I am in Antwerp now!
Spent the past two days here, again with the aim of things Camino-related. There is a Saint James church here as well, and this one was open! Lots of Saint James and Camino imagery about, including artwork of places along the Camino, posted in the church five years ago or so.
Also visited the Plantin-Moretus Museum, which houses the oldest surviving printing presses in the world, a 36-line Gutenberg Bible (the second printed edition of the Bible, after the original 42-line ones) and many other interesting printing/typographical/literary things.
Walked about town quite a bit, including a district known for its Art Nouveau architecture.
Tomorrow, onwards to Brussels!
Friday, October 30, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
Utrecht!
So the past two days I have been in Utrecht.
Yesterday I visited the Moluku Museum – Museum of the Moluccas, a part of present-day Indonesia that has a long association with the Netherlands. It was quite interesting, though it was all in Dutch and the information pamphlet in English wasn't as detailed as the exhibits themselves, but I was able to gain some sense of the history.
I also visited the Catharijnconvent, a museum of Christian artwork and the religious history of the Netherlands. The entry price was quite steep, but I went because I knew they had several pieces relating to Saint James, and ever since doing the Camino de Santiago (in English, the Way of Saint James), I've been interested in seeing as many items relating to him as I can.
There are no shortage of these in Utrecht, since along with the pieces at the Catharijnconvent, there is a Saint James church - that was sadly locked when I tried to visit (even though it should have been open, according to the visiting times listed), but there was plenty of imagery outside the church for me to see – the weathervane, settings in the pavement and on the outer walls of the church, and on the street corner opposite.
Utrecht is also home to the centre of the Dutch “Friends of the Camino” organization, and they were open today, so I paid them a visit. They had a great collection of guidebooks, as well as a wall map showing routes to Santiago from all over Europe. They also gave me a pamphlet about their organization, as well as this quarter's magazine and a guide to Santiago – all in Dutch, so additional motivation for me to continue learning Dutch!
This morning I also went up in the Dom tower – the highest church tower in the Netherlands, built in the fourteenth century. 465 steps took us almost all the way up to the top. The day was overcast, and raining at times, but I think I still got some good views and pictures from up there.
Tomorrow it is back to Amsterdam for two days. Still have some sights to visit and postcards to mail. Then on to Belgium!
Yesterday I visited the Moluku Museum – Museum of the Moluccas, a part of present-day Indonesia that has a long association with the Netherlands. It was quite interesting, though it was all in Dutch and the information pamphlet in English wasn't as detailed as the exhibits themselves, but I was able to gain some sense of the history.
I also visited the Catharijnconvent, a museum of Christian artwork and the religious history of the Netherlands. The entry price was quite steep, but I went because I knew they had several pieces relating to Saint James, and ever since doing the Camino de Santiago (in English, the Way of Saint James), I've been interested in seeing as many items relating to him as I can.
There are no shortage of these in Utrecht, since along with the pieces at the Catharijnconvent, there is a Saint James church - that was sadly locked when I tried to visit (even though it should have been open, according to the visiting times listed), but there was plenty of imagery outside the church for me to see – the weathervane, settings in the pavement and on the outer walls of the church, and on the street corner opposite.
Utrecht is also home to the centre of the Dutch “Friends of the Camino” organization, and they were open today, so I paid them a visit. They had a great collection of guidebooks, as well as a wall map showing routes to Santiago from all over Europe. They also gave me a pamphlet about their organization, as well as this quarter's magazine and a guide to Santiago – all in Dutch, so additional motivation for me to continue learning Dutch!
This morning I also went up in the Dom tower – the highest church tower in the Netherlands, built in the fourteenth century. 465 steps took us almost all the way up to the top. The day was overcast, and raining at times, but I think I still got some good views and pictures from up there.
Tomorrow it is back to Amsterdam for two days. Still have some sights to visit and postcards to mail. Then on to Belgium!
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Amsterdam!
I am in Amsterdam!
I arrived in Amsterdam yesterday morning, thoroughly confused as to what time it was because it seemed like the clock in the bus was changing at random between British and Dutch times.
