Antwerp, Brugge and home

17^th – 18^th December: Meandering through the Netherlands and Antwerp

Leiden

 Our destination for the end of the day was Antwerp but we decided to visit various places en route.  First stop was Leiden- this was another pretty cobble and canal town that we spent a pleasant hour wandering through.       We then drove through the Hague and onto Delft. Although we had planned to stop in Delft we found it difficult to gain access due to major road works so we continued on the scenic route towards Rotterdam where we found a pleasant canal side spot to have our lunch.  We were both travel weary by the time we arrived in Antwerp and needed to get out of the van for some fresh air and to reflect on our travels over a pint of Leffe in the adjacent crown Plaza hotel. The only bar nearby!

Tuesday morning it was raining when we woke but  we confidently decided we would still make the bike ride into the old centre of Antwerp and we were so pleased we did. Antwerp has a lovely square in its centre called Grote Markt.  The centre of the square contains a large fountain and all around were beautiful buildings including the 1600’s staathuis (town hall). There was also a fort/castle on the river front (Schlept river) which looked like the type of castle you would see in a fairy tale book with turrets, ramps and gateways.  We also visited the cathedral which has the tallest spire in the Lowlands and has seven naves.  The cathedral also contained many works by Reubens who had lived in this city. We passed his family home on our way back to the van which added to our wonderment at how lovely Antwerp was.

 

Getting back to England

We left Antwerp in the early afternoon having made the decision to go back to Brugge before heading off for Calais and our ferry.  Brugge midweek was quite different from our visit when we started our trip off.  However this visit reinforced our views on how lovely this city is.  We also spoilt ourselves and had a pleasant meal in the old centre.   It was a lovely way to spend our last night of this trip. 

Otterlo and Amsterdam

Saturday 15^th December Otterlo   

Yesterday had been a long driving day in pouring rain. Our campsite in Otterlo was on the edge of the Hoge Veluwe National Park , a very beautiful place.  The main point of interest there for us, was not the beautiful natural surroundings, but the Kroller Muller museum.  This museum is famous for its large collection of Van Gogh paintings that were donated to the Dutch government by Mrs Kroller Muller when her husband's business suffered in the 20’s-30’s depression and she was afraid that her wonderful collection would have to be sold off.  It was a wonderful museum and contained many other fine works of art too.  Probably the most famous painting there was VGs yellow and blue café at night painting but I loved one of 4 old sunflowers. There was also a huge sculpture park there which we wandered around, admiring some and trying to work out the meaning of others.  We then got back on our bikes and cycled through the parkland back to the van where we had a late lunch before setting of for Amsterdam.

This is a sculpture - not a real tree

Sunday 16^th December: Amsterdam

We managed to find a campsite on the edge of the city.  It was obviously geared up for a much younger generation. The outbuildings and holiday accommodation were painted in bright hues: yellows, oranges and purples.   This was confirmed when Jacqui’s shower was disturbed by a couple having sex in the adjacent cubicle.  Mike says we must try this on our return trip!

We got our trusty bikes off the van and set off for the city which was about 6km away.  Our main focus for the day was to visit Anne Frank’s house.  This museum was a brilliant testament to her and her family and once again brought home the horrors of living under Nazi dictatorship.  We both took a lot from this visit and perhaps the phrase that stays with me is that from her father Otto who said ‘to build a future you have to understand the past’.  Despite the horrors he experienced and the loss of his whole family he went on to live until he was 91 years.

 

After this stop Mike and I cycled up the labyrinth of waterways visiting various sites including the red Light district, the oldest Brown café, the Golden Curve, the flower market and station.  We both felt Amsterdam this time round to be an anti-climax.  We were not sure if this was because it was not our first visit here, whether we had become blasé after visiting other wonderful cities or whether the Anne Frank’s experience had left us a little flat.  We cycled home the long way round (euphemism for getting lost  - but were frequently helped by very kind Dutch people) and spent the rest of the evening taking advantage of the free wifi to catch up with e mails, blogs and skyping family.

