Visit to Ruinekerk (Church in Ruin), Bergen, Netherlands

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I started my day with a free breakfast at the Amadeus Hotel in Haarlem. I had a short wait in front of my hotel for my TB friend to arrive for a good daytrip.

My Dutch TB friend (vriend) met me in front of my hotel and gave me a ride North to Bergen in his car. Bergen is a very old city, with the Village of Bergen dating back to the early 1100s.

We did some nice walks by Kerkdiensten, and then on some sandy walking trails.

We rode to Jumbo in Bergan that turned out to be a good well supplied grocer. I purchased food items to munch of this day trip, and some items to take back to my hotel.

Then we rode over to nearby Ruinekerk (Church in Ruin); and most of this old church was in ruins. The Ruinekerk is a complex of several old structures. Ruinekerk. was built in the 1400s AD and was destroyed by military actions several times through the years. There was also rebuilding of this church several times in its history. I think that one section of this church complex is functional as a church today.

My Dutch friend drove me the short distance to Luctor et Emergo, a very nice restaurant and bar on the beach of the North Sea. We had a few beers enjoying the view of the ocean. He told me about the history of this area including how The Netherlands reclaimed this area (including the large surrounding hills) from the sea,

Then we rode back to Amsterdam where he introduced me to his large family, where they had me stay for dinner. After a great time, he drove me back to my hotel in Haarlem.

Commentary: On my one month 2017 visit to The Netherlands I met up with about ten TB friends who greatly enhanced my experience by serving as free guides to this very friendly country. I think this day in Bergen was my very best day in The Netherlands.

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