Wooden Shoes and Windmills

Nothing says Holland like wooden shoes and windmills.  Northwest of Amsterdam is Zaanse Shans, an open-air museum with windmills and a clog factory.

Some History

Wooden Shoes - Klompen

Wooden clogs are known as Kompen in Dutch.  The Dutch have been wearing wooden clogs since Medieval times.  The first recorded clog guild dates back to 1570. The oldest shoes excavated dated to 1230 A.D.  Not many have been found in excavations as wood breaks down and feeds the soil.


The shoes are very practical.  They are still in use in industry.  Farmers, especially the bulb growers, find them great to wear, as they work well in muddy fields. They keep the feet dry. Fishermen, factory workers, artisans and others find the shoes to be very protective. Nails, fishhooks, and other sharp objects will not penetrate a wooden clog as they will a leather shoe.  Industrial strength klompen must pass an industry standard for extreme weather. 

Clogs for dancing are made a bit different so that they are lighter to wear.  Klompendanskunst, or clog dancing is popular in the Netherlands.

Most klompen, made for tourists, are made out of birch wood, and by machine.  There are some traditional clog makers who hand carve the shoes.  These clogs are made from sycamore, alder, willow or poplar woods. Before the industrial age, a good clog maker could carve out about seven pairs of shoes a day - with a 13 hour work day!

Decorations for clogs can be based on many ideas.  The first major artist to paint on clogs was Pieter Brueghel, the Elder in 1550.

Most people in the Netherlands wear regular shoes.  However, America does have a love affair with clogs. I prefer the Birkenstock brand.  Crocs - the colorful plastic clog are very useful in gardens and with small children who like to get dirty.

Windmills

Windmills got their start in the 13th century. 100 years later, the industrous Dutch figured out how to use windmills to pump water, and the reclamation of land began. Windmills were also early factories for cut wood, paint pigments, and the making of clay for potters.

By the mid-1800s, there were about 10,000 windmills operating all over the Netherlands.  However, the steam engine came along, and windmills were a thing of the past.  By 1999 only 950 windmills were still operating.  The Dutch went to work to preserve the remaining windmills and to keep the operational.  To run a windmill, a person must be licensed by the Dutch Government, and have had to attend training for three years.

Windmills also made paper, from wood brought in from Norway.  The paper on which the Declaration of Independence was written was manufactured in the Zaan region of the Netherlands, most likely from Norwegian wood.

The Kinderdijk is an area with 19 operating windmills near Rotterdam.  It has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 Zaanse Shans

Zaanse Shans has a collection of museums, windmills (which are all working windmills), craft shops where pewter and clogs are made, a cheese factory, and much more.  It is incredible.  If you have a long layover in amsterdam (12 hours), ditch the luggage at the airport, and head for Zaanse Shans! (Or if you live in Norway, it is a quick City Hopper KLM flight to Amsterdam!)

The Windmills

There are six working windmills at Zaanse Shans:
De Huisman - "The Houseman".  This mill was built in 1786, and eventually moved to the museum.  Currently, mustard is made at this mill.
De Gedroonde Poelenburg - "The Crowned Poelenburg", this mill was built in 1869. It is a sawmill.
De Kat - "The Cat". The original mill was built at this exact location in 1646.  It burned down. In 1960, the mille "The Hunter Dune" was put in its place and renamed for the original.
De Zoeker -"The Seeker". This oil mill was built in 1672.
De Bonte Hen - "The Motley Crew".  This oil mill was built in 1693.
het Jonge Schaap - "The Young Sheep".  Original built in 1680, demolished in 1942.  Replica built in 2005.

I went to The Cat, which grinds rocks and wood to make paint pigments.  There are five levels of the windmill.  The top level is closed to the public, level 2,3 and 4 are accessed by a very narrow stair/ladder.  I am proud to say that this 50-year-old fat lady had no problem getting up and down these narrow passages.

