Last day in Holland

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We had no commitments today so did not set the alarm. Imagine our surprise when we heard a knocking on our door, then the maid opening the door. I could not understand why she would do that first thing in the morning. Then Allan checked the time and it was 9:40. We moved pretty quickly to get to breakfast before 10. Am. Our goal was to find some postcards, then explore Dordrecht on our own. But then the guy in the office came to us to say a mrs. Groenenboom had called us to ask if we want to come to her house.

We took care of finding postcards and writing them, then had the guy call her, and we took the bus to her place. Of course, there she was, waiting for us at the bus stop no less. Not only did we have coffee and cookies, but also sandwiches before a man named Dick arrived. She had called him to see if he would drive us to either a museum or to a UNESCO site of windmills. She did not think we should be by ourselves for the day and wanted more time with us.

So, off we went! She was busy telling him to turn right or left, and he mostly accommodated. We saw where Anouk boards her two horses, where Mien was born and spent her childhood. I think it was a great opportunity for her to go back in time and see the old places. We eventually did get to the windmill site.

Dick did refuse to stop for coffee, so we got back to her house in time to eat again. This time she and I walked to a Chinese restaurant for takeout, but not before she voted in the Dutch elections. They vote much like we do by taking a card they receive in the mail to their assigned voting location, in her case nearby school. She is given a ballot, completes it, then places it in the ballot box. They have multiple parties to chose from, not just the top two. As you may have heard, the moderate pro Europe party did well, defeating the ultra right party. They have a parliament with multiple groups represented, so the different groups form coalitions for their causes, which involves compromise.

She really moves along with her walker, even after a long afternoon. We buy way too much food, so she will be eating Chinese all week! She walks us to the bus and we say our goodbyes. She will have good stories to share with her neighbors about the Americans she hosted, and we have great memories of spending time with a Dutch national treasure named Mien.

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