The Adventures of The Tylers: Holland day 1 & 2

We were so ready to get to the Netherlands and be with family! Most of you know that my mom is Dutch and immigrated to the States as a child. We knew about some family still over there but my grandfather, Opa, was not in touch with any of his family. About 10 years ago he got a phone call we found out about an entire part of the family that we did not know existed.

When Opa was still a baby his parents divorced. His mother remarried and always told him that his father wanted nothing to do with him. He had a difficult childhood and ran away from home as a teenager. Years later we found out that his father also remarried and had two children in that marriage. So Opa had a brother and sister and nieces and nephews we found out about only recently.

We have been fortunate to meet his brother's family when they have come to the States. This is also who we got to visit on this trip. So my mom's uncle (Opa's brother) is Joop and his wife is Leis. They have two sons, John and Gerard. John's family includes Vicky and his son Jorn (we stayed with John and Vicky). Gerard's family includes his wife Desiree, son Dave, and daughter Inge. We were so lucky to get to spend some time with all of them.

When we left Paris we took the train to Amsterdam. John was waiting at the station for us, in a UT shirt of course. We took the ferry over to North Amsterdam where he had parked and made the hour long car ride back to Enkhuizen where they all live. That evening we all went to Gerard and Desiree's house to for a BBQ. It was much different than what we would consider BBQ but it was delicious!

Monday John took me and Vince all over the countryside in a 1960 something Volvo. It was a neat way to see things and enjoy a slower pace. We started out at a windmill (actually a flour mill) in the neighboring city. A miller in training showed us around and taught us all about different types of mills (there are watermills, windmills, flour mills, paper mills, saw mills, etc.). It was so interesting to be inside of one, climbing the different levels and learning so much.

After that we took a drive along a dijk that created the Ijesselmeer Lake. We drove through a variety of small towns and along the countryside. There are so many sheep, horses, and cows wandering through pastures. There are almost no fences either, they are separated by polder water (like small ditches). It is so beautiful.

Anyway, we eventually made it to Volendam. It's a small town that is a huge tourist attraction for some unknown reason. There is a street along the dijk that has tons of souvenir shops and restaurants. There are also a ton of places where you can dress up in traditional clothes for pictures. We had a nice lunch there then walked along the dijk and had some ice cream before heading out.

We made our way over to Medemblik where there is a castle. It is also along the lake (which used to be part of the North Sea before the dijks). We had another private tour in English set up by John. He did the most amazing job setting things up for us. It was so interesting to learn more of the history of the Netherlands and see what it was really like. When we finished up there we headed back to John and Vicky's for a nice dinner out in their garden.