Above is The Cat.  The pictures below are of the mill itself and some of the pigments that have been ground.  Reading about the pigments, I imagine that some could have been poisonous as they contained mercury.  I have also included a picture looling down the ladder/staircase.



Scary! Not for those with vertigo.



Museums

Zaans Museum  A museum of the life of the people who lived in the Zaan region. I was fascinated with a video showing what  women had to go through to dress fashionably.  There had to be 20 lbs of clothes on that poor girl.
Verkade Pavillion Verkade makes cookies and chocolate.  They had a factory right there!  Or so it seemed.  I couldn't figure out where the cookies and finuished chocolates were going to.  Standing on a high balcony, I could see the Disneyesque aspect to this and knew I was watching a very good simulation. 
Bakery Museum  Closed.
Museumshop Albert Heijn Grocery- In 1887 Albert Heijn took over the small grocery store his parents owned.  The Albert Heijn Company is now the largest grocery chain in the Netherlands.
Museum Dutch Clock Too tired to go.

Crafts

Clog Factory and Museum - This was fascinating! People who work here have to wear Klompen.



Artistic Klompen




Stages from a piece of wood to a finished clog



Wall of finished clogs

Your clog designs let people know what region you were from. 

KlompenSkates!

Sunday Klompen

Wedding Klompen

Japanrese-style  clogs

Antique Afgani clogs

Klompen for working on ice.

workboot clogs

I found these at the side of a house.

De Catherina Hoeve- A replica of a farm from the village of Oostsaan, this is the cheese making area of the museum.  As I can get Dutch cheese in Utah - we have The Dutch Store in Sugar House, I did not buy any.
De Tinkoepel- This is the pewter foundry.  Authentic bronze moulds, some from 1697 are used to make a variety of pewter items.

Restaurants, Cruises and More!

Across the Zaan River is the town of Zaandam.  Here you can visit the Czaar Peterhuisje, the Czar Peter House.  Peter the Great came to the Netherlands in 1697 for a week, and undercover as Peter Mikhailov, a sailor.  He came to learn shipbuilding, and to garner Western support against the Turks. The home he stayed in for a week was a simple abode, but it has been a place of pilgrimage ever since.  Talk about star power!  I did not go.

The town of Zaandam, across the river.

These antique homes were moved to Zaanse Shans, and people live in them.

And have pets!

Zaanse Shans has some excellent restaurants and cafes. I went to the pancake restaurant and had a cheese and bacon pancake (really a crepe).

Cruises up and down the Zaan River are also available.  I did not go.  All in all, it was an excelllent day!

Delft

My First Delft Pieces

When I was about 8-9 years old, my sister, Susan, and her husband went on a trip to Europe. One of the countries they visited was the Netherlands. 

Susan brought my sister, Joan, and, I back Delftware jewelry.  I got a necklace, and Joan got studs for her ears.  I would later inherit those studs.

Susan very carefully explained what Delft was.  It also helped that I have always had a fascination for china, and Delftware is the Netherlands' form of porcelain.  She very carefully explained how to tell if an item was real Delftware.

Over the years, I have had a great fondness for Delftware, and vowed to myself that if I ever got the chance, I would go to the town of Delft and see one of the original factories where Delftware is still made.

So fascinated with Delftware am I, that on my last trip to Amsterdam in 2009, I brought back four ceramic wooden shoes for my great- nieces.  I only saw two reactions to this gift, and I could tell they were less than thrilled. Ironically, the mother of one of the girls has her own online dish replacement service.  At least someone in my family likes china the way I do!

A Little History

The town of Delft was founded in 1100 A.D. Aside the famous china, the town was also the birthplace and home of the 17th century painter Jan Vermeer (The Girl With the Pearl Earring - not many major motion pictures are based on a painting.)  Delft is also the burial place of the Dutch Royal Family. In the 1600s, ships with the Dutch East India Company started to bring back blue and white china from China.  With the china very much in demand, the Dutch started their own version of blue and white porcelain in the town of Delft.  Known as Delftware, today it is ironic that most of the Delftware sold in tourists shops actually comes from China!  The real stuff is rare.

