Tour de France 2010 in Rotterdam (The Netherlands)

Ratianda's correspondent in The Netherlands went to Rotterdam (The Netherlands) for dim sum. 

There's a huge Chinese community there so Rotterdam is the place to be for dim sum.

Ratianda's correspondent was a bit clueless about the second (and last) day of the Tour de France 2010 in Rotterdam.  Luckily she brought along her Panasonic Lumix with Leica lense and took some snapshots of the whole Tour de France circus!

The mayor of Rotterdam, Mr. Ahmed Aboutaleb of Moroccan descent who moved to The Netherlands when he was 15 years old, topped the cyclists in a red car and waved to the public and to our charming correspondent, who waved back!

The mayor of Rotterdam waving to our charming correspondent. She was so excited!

Our correspondent was overwhelmed by the huge amount of cyclists that she couldn't make out where Lance Armstrong was.

The cyclists were in a good mood and all eager to win!

It was a fun and sunny day. And of course Ratianda's correspondent enjoyed her dim sum afterwards.

Trip to Zaanse Schans

Trip to Zaanse Schans

It is known that Zaanse Schans is the neighbourhood of Zaandam. It is near Zaandijk in the municipality of Zaanstad in the Netherlands of North Holland. Yes, I know... It's not a common name known to the world but NOW you know... It's one of the popular tourist attraction of the region to visit and experience an environment like never before. For those country lovers, this place has a collection of well-preserved historical windmills and not forgetting, houses. Zaanse Schans is also an Anchor Point of The European Route of Industrial Heritage aka "ERIH". How popular, you ask? Approx. 900k visitors every year!

The windmills were built since 1574 onwards. Of course, if you want to know more, please
>> CLICK HERE <<

This is a must see for foreigners. Here there are typical dutch houses in green & white with canals & windmills used for oil, mustard & wheat. The flowers are awesome and the street for shopping is breathtaking.


Shoes and wood carvings all hand crafted is amazingly astounding to just go window shopping through here! Would recommend this to those who love hand-crafted arts & craft!

Do drop by during the Spring or Summer season. It's best for viewing flowers and enjoy nature the real way!

Brought to you specially from Columnist of Ratianda (The Netherlands).

The Dutch windmills of Zaanse Schans

Ratianda's Dutch columnist and her husband take Malaysian guests for a visit to the famous Zaanse Schans (website: www.zaanseschans.nl) with it's five windmills, museums and much and much more to see and to do.

The Zaanse Schans is a delightful village on the banks of the river Zaan with characteristic green wooden houses, charming stylized gardens, small hump-backed bridges, tradesmen's workshops, historic windmills and engaging little shops.

This enchanting village has been lovingly established by relocating local houses, windmills, storehouses and barns to form a remarkable replica of a typical Zaanse village of the seventeenth and eighteenth century.

Apart from the cluster of windmills, characteristic wooden houses and delightful shops to visit, there are intriguing traditional Dutch crafts such as wooden shoes, pewter and cheese making, several fascinating museums, restaurants and even the possibility of taking a boat trip on the river.

The Zaanse Schans is open daily throughout the year. 

With its traditional green painted houses, warehouses and windmills the Zaanse Schans gives the feeling of having stepped back into the seventeenth or eighteenth centuries. However this is not an open air museum but a colourful living and working neighbourhood. Most of the buildings were re-located from other areas in the Zaanstreek in the 1960’s and 70’s as owing to urban development they were under threat of obliteration.
The Zaanse Schans offers a magnificent view of the surrounding landscape as it was before and after the industrial revolution. This panorama makes the Zaanse Schans a vital link in the European Route of Industrial Heritage. A visit to a working industrial windmill is a unique experience. Paint mill De Kat and oil mill De Zoeker are open daily from March to October. From November to February most of the windmills at the Zaanse Schans are only open at the weekends. The Jonge Schaap is open all year. The Zaanse Schans has a number of fascinating museums to tempt the visitor. The Zaans Musuem has a large collection of interesting artefacts and presents a variety of changing exhibitions. The museum combines a complete picture of the history of the area with an impressive view over the local landscape.

