Home Sweet Home

After a few days in the Somme region (France) we arrived in Ulft. A small town in the east of the Netherlands, very near my hometown and very near the German border as well (10 minutes cycling). My brother and his girlfriend live here now and we could stay with them for the next 3 weeks. We mainly caught up with friends and family and enjoyed the glorious late summer weather. However, we did do some day trips and I enjoyed being a tourist in my own country.

For a quick update on where we are: www.polarsteps.com/harryandmirjam

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Sunrise in Ulft

Kröller-Müller museum and St. Hubertus Hunting Lodge

A visit to the Kröller-Müller museum was on our list for a long time. The museum is located inside the Hoge Veluwe National Park and you can drive to the museum or you can park up at the entrance of the National Park and use one of the free white bicycles that are available for all visitors to cycle around the National Park. We took the bicycles and enjoyed the nature and the sunny weather.

The Kröller-Müller museum is an art museum and has a large sculpture garden. It was founded by art collector Helene Kröller-Müller and has the largest collection of paintings by Van Gogh after the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam. We liked both the museum and the sculpture garden   a lot and definitely worth a visit if you are an art fan!

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Hoge Veluwe National Park (yes, it is really the Netherlands)

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Rietveld Pavilion at the Kröller-Müller Sculpture Garden

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  ‘Cafe du Nuit’ – Vincent van Gogh

screen-shot-2016-10-09-at-15-45-02    ‘Needle Tower II’ – Kenneth Snelson

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       ‘Cube’ – Ewerdt Hilgemann       

After the museum we cycled for about 30 minutes to the St. Hubertus Hunting Lodge. An impressive and beautiful building that is located in the north of the National Park. It was commissioned by the Kröller-Müllers (yes, the same family that set up the museum) and designed by an architect called Berlage. He didn’t only design the exterior but also all the interior and furniture. The building is entirely made of bricks and it was completed in 1920. We had a tour inside and through the garden that was also designed by Berlage. There isn’t much left of the garden as a lot of other plants and trees have been planted that were not part of Berlage’s design.

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St. Hubertus Hunting Lodge

 Kinderdijk

Almost any tourist that comes to the Netherlands on an organised tour, visits Kinderdijk near Rotterdam. But many Dutch people have never visited it or don’t even know about it I found out. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage site and is a collection of 19 authentic windmills all built towards the end of the 18th century except for two or three mills that are even older. They were used for the water management of an area called Alblasserwaard. We got there early in the morning and were at first pretty much the only people there. It was another gorgeous sunny day and it was just so peaceful to walk around. A few of the mills are open to the public and give a great insight in how life was for the family operating and living in the mill. To all my Dutch family and friends, if you have never been to Kinderdijk, you really should go and visit it. And of course if you are not Dutch and planning to visit the Netherlands, I would highly recommend it. You can cycle there from Rotterdam if you feel active. But do go early in the morning as it’s get very busy with busloads of tourists later in the day. And if you are not planning on visiting the visitor centre and the museum mills, you don’t pay the entrance fee. You can just walk/cycle around and enjoy the view of the mills.

If you plan to visit the Netherlands and have any questions, get in touch!

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Windmills, windmills and more windmills

One thought on “Home Sweet Home

  1. Kinderdijk!! Onze volgende camper bestemming dan!! Wordt wel volgend voorjaar denk ik..
    xx mama en António

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