It was still and quiet and absolutely beautiful. there was a single crane fishing in the water on the other side of the berm or dyke as our tour guide told us that the windmills were used for a few different purposes. One of the main uses for windmills was to pump water out of this low-lying area into a the river so that the farmland around it would not flood. it had been this way for at least two hundred years.
Our guide told us of the 2 new pumping stations and the mayor of the town and the old windmills. Even though they had now installed a newer updated pumping stations to remove the water and maintain a lower water level than all the old windmills could accomplish all together , many of the the old wooden windmills were still in use today.
There was a lovely long walk along a canal which showed off all the 19 windmills at varying distances. The ages of the windmills varied with the oldest and the farthest way, being from the 17th century. They were each made from either stone or wood. Our tour guide stopped at one that was fairly early on our walk and showed us how the mill owners would control the sails from the outside of the mill by climbing up onto a platform and using ropes, pulleys, wheels and wind speed and direction.
We went into one of the mills with our tour guide explaining all the ins and outs of operating a windmill. It seems that people, whole families in fact, used to live in the mills. I never knew that or if I did I had forgotten it. Inside the mills were many small rooms on different levels, Small built in beds in the "bedrooms", dining rooms and kitchens with stoves, small tables, chairs and cupboards on the main floor. the workings of the mill were all mixed up together with the living spaces and it would have been a very different lifestyle they must have led compared to ours. Parts of it were rather dangerous, I thought, and damp too, but it was so interesting.
I can imagine that it must have been very noisy when the mill was turned on though. We read a lot of the little information cards in each room about the building and the actual families that lived in the mill. A lot of kids sleeping in the same small beds. Cooking in the little kitchen must have been difficult for the parents even though they had china cabinets and stoves and all the modern conveniences of the times.
After our tour of the windmill we "milled around " the mill taking photos of giant wooden shoes and of the other windmills further along the path. then we headed back to the ship. It was such a nice morning, sunny and warm with the few trees on the dyke in bloom with lovely white blossoms.
The walk back seemed longer than the walk to the windmills... but probably as we were busy looking at the dyke itself and the ducks and the whole area. There was one spot where you could get framed in a photo like national geographic, but we did it backwards and so were in front of the frame.... still a nice photo.
the ship was great to see and the day was only half gone so after lunch on board we went above deck and watched the scenery of Holland go by. a lovely dinner with very nice people, different ones tonight and then to the lounge for the show of music , piano and singing. we did not stay late but hit the sac early. A lovely day.
We went into one of the mills with our tour guide explaining all the ins and outs of operating a windmill. It seems that people, whole families in fact, used to live in the mills. I never knew that or if I did I had forgotten it. Inside the mills were many small rooms on different levels, Small built in beds in the "bedrooms", dining rooms and kitchens with stoves, small tables, chairs and cupboards on the main floor. the workings of the mill were all mixed up together with the living spaces and it would have been a very different lifestyle they must have led compared to ours. Parts of it were rather dangerous, I thought, and damp too, but it was so interesting.
I can imagine that it must have been very noisy when the mill was turned on though. We read a lot of the little information cards in each room about the building and the actual families that lived in the mill. A lot of kids sleeping in the same small beds. Cooking in the little kitchen must have been difficult for the parents even though they had china cabinets and stoves and all the modern conveniences of the times. 
After our tour of the windmill we "milled around " the mill taking photos of giant wooden shoes and of the other windmills further along the path. then we headed back to the ship. It was such a nice morning, sunny and warm with the few trees on the dyke in bloom with lovely white blossoms.
The walk back seemed longer than the walk to the windmills... but probably as we were busy looking at the dyke itself and the ducks and the whole area. There was one spot where you could get framed in a photo like national geographic, but we did it backwards and so were in front of the frame.... still a nice photo.
the ship was great to see and the day was only half gone so after lunch on board we went above deck and watched the scenery of Holland go by. a lovely dinner with very nice people, different ones tonight and then to the lounge for the show of music , piano and singing. we did not stay late but hit the sac early. A lovely day.
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