The Royal Delft Company has been in operation since the 1650s.  While there are a few churches to visit in the town, my main point of coming was to see the Royal Delft Company and to visit a bead store that makes Defltware beads.

Delftware

Today's Delftware is made up of a clay consisting of several ingredient, three of which must be koalin, a while clay,, and the gemstones, feldspar and quartz.  Earthenware, stoneware, porcelain (china) are all forms of ceramic, which comes from the Greek word, keramos, which means "potter".  The look and feel of different types of ceramic depends on the combination of ingredients in the clay.

Plates and vases are usually handthrown.  Other items can be made using liquid clay in forms.  The clay is poured in the mold, and then allowed to set.  The form is removed and the items dry and are smoothed out before the first firing.  Artists then hand paint each piece, which is why it is so expensive.  They use brushes made from squirrel and marten (like a weasel) hair.  The paint is black, and contains cobalt, which turns blue in the glazing process.

Places I Should Not Go With a Visa Card

I was excited to go to De Porceleyn Fles, also known as the Royal Delft Company.  A person can actually paint there own piece of Delftware, have it fired and then shipped home. I did not make arrangements to do this.  So, I went a tad crazy in the gift shop!  Now, I have to figure out how I am going to get it home!

Above are scenes from the Royal Delft Factory

A video of one of the painters.  It takes seven years to become a Delftware artisan.

Rembrandt's The Night Watchman done in Delftware tiles.  It is the same size as the original painting



Traditiional Blue and White Delftware.

Polychrome Delftware.

Red, blue, and gold  Japanese-style Delftware.

Black Delftware.

The gift shop - My version of heaven!

I loved my day in Delft.  Now, I gotta go figure out how to pack this stuff!

Are you Dutch?

So, I had some time to walk around the SLC airport before my flight.  We can't bring in bottled water because of the liquid requirements.  So, of course anything to drink past the security points is ridiculously expensive.  But the food vendors have latched on to this as well, and food is amazingly pricey.  I found $7 ham or turkey sandwiches! Honestly!

I am a silver medallion member on Delta, and I usually get bumped to first class, where a free dinner is waiting for me.  However, in case I don't get bumped, I make my own sandwiches.  This time I did not get bumped up, and would have had to pay for any food items other than soda, juice and cookies.  My ham sandwich that I made was very tasty.

My trip went from SLC to Atlanta and on to Amsterdam.  I love Hartfied Airport!  They have these awesome trains that take you from terminal to terminal.  It is my favorite airport on the East Coast.

My flight to Amsterdam was uneventful, with me sleeping most of the time.  I tried to watch a movie, but I was too tired.  Got to Amsterdam where we are having incredible sunny weather.
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Are you Dutch?

While at the airport, an elderly lady came up to me and asked for help buying a train ticket.  I showed her where to do.  She thanked me and said Dutch people are so nice!  I smiled and said I was an American.  She looked shocked! "Really, you sound Dutch!" (Really?)  I told her she sounded like she was from Maine.  She was amazed that I could tell that just by how she spoke.  Not really!  Maine dialects are easy to detect. 

 It is lovely outside.  I went to the big flower market.  I was going to buy some unusual bulbs, but the vendor stopped me, asking if I was American.  He said that special certificates are in order for the USA and Canada, and any bulbs I may buy will be confiscated until June.  He said that not every vendor is honest about that, but that he did not want me to spend money and not get to keep my item.  Cool guy!

While walking down the streets of Amsterdam, I was constantly being asked "Are you Dutch?"  Apparently, I really look the part even though I was carrying a tourist map, and not on a bicycle. Finally, after one saddened person was disappointed in learning I was not a Netherlander, I asked if I could help.  I knew Amsterdam quite well.  She asked how to get to the Anne Frank Huis, and I was able to tell her how to get there, and the best time if the day to go.  She looked at me and said "Are you sure you are not Dutch?"

