We had a fantastic 5 nights in the Holten, The Netherlands. It was great to see Roy and Anita again and the kids have really grown up since last visit. We got straight into the typical Dutch lifestyle and jumped on bikes and rode down to the town square where they had a festival going on. We had dinner there and swerved, I mean, rode home at 9.30 when it was still daylight.
The kids sweet breakfasts continued. A new addition to what they had been previously having was was the chocolate sprinkles on their toast. Mmm.
We went to a Dutch Open Aired Museum on the Sunday. I guess the best way to describe it is a bit like Sovereign Hill in Victoria. You can walk around and look at old buildings including farmhouses, windmills, a brewery and even trams. The kids enjoyed it, almost as much as the flying fox that was there.
As a family we got into the Dutch tradition of riding everywhere around town. On the Monday we all rode the kids to school. We also rode and did the groceries and things like that. I really liked this side of the culture. The Dutch motto is - There isn't bad weather, just bad clothing. So even if it is raining you still ride. Of course, they didn't wear helmets.
The school had just over 200 students. They are getting a new school soon. There current school is looking a bit old. There were a few noticeable differences from our schools. One was that they didn't have uniforms. Their day is structured differently, they started at 8.30 and finished at 3.15 but they had a longer lunch. In fact parents choose if they come home for lunch or stay. If they stay the parents can choose to send lunch or pay to have it provided. They all have there own bag that that hangs at school that they put their coats in so that lice don't spread. On Wednesday they finish by 12.30pm. Most of the kids ride or get a dink to school. It is funny to watch the parents come in and and stand around the courtyard in the afternoon. They back their bikes in and stand there lined up and wait. It was a shame I couldn't understand what they were saying, it would have been interesting to see if they were just paying out on the school and teachers, which is often the case in Australia. It's very orderly. When the bell went the kids came out and grabbed their bikes. Many of them raced around the school yard on their bikes before leaving. I didn't see a teacher on yard duty, if there was then they didn't have the fluro vest which is common in our schools.
One day my kids got to go to school for a few hours. They really enjoyed it and Viggo and Elin did the interpreting for the kids. On the day they went one of the classes was having a birthday party for the teacher which was basically going for the whole morning.
We did a day trip to Amsterdam. Despite leaving after peak hour it still took over 1.5 hours to do the 110km trip, then negotiating the city traffic took a bit more time out of the day. The number of trucks on the highways is amazing. Apparently they are only allowed to do 80kmh and the engine is restricted to 90kmh. For most part it is ok until they decide to pass someone, which they aren't meant to do. This then takes considerable time and it banks up the rest of the traffic as they can't put their foot down and pass quickly. When you have cars doing the allowed 130kmh speed limit it doesn't take long for a bottle neck to occur.
Amsterdam is an interesting city and most would know some of the famous things about Amsterdam, but having the family their we kept away from those famous sights and indulgences. It doesn't matter how many times you visit Amsterdam it amazes you how they crooked buildings don't topple over. It is a must do location!
We are so grateful to our friends for their amazing Dutch hospitality. You can often hear that the Dutch are rude, but the times I've been I have found the opposite, warm and friendly, especially in the city.
Related - Holten
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