The day began with the first breakfast from the B&B. Breakfast was delivered to Debbie and Larry’s room which is great except they get up early to straighten the room. It is like the day before the maid comes. The food was worth getting up early.
Haarlem could be described as a Little Amsterdam. It has canals, old houses, a windmill and charm. The first day in the Netherlands was spent in Haarlem. It was an incredibly windy day. The wind did not stop the bike riders nor the four.
They began with walking through the streets of Haarlem to look at the canals and houses. They visited an art exhibit mostly because it was out of the wind. They also went in St Bavokerk, a reformed Protestant church and former Catholic Cathedral, located on the central market square. Services are only held from May to September as the building is too cold in the winter. In the winter, services are held at another church. The day they visited, an art class was sketching in the church.
After lunch the group visited a windmill that has been restored. They were the only four in the tour. The guide was great with several models of windmills to demonstrate how they worked. The actual windmill was not turning that day because the wind was so high. The wind would turn the windmill so fast that it could catch on fire. It was interesting to find out that windmills were used to pump the water to create land. This windmill was used to create flour. It has sails that the miller raises by climbing up the arms of the windmill. Debbie saw Larry eyeing how it worked so you might start getting milled flour soon.
Who wouldn’t want to see a windmill? You can’t go to the Netherlands without seeing a windmill, right?
