Sneek pronounced Snake

Leeuwarden to Sneek

So here we are in Sneek, pronounced, as indicated, Snake, according to a charming lady shopkeeper we came across. It's a major boating centre in Friesland, and certainly there are hundreds, if not thousands, of boats all around. We left Leeuwarden after taking advantage of our credit with the port to top up the water tank, and then it took half an hour to get through the four bridges back onto the main canal.

To begin with we were on minor canals, which was pleasant, and the bridges lifted rapidly for us. Then it started to rain, and bucketed down for a couple of hours, which was not fun. The important thing, however, is that we did finally see some, indeed very large numbers, of those famous Frisian cows, after yesterday's encounter with the statue:

We stopped for lunch at a remote mooring in the middle of a bleak, flat landscape. On the road, rather canal, again, we passed through some attractive villages. One had a stretch of canal barely wide enough for a single boat, let alone some of the monsters we've encountered. Finally we emerged on the Snits Mar (or Sneekermeer), where we enjoyed seeing this barge under sail:

Another, more modern version, came charging past. You have to keep a close eye on the rear-view mirror on these waterways.

On our way into Sneek, we paused to top up the fuel tank at a handy canal-side Texaco station. We found a good, but very tight mooring, free apparently, and with free electricity supplies. The owner of the boat in front was on the quayside looking quite nervous as we approached. But all went well.

It was a bit of a hike into town, but probably good for us after a day's navigation:

A major attraction of Sneek is the 16th century water gate. Unfortunately we approached from the wrong direction so we didn't come across it on the water:

We sought out the St. Martin's Church, which apparently has a delightful baroque interior. Unfortunately, it was closed when we got there:

However, the famous wine shop of the Widow Joustra was open, and we took the opportunity to lay in much-needed supplies of whisky: liquor stores are surprisingly hard to find in the Netherlands.

This is the widow:

Not quite sure where we're heading tomorrow, but further south I think.

About that cow ...

Burgum to Leeuwarden

We got away in good time for the half-day run into Leeuwarden. It was comforting to have a signpost confirm our navigation. The paper chart is quite confusing and it took some nerve to believe in the GPS-based computer one, which did, in fact, take us to the right place, albeit in a fairly roundabout way.

In contrast to yesterday, it was a bright and sunny morning, although there was still quite a wind blowing.

As we approached Leeuwarden, Diana was delighted to spy a compatriot on the water:

Birthplace of Mata Hari, Leeuwarden is altogether a cheerful town, and somebody thought to decorate the underside of this lifting bridge:

At lunchtime we found a really pleasant mooring on a grassy bank, with electricity to hand and water not far away. It took a bit of a walk to find a kiosk where we paid our mooring fee and got a card to activate the electricity. Lots of boats going to and fro, and several moored up like us.

After lunch we took a stroll into this lively Dutch town, where plenty of other people were out enjoying the sunshine. This alleyway had an unusual roof, based on the skeleton of a whale. It was an original reinterpretation of the galleries in Paris and looked rather good:

This elderly lady was enjoying the ice cream van – and why not?

There was a handsome former weigh house, now a popular cafe:

And a rather forbidding former prison that has been converted to accommodate start-up businesses and artisans:

Here is the interior of one of the wings, where cells are evidently rented out to budding entrepreneurs:

After some necessary shopping, we headed back to the boat, and got this excellent view of the famous (?) leaning tower of Leeuwarden. Apparently they intended to build it at least twice its current height, but after a while it started to lean in an alarming way – dodgy foundations – so they prudently stopped.

Oh, and by the way, we were promised a cow, and a cow we found. Not 50 metres from where we are moored. She stands in the middle of a small roundabout, looking suitably pensive:

We'll start heading south tomorrow – not sure where we'll end up. Need to study the chart. The canals are numerous and complicated in Friesland.

Wild and windy weather

Groningen to Burgum 

We left Groningen fairly punctually – a pleasant town, which we will forever remember for selling us cottage cheese! Yes really. We have searched high and low in several European countries, but lo and behold, in a simple supermarket, we came across Hutte Kase. Plus points for Groningen.

Our departure was eased by the fact that the sailboat moored behind us was leaving too. He went first so we did not have to negotiate the rather narrow space between us, backwards. Saskia doesn't really like going backwards, or not in a straight line, and specially not in a wind.

The canal ride through and round the city was very pleasant – plenty of boats and yachts moored up.

There were bridges in profusion, of course, operated by a cheerful fellow on a bicycle, proceeding from one to the next.

We found ourselves leading a flotilla of half a dozen sailboats. There are several inland routes in the Netherlands that yachts can negotiate with their masts up, and they take full advantage.

There were lots of houseboats along the canal too, some in better shape than others:

After a while, and a lock that accommodated all seven of us in our flotilla, we turned off onto a larger, commercial canal leaving them to head for the North Sea. The landscape was pretty bleak, and not improved by the grey skies, strong wind and sharp showers.

All the same, there were some pretty gardens:

After a while we had to cross open water in the Burgumer Mar. The lake was a bit bumpy and we took the precaution of taking the barbecue off the roof, remembering our nasty experience on the Etang de Thau some years back, when we nearly lost it overboard. One island in the meer featured some summer moorings – but we were not tempted to join these intrepid souls.

We reached a welcoming harbour shortly after the meer and are pleasantly tucked up for the evening. Tomorrow we will head into Leeuwarden and see what it has to offer. Some shopping needed anyway, and I believe there is a statue of a Friesian cow.

There's art, and there's art ...

