Bilthoven

Way back in early May we attended Augie's graduation from Hampshire College. We stayed in a a lovely Airbnb on a ridge above the Pioneer Valley in Massachusetts. It so happened that there was a Dutch couple, Sjoerd and Martha, staying in the same place and also attending the graduation of their son. We agreed to meet during our summer in the Netherlands.

Today Nancy and I caught a train to Bilthoven, a lovely Dutch town. We had a bit of lunch in the garden of their pleasant home. It was a typical Dutch lunch with cheese, bread, mackerel, fruit, and fresh vegetables. It hit the spot. It was really nice to get to know them better outside of the rushed graduation schedules required in May.

The four of us set off on a bicycle ride north to Laren, Martha's hometown. The route was straight, flat, and fortunately heavily wooded as it was 80 degrees in the full sun. Along the way we passed by the present home of the former Queen of the Netherlands. I really don't know how Nancy and I keep ending up in such environs. Martha explained that when she grew up the town of Laren was a farming village. As we rode through very pleasant neighborhoods she pointed out the houses that had once been farmhouses, small shops, or blacksmiths. The area had also once attracted artists seeking a less expensive place to live to paint pastoral settings. Sjoerd mentioned that now it was filled with country estates and people driving Lexus, Tesla, and Porsche automobiles. It reminded us of the area along the Leie in Belgium near Ghent, Sint Martin's Latem, that once invited impressionist artists and now can only be described as a wealthy enclave. It's remarkable how a community can change so much over just a few generations. Taos, San Miguel de Allende, and Carmel come to mind. All great places to just spend some time, let alone live.

In Laren we stopped for tiny Dutch pancakes called Poffertrjes. They're a light spongy textured pastry slathered in butter and dusted with powdered sugar. What a treat! Pretty much all of the photos from our day are from that one stop. If you want to see the Poffertrjes chefs in action click here:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/9W62w7Rd1y42sTqA6

Our new friends then took us to the Singer Laren museum. The museum was exhibiting a collection of primarily impressionist paintings of garden settings done in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It did an excellent job of weaving together the artists of the era from Monet, De Smet(s), Claus, and De Weert, among others. One painting really struck me, 'Opulence', by Ferdinand Hart Nibbrig and is pictured below. It seemed more a work from the 1920s than the late 1800s.

In the late afternoon we bid goodbye to our hosts and rode the 40 or so kilometers back to the Jordaan. Congratulations to Martha as she has a graduation ceremony tomorrow after finishing a multi-year course studying yoga. We'll be getting together soon for Indonesian food, a few more museum visits, and more great company.Read more