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| THE NETHERLANDS AND BELGIUM 2006: Trip Report |
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We left Bruges and headed back north. The weather was cloudy but mild and we had a stiff tail wind. We made good time back to Vlissingen and only had ten minutes to wait for the next hourly ferry.
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After lunch at Veere we went across the sea barriers to Oosterscheldekering . Around 2,000 people were killed in 1953 when the sea inundated large areas of the low lying land. In response the Dutch constructed a system of sea barriers that include massive gates that can be closed if a similar disaster threatens. The road, and separate bicycle path run along the top of the gates.
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We arrived at Renesse about 5pm. We had expected that it would be easy to find accommodation but it was a public holiday in Germany to celebrate the reunification, and it was packed. There was a room available in a four star hotel, but we didn't fancy it, and they couldn't offer secure storage for the bikes. Finally we found a ramshackle apartment about 3km from town. There was normally a weekly minimum but, as it was empty, the owner agreed to one night as long as we cleaned it before we left.
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| She asked us to warn us when we were about to leave so she could inspect it, and indeed she did. She spent a good five minutes looking at everything in detail before pronouncing herself satisfied. It was the first apartment we have ever stayed in where dishwashing liquid and other cleaning materials were not supplied. When I went to the house and asked for some the husband said "difficult" and disappeared. He returned a few moments later with a small open-topped container with about 2mm of dishwashing liquid in the bottom, handed it to me and said "concentrated". |
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