Netherlands: Zaanse Schans, Holland

I think these were a bit big…

This was the shoe designed around our friend Jessica’s ancestors’ village in the north.

Even rubber boots were wooden!

Wooden shoes, designed for their sturdiness, also indicated where a person was from: Different designs for different regions of The Netherlands.

Wedding shoes

We got to watch a wooden shoe maker. Fascinating!

Done! All that’s left is to paint it for decoration and to seal the wood.

Choose from hundreds of designs

The windmills of Holland, which is a region of The Netherlands, not the name of the country!

Windmills are used to do many kinds of work.

The inside workings of a windmill.

This windmill was grinding chalk for sports fields.

This is a logging windmill.

“Sails” of a windmill were rolled up when not in use.

This windmill was grinding spices from all over the world. It is famous for its mustard.

Dutch cheese factory

Dutch cheese factory

We got to taste dozens of kinds of Dutch cheese. We liked them all!

Until I met Jonah and Josh, this is what I thought of when I thought of The Netherlands:  Holland, tulips, windmills, and wooden shoes.  The boys had to give us a geography lesson:  1) Holland is a province in the Netherlands, not the name of a country.  2) Tulips only bloom in the spring; therefore, not everyone who visits the Netherlands get to see vast fields of tulips.  3) Windmills are not part of every skyline, although there is a windmill in their village near Maastricht, and they are used to do work, not just look pretty. 4) Clogs were originally made of wood, designed regionally, and used for all different purposes.  Dutch people (or as our friend Emma would often say, Netherlandians) often still wear clogs, but they are made of more comfortable materials now.  We visited “touristy” part of The Netherlands, found in the province of Holland, on our way to Heidi and Eben’s home.  What trip to the Netherlands would be complete without it?