Below (or above -I never know with this blogsite) are pictures of the Prinsengracht Canal in front of my hotel, and of one of the root vendors in the flower market.

Oh, and I also found a mama duck and her 10 ducklings, near a construction site.  They were amusing both natives and tourists alike, and the construction workers were trying hard not to disturb them.

Visiting in the Netherlands 2011

It started with the The Botany of Desire, a documentary about man's relationship with apples, tulips, marijuana and potatoes. For some time I had wanted to visit the Netherlands during the spring to see the tulip fields. As I have three weeks off in March/April 2011, I felt compelled to go.  It was a bit of a wrestle with myself.  Flying off to another country always has some risk. But, I had been to Amsterdam several times, and now I wanted to go beyond.

The Netherlands is a small country, only slightly bigger than the state of Maryland. Water is a big issue here, as 20% of the country is water.  Much of North Holland is reclaimed land, with dykes and water pumps that work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to put water back out to the sea.

I have written this before, but I will repeat it here.  Holland was never the name of the country.  Holland was a province.  It has now been split into two provinces, Nord Holland, and Suid Holland. Nederland, which means low country, has always been the name of the country. The people speak Nederlands, and are known as Nederlanders.  "Dutch" is a misnomer on the part of the English during Medieval times.  They could not distinguish between the Nederlanders and the Germans.  So they corrupted the German word Deutch  to Dutch. Deutch is German for German.  All things being accurate, Germany did not exist in Medieval times.  While Dutch and German are related languages, they are not mutually intelligible.  I understand German, and cannot understand Dutch.  I have to work at it.  Fortunately, Most Nederlanders speak English.

Dutch is not the only official language.  The people in the province of Friesland (Fryslan) (light green province) speak Frisian.  The province capital, Leeuwarden (Ljouwart) was the birthplace of one Gertrude Margarete Zelle - better known as Mata Hari.

I will be spending my time in the provinces of Nord and Suid Holland, while based in Amsterdam.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

Salem - A Bewitching Town

Stephanie and I had planned to take the ferry to Salem, but storms had caused rough water, and the ferry was cancelled that day.  It is a good thing we checked online before leaving!  So, back in the rental car we went.

Salem's big claim to fame or infamy comes from the witch trials that started in 1692.  It was a harsh winter, the people were have hard financial times (recession), there was a major boundary war going on amongst the villagers, and food poisoning (unintentional) may have been involved.  A group of young girls, hearing tales of voodoo, and various other supernatural tales from a slave woman, Tituba, started accusing various villagers of witchcraft. (Puritan version of Mean Girls)

Not knowing much of science, the Puritans believed that anything that could not be explained, like getting sick, was of course, caused by witchcraft. Ironically, witchcraft was not a charge that was covered under the cannons of their religion, but the charges were violations of civil law.  Talk about needing a separation of church and state!

One of the first trials, against an elderly woman, Rebecca Nurse, ended up in a not guilty verdict.  The girls complained, or rather went into convulsions.  When the governor held up the not guilty verdict, they did this again.  Eventually, the verdict was overturned, and Rebecca Nurse would be hanged.

Basically, it came down to this:

1.   A person is accused of witchcraft.  They are imprisoned.  They must find a way of paying their prison costs, including food, blankets, etc.  At least three prisoners died of starvation because they were unable to pay for prison food.
2. A plea of guilty or not guilty needed to be recorded.  Those that pled not guilty would stand trial.  Those that pled guilty would go back to prison.  Everyone who pled guilty would survive. Go figure.  The Puritans believed that guilty meant the Devil had left.  Not guilty meant the Devil was still in charge of a person's soul.
3. Making a plea either way meant that all a person's land, and goods were confiscated.  One man, Giles Corey, refused to plea either way.  He was not about to let his land be taken.  Giles believed in witches, and ironically testified at his wife's trial! (Stephanie and I discussed whether Martha, his wife, accused him after he testified!)  Giles was taken to a nearby field and pressed to death.  He was forced to lie on his back with a slab of door on top of him.  Then heavy rocks were placed on the wood.  Each time he was asked if he pleaded guilty or not guilty.  Seeing the writing on the wall, and not about to give up his land, he would only respond "More weight."  It took him three days to die. His land would stay in the Corey family until the 1980's when it was eventually sold.

