Summer arrives

We've been in the Netherlands almost 5 weeks now, long enough to do real-life stuff. With two boys along - a tween and a teen- the grocery shopping is a daily routine. Laundry could be too, but we haven't always had easy access, plus I simply refuse. But it became a must, so the last two days have been laundry days. 

The process was made easier by the fact that our hosts, Jonathan, Miranda and Mirile have gone on holiday and left us in charge of their house. So we have the run of the place including the big kitchen and living room, clothes washer, and the entire garden.

Our wooden house at the far end of the garden is charming AND teeny, so it's been nice to spread out. We've been eating at the big garden table these two days - chicken soup was on the menu for dinner tonight. It's Ben's favorite and I teased that he needed to eat 3 bowls. When he moved on to number 4, I was so amazed I took a picture 

and when he ended up eating 5 bowls, I begged him to stop....

Yesterday summer also arrived in the Netherlands and today the temperature reached 30 C (90 F)! For the most part it's been between 16 and 22 (-mid 60s to low 70s) so today was a shocker. The sun made us lazy and we spent most of the day yesterday in the garden. I did some drawing 

And Caleb took jonathan up on his offer for us to use his art studio (he his a painter and the front of the house serves as his gallery). http://andersomanders.nl/

Before the temperature reached its apex today, the boys and headed out for another ride along the North Sea. To follow the route we like best, we cross the border into Germany. But to tell the truth, I did not know where exactly the border was.... This sounds odd I know- in  the States we live within 1/2 mile of the Maine/NH border. And you never have to wonder when you've crossed state lines since you are immediately bombarded with "Welcome to NH" or "Maine- the way life should be" signs. But not here, at least not since the advent of the EU- now you essentially have no way to know when you've crossed most international borders. But today I asked around in the village and I think I figured it out.

This bridge where the boys are standing - the general consensus is that the water in the canal and the bank on the other side are in Germany. So there you have it.

Anyway, our tour took us back into "nature" and along the  Ems/Dollard estuary. Because the estuary is highly protected as a national park and UNESCO world heritage site http://www.waddensea-worldheritage.org/wadden-sea-world-heritage/ems-dollard it's not terribly easy to access it, so long boardwalks wend through the marshes and mudflats

To observation towers.

I've been to this tower twice now, the first viewing at low tide

And the second at high tide.

And in truth, these are the first times I've  seen the tide in 5 weeks here. Because most every drop of water in NL is managed behind the system of dikes, this is a rare opportunity to see the tide.

By the time we were riding back from the sea, the temperature was soaring. So the boys were pretty spent by the time we returned to the village, but they humored me with a visit to the local vestigmusea (fortress museum). The wonderful and knowledgeable guides at the museum told us of the history of the village's development as a fortress, build in the 5 pointed star shape that we also saw in our visit to Oudeschans. Here's the museums replica of the fortress 

We were also escorted down the street to see the village's only Jewish synagogue in its history. It was established in the early 16th century when 12 Members of the Jewish Orthodox Church had enough membership to begin their own synogogue. 

The plaque on the building was raised in memory of those members of the synogogue who were taken by the Nazis during World War II and whose lives ended in German concentration camps - the names of which you will recognize. 

History is always present here, giving us perspective.