Groningen

The day looked promising as we set off for the museum, and we enjoyed this statue from the seventies in one of the broad residential streets:

You reach the museum across a canal bridge, and then rather unexpectedly descend below water level to the galleries. We went first to the modernistic pavilion that has revolving exhibitions, and were confronted with the New Wild school – something we had not encountered before. Dating from the eighties and featuring many German and Dutch painters, it was indeed wild stuff, back to (fairly) representational art after the abstract expressionism that preceded it, with lots of sex and violence. We were impressed, but didn't greatly like it. Here are a couple of examples:

After exhausting the charms of the New Wild, we went up to the top floor where there was a one-woman sculpture show. The sculptures were made of cardboard and packing tape. We were underwhelmed:

Then it was time to cross to the other pavilion for the permanent exhibition. There were plenty of worthy civic portraits and some reasonable 17th and 18th century landscapes, but the star of the show was a set of Andy Warhol coloured prints entitled Ladies and Gentlemen, and featuring New York drag queens. Here's one:

We also came across this piece, entitled Grapes, by the Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei:

It was an interesting visit, and much to Groningen's credit to have such a striking place. Even the main staircase is a work of art:

But by now it was time for a pit stop, and thoughtfully there is a bar on the terrace, overlooking the canal we came along yesterday, and serving a very acceptable draft beer and spectacular bitterballen, a deep-fried meat-ball snack:

From the museum we headed into the centre of town, and found a craft market going on in the Fish Market square, which we enjoyed browsing.

It also featured a fish stall serving fresh fried kibbeling, which we could not resist. Street food at its best and a remarkably economical lunch, together with the bitterballen.

We could, of course, have lunched at an expensive place like this – but preferred the kibbeling:

Tomorrow we will set off again and head west towards Leeuwarden and Friesland. It is, of course, the home of Friesian cows, and I expect we will see lots of them. Not sure what else!

Target 1 achieved

Assen to Groningen

I forgot to mention yesterday that Assen's main claim to fame is that it hosts a major motor-cycle race every summer, attracting something like 100,000 fans: fortunately it wasn't this week. So we spent a comfortable night and woke to bright sunshine.We left punctually to catch the 9 a.m. bridge opening, in a convoy of about five boats.

At the junction with the main canal, three turned south, and one came north with us – behind us, which I prefer. It can be irritating cruising along staring at the back of another boat! There were many attractive canal-side houses:

We passed through three bridges in quick succession, and then the first of three locks in the day: they were all open, ready and waiting for us, and since were were now descending, very gentle. The big surprise was the fall – at least three metres each time.

We have not seen all that many windmills in this part of the country, but this cute little number on the canal bank caught the eye:

About an hour short of Groningen, we spotted a boatyard, extremely scruffy but with a rack of gas bottles, so we pulled in. No problem buying the gas bottle, but a big problem fitting it to the barbecue. It took the mechanic a costly hour figuring out how to marry up the different fittings, but now it is done and should see us through Holland at least.

Plenty of lifting bridges as we came into Groningen, but most opened obligingly, though we were held up for a while at this railway bridge:

In the middle of town, the waterway started to get quite animated, with various boatloads of beer-swigging youngsters chugging around. We passed the magnificent modern museum, opposite the traditional railway station – this is one of its three main buildings. We will be visiting it tomorrow:

We finally reached the port on the edge of the old city centre and tucked into a convenient berth, with all the right facilities. Watersports were continuing, even though it had started to rain – a shame after a lovely sunny day.

The rain had a dogged, persistent Dutch look to it, so we wrapped up and set off to the supermarket for a few essential provisions – something to put on the barbecue if it stops raining. Despite the rain, children were still playing on the swings etc. close to the port, people were walking about without rainwear or umbrellas, and even a toddler in a baby carriage was exposed to the elements. Tough people!

Anyway, we will be here for a couple of nights and do the tourist thing tomorrow – in sunshine, I hope.

Singing in the rain

Meppel to Assen

No culture or sightseeing today, you may be relieved to hear. In fact, it was a day for making a passage, rather than mooching about town: 56 kilometres from Meppel to Assen according to the computer navigation programme, and mostly the canal was dead straight. And it rained, almost incessantly. The Dutch are, however, not put off by a little rain: rather like the Scots in that respect. Here are a couple of intrepid towpath cyclists:

The canal was pleasantly bucolic – the occasional scent of cow, and plenty of horses, which are obviously very popular here.

There were six locks to negotiate during the day, each lifting us about two metres. Inevitably the rain came on hardest as we were passing through and needing to be out on deck. But we have the appropriate clothes. The three locks in the morning were negotiated in company, and since they are quite small on this canal, it was quite interesting fitting three boats in. But all went well.

The Dutch, on the canals at least, are quite like the French in their attitude to lunch. They are in favour of it, and everything stops at noon for an hour. No problem there. We stopped too, of course, and the break was welcome.

As well as the locks, there were plenty of lifting bridges on the canal, but they are all manned, and the operators were alert to our approach – perhaps warning each other by phone. So there were no delays.

Here we are about to set off after lunch on our fourth lock of the day, once the people coming down have emerged:

Did I mention that it was raining quite a lot?

We made it to Assen just as the navigating day was coming to an end at 5 p.m., and found a comfortable berth in the harbour in the town centre:

Tomorrow we will press on to Groningen, where a certain amount of shopping will be required. Provisions are running a little low. We also need a new gas cylinder, which may be a problem. Ours are all French, and unfortunately the EU Single Market has failed, so far, to standardize the fittings on gas bottles – so we will see.