The smaller, specialized museums such as the first Albert Heijn Grocery shop, the Bakery Museum 'In de Gecroonde Duyvekater', The Dutch Clock Museum, The Noorderhuis Costume Museum are all situated at the Zaanse Schans in listed buildings bringing the history of this oldest industrial area to life. There is no entrance fee for visiting the traditional Dutch workshops such as the Wooden Shoe Workshop, the Pewter Foundry and the Cheese Farm at the Zaanse Schans. Opening times may vary, but generally they are open daily throughout the year. The most enjoyable way to see the surrounding area is from the water. From April to October river cruises are available along the river Zaan not only for a splendid view of the Zaanse Schans, but also for a more detailed examination of the traditional and picturesque Dutch houses, windmills and other interesting sights along the way. 

Rondvaart Haarlem

Rondvaart Haarlem

Yay! Another boat ride in Haarlem, if you've been following us, you'd notice this is the 2nd time we've been mentioning Haarlem in our travels.

Here we went under very low bridges and viewing buildings. Enjoy da ride!

Brought to you by Columnist of Ratianda (The Netherlands).

63rd Bloemen Corso, Haarlem (Flower Parade)

63rd Bloemen Corso, Haarlem (Flower Parade)

Here are pictures of the 63rd Bloemen Corso in Haarlem on 24th April 2010.
The theme this year is European travels and all the flowers are fresh.

Notice the sea horses, jelly fish & etc, all made out of different sorts of fresh flowers.
Took up almost the whole Saturday to Haarlem because the procession started at 9am at Noordhoutwijk and at 9pm they passed by at other places in Haarlem.
Together with the flower arrangements are people involved in this event that makes the flowers more life-like, like the car and such... Enjoy!

Brought to you by Columnist of Ratianda (The Netherlands).

Haarlem Up-Close & Personal

Coming to you from Haarlem, our Columnist of Ratianda proudly brings you "Haarlem, Up-Close & Personal".

Firstly, Haarlem had a total population 148 885 in 2009. The municipality of Haarlem also comprises part of the village of Spaarndam, a newer housing estate of this village forms part of the neighbouring municipality of Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude.

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing toward an ocean, a lake, a sea or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water...

The city is located on the river Spaarne, about 20 km west of Amsterdam and near the coastal dunes. It has been the historical center of the tulip bulb-growing district for centuries and bears the nickname 'Bloemenstad' (flower city), for this reason.

How it began?
The oldest mentioning of Haarlem dates from the 10th century. The name comes from "Haarlo-heim" or "Harulahem", which means 'place, on sand covered with trees, higher than the others'. There was a stream called "De Beek", dug from the peat grounds west of the river Spaarne as a drainage canal. Over the centuries the Beek was turned into an underground canal, as the city grew larger and the space was needed for construction. Over time it began to silt up and in the 19th century it was filled in. The location of the village was a good one: by the river Spaarne, and by a major road going south to north. By the 12th century it was a fortified town, and Haarlem became the residence of the Counts of Holland

Count of Holland

The Counts of Holland ruled over the County of Holland in the Low Countries between the 10th and the 16th century.-House of Holland:The first count of Holland, Dirk I, was the son or foster-son of Gerolf, Count in Frisia...

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OKAY! Back to the present... (I know you're getting sleepy, me too... lolx)
The weather is cool but freezing at the same time. It's a very classic, yet, "heavenly" view not to be missed!
Here are some pictures taken next to the River Spaarne in Haarlem (the Northern side of Holland).

Along the river Spaarne,was formerly the Maria Stichting (sort of a foundation), a Roman Catholic Hospital and Childrens Orphanage

Oh! Before I forget, do notice that the river is utterly frozen! People ice skate here too.
There are also boat houses on the river too.

Ooo... Do not miss this! Haarlem's very own friendly neighborhood 24/7. A sight not to be missed!

Want to know more about Haarlem? Click Here

Would love to shout out a great big "THANK YOU" to our Columnist of Ratianda all the way from The Netherlands!