VISITING H. VAN TOOR DISTILLERY A DATED 1883 DISTILLERY THE MAKER OF TH...

Greece Vacation 2018: Corfu

My family, at the back... The Old Fortess (on my separate story)

Sightseeing Corfu

A big business in Corfu. Souvenirs

My apology for it seems it takes ages before my story about my  Greek  vacation 2018 continues. This part three is all about Corfu. Its sound, its smell, and how I feel so incredible to be able to visit this rich of antiquities city. From Kavos, we drive down the hills, passed a winding road lining down the beach. Corfu starts to become familiar to me, because the airport is there, we have our first stop, took the car that my husband rented.

Where wise and intellect men of old gather

Just walking here is... Awesome!

Corfu coastline. The Old Fortress at the far.

What makes Greece more interesting to me is because I believe in the Bible. The New Testament is also known as The Greek Scripture. Corfu is a Greek Island in the Ionian Sea, home of the Ionian University. Corfu is full of Greek history from the beginning of Greek mythology. With those medieval castles punctuating strategic locations across the islands are the legacy of struggles in the Middle Ages against invasion of pirates and the Ottoman. I can even paint clearly on my mind its history of full battles and conquest, it was when we were inside the Old Fortress.

Delicious, honey-glazed complimentary Greek donuts.

City of many antiquities.

It only has begun... From Corfu, we set off our week of sightseeing, adventure, and making Greek memories. Sitting in the car, we were finding a place where we can park, my eyes feasted with a view, my heart leaps for a promising day in Corfu. At the far end, you will see a semi-ruined city, Venetian, will makes you want for more.  There is the double decker bus, as a London view. "Synagogue" is on the street sign, a complete suited rabbi passing by! Corfu remains as one of the most famous tourist destinations.

On our morning coffee break,  we have tasted this famous Corfu donut, served as complimentary together with our coffee. A donut with no hole, just like a ball, round, soft, honey-glazed. I told myself, uhhhh! I can stick around here eating this donut forever! 

The Salt Making In Dasol

"As early as 1878, Dasol was not as a municipality as it is now, but was part of San Isidro de Putot municipality which include the present municipalities of Mabini and Burgos." -Wikipedia

The salt beds in Dasol

Dasol is a small town in Western Pangasinan, located on a scenic plateau. In the Philippines, Dasol is a famous town, it produce commercial salts. We traveled in a highway from Iba in the province of Zambales bound to Alaminos, Pangasinan. I already have an idea how the people in Dasol make salt, I have learned about it when I was a third grader. Dasol Bay occupies the entire coastline of Dasol, the town gets its salt water there, fed into large square ponds and water is drawn out through natural evaporation. We stopped for a while when we passed these breathtaking salt beds. I get out of the car with my camera and was giggling when I have made some photos of this place that I have known since childhood. That was almost twilight. The sun setting, the sight was quite, dramatic, the smell was of salt and earth. The next time you sprinkle some salt in your food, maybe you will remember Dasol, the humble home of salt.

Visiting The Batavia-Werf, Home Of The Century Old Batavia Ship

The century old Batavia

In the Netherlands, there is this place named Batavia-Stad, the center of outlet shopping. It is a walled center of branded goods such as Sketchers, Esprit, and Benneton.

Looks like an skeleton of the ship. The ship reconstrucion site

my Dutch family in the "flagship"

old canyon inside the Batavia

Ropes of all sizes made for the ship

This traditional blacksmith made a beautiful souvenir for our son

This Batavia-Stad is in the Lelystad, the Home of the Batavia-Werf. What is Batavia Werf? Batavia Werf is a shipyard that uses the traditional Dutch shipbuilding techniques to create authentic constructions of famous ships such as the Batavia.
Me and my family visited Batavia-Werf, and it was an awesome experience, not only for me but for our whole family. What made the Batavia-Werf a must-see place is that it authentically reconstructed the 17th century VOC ship ever made. I was fascinated when we went on board the Batavia that moored across the road. The feeling was like I see Captain Hook there. Inside the Batavia remains a lot of replica from the bygone era.

An ancient navigation system

There are old canyons that were used to protect the land from the enemies. It is like a scène in an adventure movie. Aside from that, we also explored the shipyard, see the traditional crafts in workshops, and the work-in-progress in reconstructing a ship. It was a great experience. When we went at the gift and souvenir shop, I was a bit disappointed that the book Batavia is not available in English.

Me on the top :)

At the lower ground of the Batavia

We ended our tour by having a cozy lunch at the restaurant just there at the Batavia shipyard.

A huge shipyard that visitors need signs

At the Batavia gift shop

If ever you will be visiting the Netherlands, you can add the Batavia-Werf in Lelystad in your itinerary. It is really worth your trip.

Visiting Urk, The Historical Fishing Town In Noordoostpolder

The Breathtaking Urk

Urk is first mentioned in historical records dating to the 10th century, when it was still an island in the Almere, a lake that would become part of the Zuiderzee in the 13th century after a series of incursions by the North Sea.

A must-see fishing town

In 1939, a dike from the mainland to Urk ended the town's island status, just as the Afsluitdijk project was changing the salt water Zuiderzee surrounding Urk to the less saline IJsselmeer.

With my family

Later in the 20th century, seabed areas surrounding Urk were reclaimed from the sea and became the Noordoostpolder.
The mainstay of the town's economy has always been fishing, and the products of the sea coming in through Urk's harbour continue to be exported widely, although today Urk's fishing boats must travel greater distances to gather them than was required in most historical periods.

