“That’s what people do in Holland. They build dykes and ditches. They don’t drown. They’re brilliant engineers.”So I’ve heard,’ says Faro thoughtfully. ‘They’re very obstinate, those people in Holland.”~ Helen Dunmore, The Tide Knot

April 24, 2022

Today after breakfast we took a bus from Hellevoetsluis to Middleburg. The hour and a half bus ride felt at times as if we were taking the slow route to Middle Earth, but we passed by The Zuiderzee Works which is a man-made system of dams and dikes, land reclamation and water drainage work, in total the largest hydraulic engineering project undertaken by the Netherlands during the twentieth century. It reclaimed the land which had been lost to floods.

The city of Middelburg is the capital of the Dutch province of Zeeland and possesses all the charms of a proud city steeped in tradition. It was another beautiful picturesque day, and our tour guide was less than impressive or informative as I would have hoped, but I still could not pass on a photo opportunity of this lovely town.

“It’s in those quiet little towns, at the edge of the world, that you will find the salt of the earth people who make you feel right at home.”
~Aaron Lauritsen, 100 Days Drive: The Great North American Road Trip

We came back to the ship, had a bite to eat, and Skip and I headed out for a brief walk on our own. There was a church with the bells ringing, a windmill with the arms spinning, interesting street signs and we were just in time to see the drawbridge open for a ship to pass.