In April/May 2018, Debra and I cruised the Rhine River for eight days on the Viking Mani. We sailed from Basel, Switzerland to Amsterdam, the Netherlands, with port stops in Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Click HERE to read a short introduction about this fantastic cruise.
This story, which is part of a series, is about our day in Streefkerk and Kinderdijk, two towns in the Netherlands.
This story, which is part of a series, is about our day in Streefkerk and Kinderdijk, two towns in the Netherlands.
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Gorinchem, Netherlands (May 3, 2018) We set sail from Cologne last evening and arrived in Gorinchem at noon. There, Debra and I joined fellow passengers on a sightseeing excursion by motor coach. We toured a cheese maker in Streefkerk and a bevy of windmills in Kinderdijk, and we saw beautiful countryside along the way. These were truly Dutch treats! But I must digress, as I’ve gotten ahead of myself.
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Life on the River
After breakfast, Debra and I grabbed a couple of lounge chairs on the Sun Deck, where we relaxed as the Mani navigated the pastoral waters of the Rhine. Somewhere between the German town of Emmerich and the Dutch town of Millingen aan de Rijn, we said “goodbye” to Germany and “hello” to the Netherlands.
Debra and I saw a lot of commercial vessels plying the Rhine – cargo barges stacked three-high with intermodal containers and tank barges that carried liquid or gaseous commodities. No surprise, for as we later learned, the 800-mile-long Rhine was the chief commercial inland waterway for western Europe.
After breakfast, Debra and I grabbed a couple of lounge chairs on the Sun Deck, where we relaxed as the Mani navigated the pastoral waters of the Rhine. Somewhere between the German town of Emmerich and the Dutch town of Millingen aan de Rijn, we said “goodbye” to Germany and “hello” to the Netherlands.
Debra and I saw a lot of commercial vessels plying the Rhine – cargo barges stacked three-high with intermodal containers and tank barges that carried liquid or gaseous commodities. No surprise, for as we later learned, the 800-mile-long Rhine was the chief commercial inland waterway for western Europe.
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We poked our heads into the wheelhouse, which I wrote about in an earlier POST. Also known as the “bridge” and “pilothouse,” the wheelhouse is the command center of the ship. It is manned by the officer on deck, who is the person with navigational responsibility. It was our good fortune that Captain Scheller was the officer on deck this morning. The good captain gave Debra and me a primer on navigating the Rhine, showed us the electronic “tools of the trade,” and answered our questions. It was a great experience!
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We loved the views from the wheelhouse. One of our favorites was a double suspension bridge that spanned the Rhine near the town of Neerijnen.
The Mani sailed past farms and small towns. Soon after crossing into the Netherlands, Debra and I spotted this country’s iconic symbol – a windmill. It was the first of many we would see this day. This windmill, which was set back a few hundred yards from the bank of the river, had four slowly rotating sails. Further along, we spotted a windmill with two sails.
The Mani sailed past farms and small towns. Soon after crossing into the Netherlands, Debra and I spotted this country’s iconic symbol – a windmill. It was the first of many we would see this day. This windmill, which was set back a few hundred yards from the bank of the river, had four slowly rotating sails. Further along, we spotted a windmill with two sails.
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Near the town of Tiel, we passed the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal. Opened in 1952 and enlarged in the 1970s, it is the most heavily trafficked canal in western Europe. Ships that enter and leave the canal are supervised by people in the “traffic post” (left-hand photo), which is similar in function to a control tower at an airport. Locks (right-hand photo) are used to control and manage the difference in the water level between the Rhine and canal.
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The weather in Gorinchem, which is located in the province of South Holland, was picture-perfect – about 70 degrees, a slight breeze, blue sky, and puffy white clouds. The waterfront was pretty, the town quaint.
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If you asked Debra what she enjoyed most as we traveled, she would say, “Seeing the countryside of the places we visited.” Charming villages and towns, lush rolling hills, green forested mountains, and fertile farmlands. More often than not, this activity took place as we traveled from ports to destinations – what Debra would call “the delightful space in between.” This was the case today, as the route from Gorinchem to Streefkerk was strictly rural – fields, farms, cows, windmills, and villages. Debra was in seventh heaven!
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We also got our first look at the ditches and canals that are an integral part of the water management system through much of the Netherlands.
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The “Kaas” Maker
We arrived in the small town of Streefkerk (fewer than 3,000 people!) 30 minutes after we left Gorinchem. Streefkerk is home to Booij Kaasmakers (“Cheese Makers”), which is owned and operated by Betsy and Martien Booij. Betsy greeted us and provided a short introduction to their cheese-making business. We learned, for example, that they produced gouda cheese made of raw milk (unpasteurized) from cows and goats supplied by local farmers. Betsy then led us on an interesting and informative tour of their cheese-making process.
We arrived in the small town of Streefkerk (fewer than 3,000 people!) 30 minutes after we left Gorinchem. Streefkerk is home to Booij Kaasmakers (“Cheese Makers”), which is owned and operated by Betsy and Martien Booij. Betsy greeted us and provided a short introduction to their cheese-making business. We learned, for example, that they produced gouda cheese made of raw milk (unpasteurized) from cows and goats supplied by local farmers. Betsy then led us on an interesting and informative tour of their cheese-making process.
Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet
Eating her curds and whey
Along came a spider
Who sat down beside her
And frightened Miss Muffet away
~ an English nursery rhyme
Eating her curds and whey
Along came a spider
Who sat down beside her
And frightened Miss Muffet away
~ an English nursery rhyme
The tour started at the mixing vat, which held 2,300 kilos of milk (600 gallons). The mixer converted the milk into curds and whey. Curds were used to make the cheese, and whey, which was siphoned off, was sold to farmers as pig feed. (This fact made me doubt the accuracy of the nursery rhyme about Little Miss Muffet eating whey!). The mixing process took about four hours and produced 1 kilo of cheese per 90 kilos of milk – about 26 kilos (56 pounds) of cheese per vat.
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The curds were put in round molds, soaked in salt water (for taste, preservation and to create the rind), pressed to remove excess water, and dried. These steps took a couple of days.
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Then, the cheese rounds were sealed with a liquid plastic (don't eat it!), date stamped, and stored in the aging room to ripen the cheese.
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Our group entered the farm shop through a door in the storeroom. There we learned about “young” cheese (a soft cheese that was ready to eat in as few as 12 days) and "old" cheese (a hard cheese that was aged up to 18 months), and sampled three cheeses at different ages. They were mmmm, mmmm good! Debra and I bought chunks of young and old cheese to enjoy when we got home.
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A Bevy of Windmills
It was a short drive from Streefkerk to Kinderdijk – just a stone’s throw down the road. As we entered the village, we noticed that the homes were built below ground level – well, at least the level of the road we were on. We learned that we had this backwards. The homes were at ground level and the road we were on ran across a dike that was built to protect the village from the waters of the Lek and Noord rivers. This brought to mind Hans Brinker, the Dutch boy who saved his country by putting his finger in a leaking dike!
It was a short drive from Streefkerk to Kinderdijk – just a stone’s throw down the road. As we entered the village, we noticed that the homes were built below ground level – well, at least the level of the road we were on. We learned that we had this backwards. The homes were at ground level and the road we were on ran across a dike that was built to protect the village from the waters of the Lek and Noord rivers. This brought to mind Hans Brinker, the Dutch boy who saved his country by putting his finger in a leaking dike!
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Much of the northern part of the Netherlands is below sea level, and it has been an ongoing struggle to maintain the right balance in the amount of water in the land – too much water and our feet would be wet, while too little water and the land would sink. And the latter is happening – in places with too little water, the land has sunk at an average rate of one-third inch per year.
Windmills were once an integral part of the water management system (along with ditches, canals and dikes). Steam engines replaced windmills near the end of the 19th century, and electric and diesel-powered turbines (like those in this photo) replaced steam engines in the 20th century. Existing windmills, which are mostly government-owned, were preserved and protected as historic landmarks.
Windmills were once an integral part of the water management system (along with ditches, canals and dikes). Steam engines replaced windmills near the end of the 19th century, and electric and diesel-powered turbines (like those in this photo) replaced steam engines in the 20th century. Existing windmills, which are mostly government-owned, were preserved and protected as historic landmarks.
There were once 1,000 windmills in this region of the Netherlands. Only 56 remain, including a cluster of 19 windmills in Kinderdijk, which was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. UNESCO said this about the site:
“The outstanding contribution made by the people of the Netherlands to the technology of handling water is admirably demonstrated by the installations in the Kinderdijk-Elshout area. Construction of hydraulic works for the drainage of land for agriculture and settlement began in the Middle Ages and have continued uninterruptedly to the present day. The site illustrates all the typical features associated with this technology – dykes, reservoirs, pumping stations, administrative buildings and a series of beautifully preserved windmills.”
“The outstanding contribution made by the people of the Netherlands to the technology of handling water is admirably demonstrated by the installations in the Kinderdijk-Elshout area. Construction of hydraulic works for the drainage of land for agriculture and settlement began in the Middle Ages and have continued uninterruptedly to the present day. The site illustrates all the typical features associated with this technology – dykes, reservoirs, pumping stations, administrative buildings and a series of beautifully preserved windmills.”
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Debra and I toured the inside of a windmill that was built in 1738. It was originally occupied by a couple with 13 children. Talk about cramped living quarters!
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As Debra and I said “goodbye” to the windmills, I spotted colorful “Klompen” (wooden clogs). Klompen, which the Dutch first wore in medieval times, served a practical purpose – the wood absorbed perspiration, which allowed one’s feet to “breathe.” While we didn’t see anyone sporting Klompen, they were still an important part of Dutch culture. Never one to miss a photo op, I asked Debra to try on the Klompen. What do you think? Too small?!
Our Last Evening
The Mani, which had sailed from Gorinchem to Kinderdijk, was docked across the road from the windmills. Debra and I were back aboard late afternoon. We relaxed a bit and freshened up, and then headed to cocktail hour, which was followed by the Captain’s cocktail party, which was followed by dinner and entertainment. (I know, it’s the hard-knock life for us!) We had a wonderful last evening aboard the Mani – a “nightcap,” if you will, to another great day.
We will arrive in Amsterdam tomorrow morning. There we will start a five-day holiday of sightseeing in and around the capital of the Netherlands. I look forward to sharing our adventures in Amsterdam with you!
The Mani, which had sailed from Gorinchem to Kinderdijk, was docked across the road from the windmills. Debra and I were back aboard late afternoon. We relaxed a bit and freshened up, and then headed to cocktail hour, which was followed by the Captain’s cocktail party, which was followed by dinner and entertainment. (I know, it’s the hard-knock life for us!) We had a wonderful last evening aboard the Mani – a “nightcap,” if you will, to another great day.
We will arrive in Amsterdam tomorrow morning. There we will start a five-day holiday of sightseeing in and around the capital of the Netherlands. I look forward to sharing our adventures in Amsterdam with you!