of his workers to do the job. He was cordial, and friendly, came over the the trailer, we talked about it, and directed me where to park the rig. He saw that the plate holding the spare was bent and took time to straighten it for me before he put the other tire back on. It was a team effort with two men helping to finish and put the roper air in, and I was out of there in 15 minutes. The rate was very reasonable ($5.00) complete. 

But this was the ways it was the entire trip. Only once did I have someone assist us who was less than friendly and smiling. Could've been his bad day. I still pray for the young man who’s favorite Uncle was dying that week.  (Eric)

The sign on the Maryland side of the Mason AND Dixon line.

Sarah and Ruth playing a game of Othello.

Emily sets up the game of "Mancala"

We spent sometime wth the Simmons on Thursday and they had a late “shoot” practice so we declined as it would have been quite late.  We played some games and talked again about summer plans and work projects. Adam has a part time job and that’s probably enough during the school year/

This morning (it was a glorious day) we worked our way north to York and Harrisburg , up I-83, and followed the Susqehanna River almost all the way to I-80 and then took a westerly turn.  We passed Puxatawney but didn’t see “Pete”.The HUGE Lordsburg Chevrolet plant is on that route, It is massive and reminds me of the Flint auto plants in their heyday.  Ruth looked for birds along the way but there were few. We did identify  23 birds today, five of them being in the Park after we set up.

The Susquehanna River 

Some of the steep cliffs along the River

Typical view from west and central Pennsylvania.

Lots of snall farms and many hills.

Valleys add to the steepness of the view.

Again one of the features of the land in PA, moving from east to west along the I-80 corridor, is the degree of slope of the mountains and hills.They become less steep and stretched out as you go further west, Just before the Ohio /Penn line, they seem to almost flatten out. The Adirondack ridge (Poconos too) provides the up lift and being the oldest range into USA they have had a lot of time to erode and begin to flatten out.

Tomorrow we will head to Grand Rapids via I-80 and head up US 131 where we will get the vehicles washed at the truck wash at 76th street. Some rain expected in the AM but none further west. Thanks for tagging along and see you on the next journey.

One of the events today was the Turning Over of the odometer
to the 100,000 mile mark.(This is an '07 model)

Our campsite near Streetsboro OH (40 miles from PA)