Me and my son

The lighthouse

Picture perfect

During our vacation in Flevoland, I was able to see this extraordinary place. From the vacation house, we traveled about thirty minutes to reach Urk. Those beautiful windmills that I see on our way going to the vacation house, as well as when we are traveling, going to our assembly hall, I captured up close. I do not know that there is a lighthouse there. Standing on the top of the hill, beside the lighthouse, the view was spectacular, overlooking the vast sea, windmills that look like dancing flamingos. I feel happy to be back and share some of the photos I made in Urk.

Stadsgehoorzal Vlaardingen, History And Theater

The musical stage play of Pip and Pim

Me and my son in front of the Stadsgehoorzal

The legendary Fieperdepiep Double Decker Bus

In 1817 the Harmonie (The Little Room) settled in the already existing film theater 'Het Zeepaard' on the Schiedamseweg in Vlaardingen. In the halls, a gentlemen's society regularly meets for formal and informal meetings. In the garden of the Harmony there are garden parties in the summer and there is a stage show in the hall. This is now the Stadgehoorzal in Vlaardingen. The story continues...

In 1952, the city auditorium designed by Sybold of Ravesteyn opens its doors. The Stadshoorzaal becomes the heart of Vlaardingen in the field of theater. Until the 1990s, the building remained virtually the same for a few minor adjustments. It was only in 1992 that the theater was transformed into theater and in 1998 the theater café made a thorough refurbishment. In the years that follow, there are various discussions about what to do with the aging building. The building designed by Sybold of Ravesteyn no longer meets the fire safety regulations. Several questions are raised: Should the building be thoroughly refurbished, or will it be demolished and will the Vlaardingen Theater be located elsewhere in Vlaardingen? Ultimately, B & W chooses a thorough refurbishment. From 2005 to 2007, the Stadshoorzaal closes its doors for a complete renovation of both the exterior of the building and the interior. On September 12th 2007 the festive opening of the new theater takes place, where it retains its old name: Stadsgehoorzaal Vlaardingen.

The Stadsgehoorzal  Vlaardingen is more than just a theater. The Stadsgehoorzal  characterizes itself as the theater before, by and with the Vlaardingers. Before the renovation, the theater was also called 'The living room of Vlaardingen'. The Stadsgehoorzal  still wants to keep the local people, but also tries to reach out the people through the use of various marketing campaigns. The Stadsgehoorzal  devotes great attention to the big artists, but also less famous artists are given a chance at the theater. The organization tries to give new talent a chance by including them in the program. The program of the Stadsgehoorzal is versatile. There are performances in the area of ​​cabaret, miniature art, dance, theater, show, and  musical. In addition to all the shows that can be seen, the different rooms in the Stadsgehoorzal  can also be rented. Before the renovation there were three important areas in the Stadsgehoorzal , the Grote Zaal, the Kleine Zaal and the Theatercafé. After the renovation, three extra special spaces have been added. There is a VIP Lounge, a Glaze Foyer and a Foyer. All these spaces can be used for meetings, courses, receptions or lectures.

My first visit at Staadsgehoorzal was when I accompanied my son to their educational day watching the musical play Pip and Pim, as well as the Fieperdepiep Festival. The highlight was our free ride in the 100 years old double decker red bus "Fieperdepiep Bus" that for my son was something unforgettable. I am sharing this experience through some of our photos.

Playing space at the Theater Cafe

The corner for those children who like to show their art work.

Mother and son, at the top of the double decker bus. A short city tour.

My son never neglect our bus ticket :)

My son still remember this experience of riding in a double decker bus.

The Educational Archeological Heritage Broekpolder

The house at my back is the house from the so-called Vlaardingen Culture (approx. 3,000 BC) a reedwood construction from the New Stone Age or "neolithic". At the far, is my son, curious with the old canoe.

An inviting view.

At the request of the Federation Broekpolder Foundation, which aims to strengthen the culture and nature of the Broekpolder, ADC Heritage established a Program of Requirements for the establishment of an Educational Archaeological Heritage. The goal is to revive the rich archaeological past of Vlaardingen and its surroundings in a low-threshold way for educational purposes. This is achieved by building a number of buildings from prehistory, Roman times, Middle Ages and early modern times in a landscape belonging to the specific building periods. The Educational Archaeological Heritage has a green and playful. In the past, it was used with natural building materials that came from the immediate area. Each period of time has its own landscape type, which will give the natural values ​​in the Broekpolder a further boost. The Educational Archaeological Heritage, part of the "Integraal Inrichtingplan Broekpolder", is being realized in cooperation with the University of Leiden and the municipality of Vlaardingen. I have made some photos when we visited this afternoon the Educational Archeological Heritage in Broekpolder. Again, I have seen how rich this old city where I live both in history in culture. It amaze me how the remnants from the past era were keep safe and preserved. Please enjoy again the photos that I have made.

Lijnbaan And Touwbaan In Vlaardingen, Survived The Test Of Time

The photos I am sharing today are photos I made in Lijnbaan and Touwbaan. These old structures rouse interest to those who are visiting our old city. These structures were dated back in 1611. The building of Touwbaan started  April 23, 1611. Yes, that old! These buildings were used as an ancient factory. From 1611 onwards, the ownership was passed from one to another. These buildings survived wars, survived the test of time. Nowadays, it became one of the attractions in our city. There is a sports school nearby, there is a quaint cafe-restaurant in between the other old buildings. During summer, there are tables and chairs scattered outside of the cafe, a cosy and relaxing place to sit, have a drink, and soak in the sun. As I am writing this, I realized that there are beautiful spots just within our reach. All we need is to unravel it.