Goslar - a magical stop

13^th December Berlin to Goslar

 It was now time to turn West and make our way back to the UK.  Our original plan had been to stop at Hannover but a last minute decision took us to Goslar.  They say that the unplanned can bring the best experiences and this was certainly the case with this picturesque town.  Goslar is situated on the edge of the national park near the Harz mountains.  It grew rich through the silver mines that were located there.  Today it is a very pretty, vibrant place.  Perhaps the snow helped because when we arrived everything was covered in a thick layer of fluffy white snow.  The trees and bushes looked beautiful.  It felt really romantic.  We found a car park that had free designated spaces for camping vans and set up for the night.  We wandered around the Town, enjoying the beautiful buildings and the atmosphere around the Christmas Market.  I bought myself an amber ring something I have admired in many of the European cities we have visited and some Christmas cards.  We had supper in the van but were both keen to explore this town further under the cover of darkness.  One particular pretty area, where we had a gluhwein had been created by hammering in huge fir trees (approximately 100!) close together so that they formed a dense overhead cover.  The trees had been covered in yellow fairy lights which with the heavy snow cover created a starry ceiling. Drinking tables had been placed underneath and there was a young lad playing the accordion.  It was quite a magical effect.  We continued exploring the town and then found ourselves a nice traditional restaurant/bar where we both had a beer.  Goslar had been a memorable stop.

Berlin: fascinating and freezing

The Brandenburg Gate

The Reichstag

We arrived in Berlin in thick snow on the 11th December.  We had found a parking lot to stay in over night that was not pretty but had good access into the city centre.  We later found out that this spot was originally part of the Berlin Wall and we would have just been inside East Berlin   Due to the weather conditions (snowy and -4 falling to -7) at 4.00pm we found ourselves walking the 2km into the City.  Our first stop was at the Reichstag (the German parliament) where we booked ourselves in for a free visit the following day. It was all very well organised as you would expect and we were pleased we had brought in the necessary ID. I was quite taken aback by the beautiful modern buildings that surrounded the parliament.  These looked even more wonderful when we returned the following day in the morning.  I found out that these were the offices were the politicians met for their meetings and the other beautiful building with its large circular windows was the parliamentary library.  I don't know whether the light conditions with the sunshine and  snow were perfect for showing  these buildings off but they did look really good.  However going back to our first evening.  After we had made our reservation we wandered around Berlin.  

Library with white crosses marking
where people had been shot
 for attempting to cross Berlin wall

Parliamentary library

We visited the Brandeburg Gate and just before that a lovely peaceful water memorial to all the 'gypsies' who had been murdered by the Nazis.  It was very dark when we arrived here.  The water in the pond which is the focus of this memorial was still and jet black and was surrounded by dark trees.  Haunting and yet peaceful music echoed from speakers which had been placed high in the trees.  It was a lovely tribute.  We quietly walked towards the Brandenburg Gate which then led onto Unter den Linden.  This is a very fashionable route and has been throughout the years.  One thing I loved about Berlin was the amount of signage so that you could read about the history of everything you saw without having to delve into books.  With temperatures of minus 7 that night that was a huge advantage as you could leave your gloves on.

parliamentary offices

  We walked all along this road down to the Alexander Platz where the icoinc TV tower is located.  En route and under the tower we passed two Christmas markets. Neither was as good as others we had visited but we were entertained by two black jazz singers.  Mike was looking really cold by now.  Minus conditions for over  4 hours is not something he can tolerate well.  We walked back home, ate a welcoming chilli and went to bed.

Inside the cupola

The cupola

Inside the cupola

Our first stop the next day was  for our appointment at the Reichstag.  We turned up at time with our passports and went through security.  They confiscated temporarily my bungee clip - what harm was I supposed to be able to do with that?  At least it made for an amusing conversation as I discussed with the female security guard what 'bungee' translated into.  The highlight of visiting this building is being given access to the glass cupola designed by Norman Foster.  It is possible to walk right around the inside of this cupola via a walkway with an audio guide giving a very interesting commentary.

View from cupola

Unfortunately snow that lay on the glass did obscure some of the skyline views but it was still an amazing experience and one I would recommend to all.  The only downside is that the top of the cupola is open to the elements so by the time we had walked all around we were both freezing and if I was cold Mike could only be extremely cold.  We decided to have an expensive cup of coffee and hot chocolate in the cafe at the bottom of the cupola before setting off again.  I think the cost was justified as it probably prevented frostbite!

