Utrecht Post Office
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The remainder of our journey was to follow another long-distance signed route: LF4 Midden Nederland which runs from Lonneker to Shevenningen via Utrecht and The Hague. From Otterlo we managed to find local routes through woods and heathland to join the LF4b near Ede. It soon started to rain; our waterproof jackets kept us partly dry but we ended up with wet feet. We followed the route along minor roads where we kept encountering big machines dredging ditches and cutting hedges. A friendly bar/café in Amerongen supplied us with a welcome lunch of hot fish soup and apple cake.
After lunch the rain had stopped but a moderate head-wind had sprung up. The scenery grew increasingly to resemble the stereotypical Dutch landscape with dykes, flat green fields and cows. We rode on a mixture of well-signed off-road paved tracks and minor roads. As we approached Utrecht we encountered many schoolchildren returning home on their bikes.
Entering Utrecht we joined a major road for a short stretch. Searching for the VVV (tourist office) we headed for the station but then realised that it was well away from the old centre so we backtracked and eventually found another VVV near the cathedral in the pedestrianised centre. They were helpful in searching for accommodation but the B & B's seemed to be full so we ended up at the Hotel Ouwi, about 20 mins walk from the centre. They let us wheel the tandem through the dining room to store it on a balcony at the rear. We had to disturb the guests at breakfast the next morning to get it out.
We spent a pleasant afternoon and evening wandering alongside the extensive network of canals in the pedestrianised centre of Utrecht which was thronging with shoppers and tourists. Highlights were the amazing post office building by J.Crouwel, 1924 and the Hofjes, groups of closed-off streets with houses originally built for brewery workers.
Today's distance: 79 km, weather: warm, wet and windy, accommodation: Hotel Ouwi
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Utrecht Post Office |
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