Kasteel de Haar
Gouda: St Janskerk
The Waag (Weighing house)
Gouda: Stadhuis
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We set off around the north side of Utrecht and picked up route LF4b near the station. It followed canals with houseboats and small bridges in a southwesterly direction then crossed the wide Amsterdam - Rijn canal with many barges on it. It rained a little; the route followed small roads to Vlenten where we bought bread for lunch. The route passed in front of the Kasteel de Haar - an amazing perfectly-preserved fairytale castle with red-painted shutters set in a park. It would have been well worth a visit but wouldn't be open until midday so we pressed on after a quick look around the park.
In Woerden we planned to take a short-cut on route LF27 to Gouda. It turned out to be non-existent but we guessed at a route and followed a narrow road with water on both sides to Driebruggen and then on small path along a dyke with pollarded willow trees on either side. This passed through a convenient small grassy depression with picnic tables where we ate our lunch and then continued on the excellent track which continued almost all the way to Gouda. Eventually it joined minor roads that passed on a wide dyke across a huge lake (de Reeuwijkse Plassen) with houses perched on narrow strips of land with water all around. The farms nearby are the producers of Gouda cheese. Reaching the edge of Gouda we got lost in a residential area and asked a lady on a bike for directions. She chose to lead us all the way there over many small bridges and cycle/pedestrian paths, as she said it was too complex to explain even though she spoke excellent English.
She left us at the main square (Grote Markt) with its spectacular town hall (1450, in gothic style) and the unusual Waag cheese-weighing building. The VVV office fixed us up at the Zwanennest B & B somewhat outside the centre, since the central ones were all booked. It turned out to be in a modern housing enclave, built on the same principle as the ancient Hofjes. Our landlord gave us a warm welcome and we then set off back to the centre on our bike.
The main attraction is the stained-glass windows of the St Janskerk cathedral. We arrived just before the church was closing to tourists, but the kind attendant not only allowed us to enter at a reduced rate but gave us the freedom of the church, simply asking us to make sure the door was locked as we left 'to keep the other sinners out'. The 70 huge windows amount to 50% of the stained glass to be seen in South Holland, they date from 1560 to the present day and form a continuum of biblical story-telling and local history whose construction continued through the reformation without interruption. They were all carefully taken down and stored elsewhere for the duration of the Second World War. One small chapel with a set of windows taken form a local monastery was particularly impressive. The building itself is impressive with its very high and long nave and rounded arches.
We walked by the canals following a 'tourist trail' that took us to a windmill perched beside the walls of the city and the River Ijssel, the waterway to Dordrecht and Rotterdam, which seems to be reason for the situation of the town. We ate an excellent reasonably-priced fish dinner in a pub by small fish market in Westhaven.
Today's distance: 55 km, weather: warm and dry, accommodation: Zwanennest B & B, Anna van Hensbeeksingel 395
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Kasteel de Haar |
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Gouda: St Janskerk |
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The Waag (Weighing house) |
Gouda: Stadhuis |
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