Holland & Belgium Viking River Cruise
Day 10: Sunday, November 03, 2024 - Kinderdijk, Netherlands
The day's statistics:
- Weather: mid 50s, overcast
- Steps: 4,996 Linda; 6,578 Steve
- Miles traveled (approximately): 22
It was a mere one and three-quarter hour cruise up the river to our next port, Kinderdijk.
We sat with Fred, Larry, Karen, and Richard during breakfast.
This was not our first visit to Kinderdijk as we visited during the
Rhine Getaway cruise in 2021.
We had the included excursion to visit the windmill last time too, so this time we decided to do the "Kinderdijk
by Vintage Barge" excursion so our visit would be a little different. (They only have these two excursions so if
we ever visit for a third time, I'm not sure what we'll do.)
The shipped docked and we walked up the embankment and gathered with our group for our excursion.
When we were all present, we crossed the street, proceeded down the embankment, and continued on the elevated
pathway over the water. We passed the museum building and a sculpture - spying some windmills in distance -
on the way to the 129 year old vintage barge.
It seemed - to us - that it was more of a vintage boat than a barge, though we interpret a barge as a large flat open
top transport for moving goods around, not people.
It turns out that Viking purchased the barge and restored it.
Anyway, we boarded and headed out.
Across the canal was a residence. We also passed an unusual looking duck while making our way further down the canal.
Eventually the boat had to cross to the other side of a pedestrian walkway - the walkway we (and non-barge windmill
visitors) used last time to visit one of the windmills. The captain had a wi-fi connection to the small drawbridge
that allowed him to open and close the draw as needed. There was also a small gate that came down to stop pedestrians
from crossing while the boat went through.
After going through, the captain would lower the draw.
Most of the working windmills had small little windmills nearby on the property. They were used to teach the children
of the family how to operate the full size ones.
The boat arrived at the windmill we were going to visit - the oldest in the area.
This windmill is brown, indicating it pumps water from the low lands to the canal, whereas the black windmills
pump the water from the canal to the river.
There was a keeper names Rose who told us all about working the mill, showing us how she furls and unfurls the
canvas sails, starts and stops the blade turning, took us inside, and showed us the property with a garden and
various animals used to sustain the residents during the season.
Rose wore wooden shoes - not as a gimic as the symbol of the Dutch, but because they are truly functional. Wooden
shoes are extremely funcitonal. They are slip resistant, easy to slip on and off, water proof, and help protect toes
if something is dropped on them. She even mentioned one time where her foot got stuck in the windmill gears, but
because she was able to easily pull her foot out, she suffered no harm. She also had them on while she climbed up one
of the windmill blades to secure one of the ropes as demonstrated how the sail is furled and unfurled.
The blade, as seen in the image immediately above, has an aluminum fin attached to it to create an airplane airfoil
sort of effect and the blades, unlike most of the others in this region, spins with a much smaller wind than the
others.
After our lesson outside, we went inside. Next to the door was a rack of shoes.
When the wooden shoes reach their end of life, they are painted or turned into something like a planter
or some other decoration of some kind.
The time inside was rather brief, but it was crowded and we stayed on the first level.
We stepped out the back and Rose showed us how the blades are stopped (pulling one rope) and started
again (pulling on another rope until there is an audible click - it is important that the wooden brake
clamps are cleared of the spinning axle else it could cause a fire).
In addition to the brake demo, we saw the lowlands in the back that the windmill "pumps" the water (it's more
of a "paddlewheel move the water" thing [see the diagram]) out of. The stake is a flood-height marker.
On one side of the windmill is the channel the water passes through when it is moved by the 3-4 meter (9'-12') wide
wheel. There is wood covering the channel, and there is a hinged door in the wood. We were told that in the past, to
do some "fishing", the miller was able to just drop a net in the channel and capture a bunch of fish as it was moved
from the low lands to the canal.
Across the canal was this windmill.
A couple goats... making out? Cuddling? Being affectionate? Whatever.
The kitchen is outside in its own building for safety reasons, and space. But primarily safety.
A thatch tool shed hut.
In case it wasn't evident or known, the top of the windmill turns. In the photo a dozen up or so, there is a small
traditional house looking piece with blades on it - that's called the top. The top of the windmill rotates.
There are a couple things to note in the shot below. 1) The white stones in the ground are actually anchors for the
windmill top to be locked in place; 2) the large colorful wheel is used to further position the windmill top; 3) the
heavy duty rope is the brake rope; 4) looking at the two windmills in the backgroud, their design is different as the
top is better integrated into the construction and layout eliminating the need for the staircase and modular top.
There were a couple other structures on the property that included a windmill model, workshop, and chicken coop.
There was also a garden. Between the rabbits, goats, chickens, and garden, the millers are self-sustaining
(to some extent). The garden had mostly already been harvested.
There were some flowers too.
Our time with Rose was up. So we headed back tot he boat, but not before taking a selfie.
I was able to capture the windmill on motion.
Caught this swan flying by (and put the two shots together because they were both pretty good).
The windows were opened (but it was actually a little too cold for that) for our return to the launch site,
we saw more windmills and were shown a couple photos: one of the windmills at night, and the other showing
the canal frozen over with ice skaters on it.
We returned, docked, and disembarked.
By the time we returned, the low level fog had lifted / burned off and it turned into a lovely day.
We had a little time before the ship set sail, so on the way back we stepped into the gift shop - of course.
After a bit more than two hours we were back on board.
After dropping everything off and freshening up a little, we returned to the lounge for a brieg time to have some
coffee and await lunch.
Before long it was time to eat, so we headed to the dining room.
We sat with Jerry and Bob also from FL, and their son Mylin.
Linda had the mixed green salad, pappardelle al ragú, and vanilla ice cream.
I had the cream of broccoli, pappardelle al ragú, and banana split.
This afternoon was a rare scenic sailing afternoon.
After lunch we headed to the lounge so we could try to see what we could on either side of the ship.
At 3:00, we had pasteries and tea - as if we hadn't eaten enough already. We also had a Belgian waffle making
demonstration by Chef Gerard. The key difference of Belgian waffles and "regular American style" is that they
use half the milk and substitute the other half with seltzer water - which makes them lighter and fluffier.
I didn't get a picture of our snack, but that was because I was distracted by our pinochle game. We actually
played for a couple hours.
This afternoon I was able to capture some interesting sights while we cruised, both before and after the
tea and demo - they just aren't separated for ease of putting this together.
We also got a selfie on the sundeck - appropriately named this time.
6:00 brought us a "Discover the World in Comfort with Viking" presentation enticing travelers to book again primarily
because there are on-board discounts available for a future booking.
The daily port talk followed at 6:45.
By 7:00 it was time to head to the dining room. We sat with Richard and Karen from CA (the two
with which we played the Family Feud style game), and Alison and K.Y. also from CA.
Linda had creamy Dutch gouda cheese soup, stuffed portobello mushroom, and carrot cake.
I had creamy Dutch gouda cheese soup, herb crusted pork tenderloin, and crème brûée (from the
left side of the menu).
After dinner and chatting, we returned to our room.
As we were now docked in Hoorn, before relaxing I went to the sundeck - would it be a moondeck at night?!!? - for a photo.
We did the usual night routine, and went to sleep.