June 16, 2019
‘s Hertogenbosch
This city of 150,000 offers a mix of traditional and modern architecture in its downtown area. There are restaurants, bars and cafe’s galore, most of them busy this beautiful Sunday. Meanwhile, huge silos of a defunct factory have been painted by artists in celebration of graffiti art. A break dance competition judged by three people of African origin with a black dude as announcer continues on the other side of the silos. But then it turns weird in a friendly way.
A small boat the size and shape of a grand piano floats by. Live piano player and a live singer maneuver through the harbor. Meanwhile a float with a tower holds a half dozen or so people dressed as coal miners who are then attacked by people in white outfits. Back in the canal an eight armed octopus lifts its arms while moving along, preceded by what looks like mushroom caps, followed by contraptions and what not, some of which would take long descriptions that just won’t communicate the scene adequately, so here are some pictures.
Aside from the costumes, which allure to times ranging from the medieval to the industrial revolution, we were unable to fathom what it all meant, nor did anyone else we talked to other than one participant who said they were preparing for an event next week, suggesting this was all a dress rehearsal. We did indeed watch them towing various platforms with small outboards.
Two other items of interest are the bosche bol, a chocolate covered profiterole filled with real whipped cream, a local treat we are told are produced in the thousands by a local man, and sausage filled rolls. We shared onf of the the former in a dessert and finger food joint around the corner from the mooring. Quite the rich treat with a crunchy bit of chocolate, a thin layer of dough following by the richest cream this side of Ire;and.
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Hey,
While you’re in Holland, you need to check out Europe’s largest pipe organ in the SintLorenzkirk in Alkmaar. Organist Helmut Walcha did quite few organ recital and concerts there. The astounding fact is the man doing these works was totally blind and learned how to play from his wife, who was a piano teacher. She informed the same advice Ray Charles’ mother told him after he lost his sight, “Just because you’re blind, doesn’t mean you’re stupid!”
Other places to visit include the Beje in downtown Haarlem, the site of the Ten Boom Watch & Repair Shop. The Ten Boom family risked their lives in hiding Jews from the Nazis during the German occupation in World War II, immortalized in the film and book, ‘the Hiding Place’. I thought I’d pass these along.
Thanks for the tips! We were in SintLorenzkirk, impressive. We have been to Haarlem several times and never heard of the Ten Boom family. We will be again there later on and will go.