The person profiting the most from the pleas was the constable, George Corwin, who was the nephew of Giles and Martha Corey.  He was probably very disapointed at not getting hold of his uncle's holdings.  Corwin's home is the only home still standing from the time, and we did visit it.

The pictures above are the Corwin home.

23 people would die during the witchcraft madness.  19 were hanged, one pressed, and three died of starvation.  The madness would end when the girls doing the majority of the accusing, got a bit overzealous and accused the governor's wife.  The governor then put a stop to the madness.  Although some people remained imprisoned up to seven years to pay off their prison debts.

None of the girls in the original group were ever accused.  One would say that they were doing it "for sport".  Another, several years later, would have a statement read in church on how sorry she was that she had ever taken part in this.

The Salem Witch Museum has an interesting exhibit on various kinds of witch hunts.  It looks something like this:  (Dr. Griggs was the Salem doctor who could find nothing physically wrong with the convulsing girls, so he suggested witchcraft.)

Fear                                   Catalyst                               Accused of Wrongdoing

Witchs                               Dr. Griggs                               150 innocent people
Japanese                           Pearl Harbor                            All Japanese Americans
Communism                      Senator McCarthy                    Many loyal patriotic Americans
Germs/Virus                     AIDS/HIV                                All gay people
Al-Qaida                           9-11                                        All Arab Americans, and    
                                                                                         anyone who looked Arab.

Something to think about.      

Only wealthy people could afford to be buried in cemeteries.  Those who died during the trials were buried on their own land by family members or in pauper's graves.  A memorial to those who died is in the Old Burying Ground in downtown Salem.  The spirit there is very strong.

This is the memorial.

              These are the words of those who died, engraved in stone.  Bridget Bishop was the first to die. George Burroughs was a minister. It was thought that a witch could not say the Lord's Prayer without a mistake.  Rev. Burroughs did just that, and was almost saved except another minister, Cotton Mather, intervened and allowed the hanging.  Cotton Mather is buried in Boston just up the street from Old North Church.  Giles Corey preceeded his wife by four days.  Martha was hanged.

Ironically, modern Salem is home to many practicing witches, who follow the old Druid religion called Wiccan.  Satan is not part of their beliefs.  They consider themselves Pagan and follow an old religious worship.  The term "warlock" means traitor, and is never used.  Both men and women are witches.  J.K Rowling only used the term warlock when discussing Dark Magic in the Harry Potter books.

For those wanting a better understanding of Wiccan, the novel The Mists of Avalon gives an excellent idea of what the ancient religion was like.  This is the story of King Arthur's sister, Morgan Le Fey, who was considered a witch.  She was a Druid priestess.

Salem - Beyond the Witch Trials

Salem was also home to the author Nathaniel Hawthorne, whose ancester, Samuel Hathorne was a judge at the witch trials.  While in college, Nathaniel added the "w" to his last name to distinguish himself apart for the ancestor he was so ashamed of.  Hawthorne spend much time with his cousin at her home.  It was this home that was the basis of the novel The House of Seven Gables.  The house still stands, and has an interesting history in its own right

Salem is also a port town, and at one time was the sixth largest port in the USA.  It was the merchants and sailors of Salem that developed the first import/export business in the USA.  Ships would bring in goods from other countries, and the goods would immediatly be shipped elsewhere.

During WWII, Salem had military units stationed there.  One man, a native of Hawaii, was feeling homesick, and named one of the beaches Waikiki Beach after his beach at home!

All in all, a very interesting visit to this famous town.