Skip to main content

A Weekend in a Windmill

I planned this trip some time ago--back in April. We have pretty much seen the typical European landscapes, visited our fill of castles and taken in the typical European architecture. I'm now focusing on trips and experiences that are a bit off the beaten path or out of the norm. This one was a huge success!
We traveled the four hours on Friday evening to Utrecht, Netherlands, where we spent the weekend with friends in a real working windmill. It was amazing! The inside was quaint, with rustic charm and modern conveniences. Downstairs consisted of a living/dining area, small kitchen (fridge, sink, microwave and dishwasher), toilet and entry area. The second floor is where we stayed. It had a bathroom and 2 bedrooms, along with a laundry area. The third floor had one large sleeping space and the top floor was the lookout for the windmill. The landscape around the windmill was breathtaking--open fields where cattle and sheep grazed, canals and blue skies. Sooo pretty. The kids had a great time exploring and finding their "secret garden."
Saturday we ventured 40 minutes away to the town of Dordrecht, NL where a replica of Noah's Ark per God's specifications was built. It was incredible. Though a bit expensive--12.50 Euro for adults, 7.50 Euro for children, it was interesting. It had several scenes from Genesis, real animals (wallaby, ponies, chickens, sheep, birds), and stalls filled with huge animals made of plastic.
After a couple of hours in the Ark, we were starving. We found McDonald's not too far away, along with some quaint shops. We looked around and took in the sunshine. The weather was perfect!
Matt did a bit of research and found a lake area to rent a motorized boat. It was only 27 Euro per hour, which was a steal considering there were 9 of us. We spent the next hour watching the children as each took a turn as Captain. They had a blast.

















Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

my workout playlist

I never dreamed I'd be listening/watching this when I worked out, but it is true. Here it is: photo courtesty of Laurieberkner.com I wouldn't have it any other way. My little healthy lifestyle journey is going well. I have exercised 7 days thus far which consists of treadmill activity and an ab workout every other day. I don't pressure myself to run everyday, but I have run 4 of the 7 days. I am quite proud of that. I have never been a runner or enjoyed running, but I have grown to like it. I used to say that I had exercise induced asthma! I think I did, but maybe I outgrew it? ha. Whatever the reason, I am finding it pretty easy to run and maintain a steady pace for no less than 20 minutes each time. Pretty impressive feat for a girl like me. Interestingly, I had planned to take today off, but didn't. I actually had the desire to run. Chris and I are both sticking to the eating plan as well. So far I am down about 4 pounds. Although 4 pounds is plenty, it ...
8 comments
Read more

Pink Family

Chris and I are creatures of habit. We like what we like. When we find something especially wonderful, we tend to go a bit overboard. Case in point--Chinese restaurant in Minot, ND. We frequented it often at least a couple of times per week. This was basically THE place we went out to eat. The host actually started to say things like, "nice to see you AGAIN." We were rather embarrassed and fearful that his line would eventually become, "your usual table?" Thankfully we moved. Since coming to Korea, we've tried every Brazilian Steakhouse (there are 4 or 5), I deemed Ceia my favorite. It has the most delicious white rice with which I put this onion mixture on top and it is oh. so. yummy. We became frequent visitors--typically one night per week. We joked between ourselves that we were going to be greeted as we were dreading in Minot. It never happened, thankfully, but who knows what the staff actually said as they primarily spoke Korean :) Another quirk Chris an...
5 comments
Read more

9 Months

      Claire is nine months old. She is such an active kid, always on the go. She no longer lays nicely when we change her diaper. It is quite the challenge. She is getting rather quick at crawling, so we have to move just as quickly to keep her out of where she doesn't belong--the fridge, cupboards, etc. Developmentally, she is right on track or maybe a bit advanced in our biased eyes. She crawls, pulls herself up, is beginning to move from one piece of furniture to another, mostly eats table food, and imitates us (both in the noises we make or actions--knocking on a door). When we hold her hands, she is beginning to take steps without much guidance. On Saturday, she made her first attempt to climb a step. Sadly, it ended with her sliding down. She has three teeth--two on the bottom, one on top with another coming in on top. Ten things we love about her: 1. her smile 2. her curiosity 3. the way she holds our hands or her own hands when she sleeps 4. her easy-goingness 5....
11 comments
Read more