Amsterdam 3

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One of our friends mother is living in Holland with a Dutch gentleman she met some years ago. They spend about half the year in Holland and half in New Zealand. We had wanted to try to meet up with them (we have met before in New Zealand). We were fortunate to be able to arrange to spend a day with them and off we went by train to Breda, just over an hour south of Amsterdam. Barbs and Martin met us at the station and from then our day was planned and hosted superbly. They had decided they wanted to show us another side of Holland "as everyone thinks Amsterdam is Holland".

They live in a small village/town, Den Hout, out in the country. From the station we were taken for coffee in the small village of Zevenbergen (Seven Mountains) with not a mountain in sight for 100's of kilometres; to the historic seaside town of Willemstad for lunch; to Martin's house, a very old Dutch farmhouse, modernised but still full of 'oldness' inside, for drinks ( a very nice bottle of 2004 French red - see pic) and cake; to a bike shop for me to drool and buy something; to dinner at a very nice restaurant; back to their place for coffee; to the station to return to Amsterdam - phew!

It was a packed and interesting day and a real antidote to the harum scarum atmosphere of Amsterdam. Our train was delayed so we didn't get in the door of the B'n'B until 11.30pm after a full day of seeing another side of Holland.

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Photos

Holland
Willemstad

Holland
From Martin's wine cellar

Holland
Inside Martin's house sampling the wine cellar

Holland - Breda station
Waiting...