We walked to the back of the building and looked again at the wonderful parliamentary buildings.  These had been built right up to the waters edge which had formed part of the Berlin wall.  White crosses marked where people had lost their lives when they had tried to cross this border.  We collected our bikes and cycled back towards the Brandeburg Gate.  The huge 'Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe' lay just the other side.  This memorial consists of  2,700 huge slabs arranged at differing levels.  I think we lost some of this visual perspective due to the covering of snow.  Again we quietly, reverently, walked through this monument.  Time and time again on our travels we had been reminded of the Holocaust.

Leaving this area we cycled to where Hitler's bunker had been.  This was blown up at the end of the war, past the SS headquarters, now hosting an exhibition known as 'typography of terrors' and onto Check Point Charlie.  This area has the usual tourist trappings but was also filled again with huge information boards giving a very clear understanding of the history leading up to the creation of the Berlin Wall.  It brought all my GCSE history to life - perhaps this is how it should be taught.   As we had our bikes we were able to continue cycling through this amazing city, we stopped for some food and a warm drink and visited some shopping areas.  We were both absolutely frozen to the bone as we had been out for over 6 hours in freezing conditions. We had one last stop to pick up some milk and cycled back to get warm in our snug van.

Dresden by night

 December 10th: 

Dresden by night

Although the snow had stopped during the night it restarted as soon as we left Prague.  Although we were on 'A' roads these were quite slushy and as we approached the German border just outside of Treplice we really struggled to get up a hill.  Thank goodness we had got our winter tyres on.  Mike very carefully nursed our van along but it was clear that we would have to turn round.  We drove back about 20 kilometres and were able to pick up the motorway which was much clearer.  We arrived in a very snowy Dresden at around 2pm and had our usual soup and sandwich lunch before trudging to the supermarket to stock up with more food (and drink).


We had found a great parking place to stay the night which was only a five minute walk away from the City Centre and although it was very snowy it felt warmer than Prague had done.  As you are probably aware Dresden was very heavily bombed at the end of WW11 and it was interesting to see how well the buildings had been rebuilt.  There was also a lovely Christmas market: the stalls seemed more original than others we had visited and they were all beautifully decorated.  We bought a few Christmas gifts and then trudged back to the van in the snow.

Roof top decorations

Roof top decorations

A winter's day in Prague

December 9th: A Winter's day in Prague

Charles Bridge

It was minus 4 degrees when we caught the tram to take us into the centre of Prague. We got off the tram just below the famous Charles Bridge which we walked over in the morning sunshine.

View of Charles Bridge

Changing the Guard

We took the steep route up the hill to the castle and the cathedral.  Our timing was good as we caught the Czech version of the 'changing of the guard, which was accompanied by bugle and drum playing. We wandered around the castle and cathedral complex and were surpised that even some of the streets such as Golden Lane could only be visited at a cost.  Both Mike and I had visited Prague some years ago and we could not remember having to pay so much for everything.  As we had only changed a few of our Euros for Czech currency we decided to view things from the outside.  The downside of this approach was that we were both getting colder by the hour.  The views from around the castle were really clear and I got some good photos of the skyline but we needed to get warm.  We traipsed back over the Charles Bridge which was now much busier with tourists and entertainers and headed for the old part of town near the astronomical clock.  We picked up some delicious cherry punch en route and sampled a pastry spiral flavoured with vanilla, cinnamon and almonds that was cooked over an open stove. Both were delicious and slightly took off the edge of feeling cold.

Christmas Market in Prague

The Astronomical Clock

There was also a Christmas market set up in this area and we browsed around it comparing it with the others we had seen.  Our next stop was to be Wenceslas Square.

Mike in Wenceslas Square

 As we were so cold now we kept popping into shops to warm up temporarily.  Millie benefitted from this as we found a sweet pair of crystal earrings.  We decided that if we were to prevent frostbite from setting in we had to find somewhere warm to sit down.  We always try to avoid the really touristy places and we ended up at a Czech micro brewery called Pivovarsky Dam.  Here you could try samples of all sorts of lager including banana and nettle but we just went  for our favoured white and dark versions.  We also had some good food there.  Whilst we were sitting there it started to snow and so after an hour or so we grudgingly left our warm haven and found the tram back to the van.  We had to trudge the last few metres in deeper snow but the good thing was that once the snow arrived the temperature lifted a little.