May 10, 2013

Boy today started at 530. We could hardly move, but after coffee and bkfst in our room, we were ready to meet our group downstairs and disembark at 7AM. This was a private tour put together by Marilee.
Our guide was 15mins.late but soon showed up and off we went. The winds are unreal. Our guide said they have winds like this 300 days a year. Our first stop was a field where there were about 25 old wooden windmills. Relics of days gone by. The person who cared for them is called a Miller. He often lives inside much like a lighthouse keeper. The wind was so strong we didn't tarry long there. Their little villages are built on dykes. The area is way below sea level. Lots of what looks like canals are really drainage ditches. Houses are like townhouse. Very expensive. Very small. The farmhouses are much the same with a little bridge crossing the drainage ditches leading to small plots of grazing land for sheep and cattle. Very pretty and picturesque. They were bombed extensively during WWII. Only 4 bldgs survived in downtown Rotterdam.
Our next stop was this castle that has been in the same family since the 12th century. It fell into ruin but in 1890, the baron married a Rothschild who used her fortune to restore it and it is unbelievable. Very opulent and massive. Their is no more Barons as the survivors are 5 daughters. It has been turned over to Unesco, but the girls can use it anytime....usually they entertain there the month of Sept.
Very impressive. From there we went into the quaint little village that belongs to the castle and had lunch in a 500 year old house. Lunch was bacon pancake. Very good and different. From there we headed to the Delph city and factory. Really neat place.
When we returned to the ship there was a group of about 30 men serenading us goodbye. My head is all stopped up from the wind and pollen, so we went to buffet.
Denny is waiting for us to get far enough out of Rotterdam to open the casino.
Tomorrow is a much needed sea day! The next day is Copenhagen and we say goodbye to some friends and greet new ones. Sleeping late in AM! Yippee!
Phone working again tonight. If you text me it is $.05, if I text you it is $.50. So let me know what is going on. Miss everyone but this trip is amazing.


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Location:Rotterdam, the Netherlands