The thirteen hour bus ride from London was... long. The most exciting part of it was the ferry crossing from Dover to Calais, which was about ninety minutes in the darkness. The ferry was quite large, but you could tell that you were on a ship nevertheless, since there was some light rocking (and rain, if you went outside).
Yesterday I strolled around town, getting an idea of the lay of the land. Had a variety of Dutch treats (stroopwafel, poffertjes). Returned to the hostel for a nap, and then attended “Hostel Night”, where they provided a free dinner of fajitas, and then played charades. After that I headed out to a nearby goth/alternative club, where I was able to listen to music that was more my style (after eight months in the Highlands where the radio station was almost always set to Top 40, this was very necessary!). Danced a bit, chatted with some Polish guys. Then returned to the hostel and went to bed.
Today, I visited the Oude Kerk and St Nikolas Kerk (two churches) – the most interesting parts were the choir stands in the Oude Kerk (where there were woodcarvings picturing various proverbs) and the floor of the Oude Kerk – this was made up almost entirely of graves with stone coverings. Some were very plain, others were very intricately carved – be careful you don't trip over them!
Following along with the religious theme, I visited Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder - a very intricate house church from the 16th century, when Catholics were persecuted and were not allowed to have churches that outwardly looked like churches, thereby many house churches were constructed. This one was quite fancy, on the top two floors of the house, and looked, well, like the interior of any normal church building.
I also visited the Torture Museum (quite small compared to the one in San Gimignano in Italy that I visited several years ago), as well as the Sex Museum, which was... informative. Lots of artwork from throughout the centuries, from all over the world. On the way back to my hostel, I also saw the Homomonument, a memorial to all of the GLBT people who have ever suffered persecution throughout the world.
Tomorrow I am heading to Utrecht for two days to stay with a Couchsurfer, and then I will be back in Amsterdam for two days after that.
Good night!
I arrived in Amsterdam yesterday morning, thoroughly confused as to what time it was because it seemed like the clock in the bus was changing at random between British and Dutch times.
The thirteen hour bus ride from London was... long. The most exciting part of it was the ferry crossing from Dover to Calais, which was about ninety minutes in the darkness. The ferry was quite large, but you could tell that you were on a ship nevertheless, since there was some light rocking (and rain, if you went outside).
Yesterday I strolled around town, getting an idea of the lay of the land. Had a variety of Dutch treats (stroopwafel, poffertjes). Returned to the hostel for a nap, and then attended “Hostel Night”, where they provided a free dinner of fajitas, and then played charades. After that I headed out to a nearby goth/alternative club, where I was able to listen to music that was more my style (after eight months in the Highlands where the radio station was almost always set to Top 40, this was very necessary!). Danced a bit, chatted with some Polish guys. Then returned to the hostel and went to bed.
Today, I visited the Oude Kerk and St Nikolas Kerk (two churches) – the most interesting parts were the choir stands in the Oude Kerk (where there were woodcarvings picturing various proverbs) and the floor of the Oude Kerk – this was made up almost entirely of graves with stone coverings. Some were very plain, others were very intricately carved – be careful you don't trip over them!
Following along with the religious theme, I visited Ons' Lieve Heer op Solder - a very intricate house church from the 16th century, when Catholics were persecuted and were not allowed to have churches that outwardly looked like churches, thereby many house churches were constructed. This one was quite fancy, on the top two floors of the house, and looked, well, like the interior of any normal church building.
I also visited the Torture Museum (quite small compared to the one in San Gimignano in Italy that I visited several years ago), as well as the Sex Museum, which was... informative. Lots of artwork from throughout the centuries, from all over the world. On the way back to my hostel, I also saw the Homomonument, a memorial to all of the GLBT people who have ever suffered persecution throughout the world.
Tomorrow I am heading to Utrecht for two days to stay with a Couchsurfer, and then I will be back in Amsterdam for two days after that.
Good night!
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
On the road again!
This blog has been quiet for the past seven months, since I have been stationary here in Scotland.
But I am on the move again! The season here at the hotel has ended, and I am on my way to Inverness, then London and then onwards to Amsterdam! So updates will be happening frequently again.
But I am on the move again! The season here at the hotel has ended, and I am on my way to Inverness, then London and then onwards to Amsterdam! So updates will be happening frequently again.
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