Maastricht

12-13 October 2005

The second trip in this month was to Maastricht. Maastricht is located in the south east corner of The Netherlands, close to Belgium and Germany. Located in both sides of the Maas river, Maastricht is one of the oldest towns in the country.

My wife and me arrived in Maastricht in a sunny afternoon weather of October. We were really in a good luck to have very good weather during the autumn, when usually the weather is already cold and gray. After a quick lunch in Subway sandwich restaurant, which is located in the street between the train station and the Maas river, we crossed the St. Servaas bridge to reach the old part of the city. We then strolled along the narrow old stony streets of the city, where the buildings are mostly stores and expensive boutiques. Near from the center, we arrived at the Our Lady, Star of the Sea (Onze Lieve Vrouw Sterre der Zee) church, which is located near a square that used by some restaurants. The church is still used for public services and people can pray devotion for Maria, mother of Jesus.

St. Servaas Bridge

From the church, we walked parallel with the river bank, found the Bishop's Mill, an old water mill from around eleventh century. Walking further, we found a part of the first city wall, along the street called 'Lang Grachtje' (long canal). Following the wall we arrived at the city park, which is located outside the city wall. At this corner there is an old building of Faliezusterklooster, a convent from 14th century. Next to the convent building, there is a tower of the city wall called the Pater Vink tower. Next to the wall, there is an old city gate called Helpoort, which was the entrance to the city in the medieval age. From Helpoort, we walked on the wall along the city park, and back to the city center.

The Faliezusterklooster and the Pater Vink Tower

The next walking destination was the Vrijthof, the main city square that surrounded by nice restaurants and cafes. Next to the square we could see two churches, the St. Jan and basilica of St. Servaas. The St. Servaas basilica is the only church in The Netherlands that built on top of the tomb of a saint, in this case St. Servatius who died in year 384. We went inside the basilica. First we visited the treasury room with collections from the life period of St. Servatius. Then we entered the basilica itself, which is an impressive building with beautiful stained glass windows. Beneath the altars we found the tomb of St. Servatius.
After spending the whole afternoon, we checked in at our hotel that located at the other side of the river. In the evening we went back to the Vrijthof and had dinner in the 4Azen restaurant there. After a nice dinner, we walked back to the hotel.

The Our Lady Church with St. Jan and St. Servaas Towers as background

In the second day we did not walked extensively, since we already visited what we wanted to visit the previous day. After breakfast in the hotel we walked along the river bank and crossed the river on Hoge Brug, a new bridge only for pedestrians and bicycles.

The Hoge Brug

The bridge ends directly in the city park near the Helpoort. So once again we enjoyed the view of the city park and the city wall. Then we walked along the streets in the city center, did some window shopping while waiting for lunch time.

The city wall and the city park

We had our lunch in Vrijthof again. But this time we chose a restaurant with an outdoor seat so we could enjoy the weather and the nice atmosphere of the square. We ordered a homemade omelette and a big pan of mussel.
We spent about an hour sitting for lunch, and then we walked to the station to go home.

A short trip but very nice experience.

Middelburg-Vlissingen

5 October 2005

As activities during my free time this month, after finished my study, I had planned to go to places in the Netherlands that I had never visited before. The first trip was to south-west corner of the country, the Zeeland province. I went to Middelburg and Vlissingen, the big cities in the region.

Middelburg is a city with rich history. It was established in 9th century as a fortress to defend the region from the Vikings (Middelburg literally means 'middle fortress'. In the 16th century, with the establishment of the VOC (United East-India Company), Middelburg became an important trading city. The city had the warehouses and offices of the VOC.

From the train station of Middelburg, I walked directly heading the city center, and first I visited the 'Abdij', a big church with a famous tower called 'Lange Jan'. From there I walked to the other side of the center to visit the city hall. The city hall of Middelburg is considered as one of the most beautiful in the country. With detail window and roof ornaments and a tower, it is a beautiful building.

City hall, Middelburg

Walking further from the city hall I found a building called 'Kloveniersdoelen', a concert hall that in the old time also belong to the VOC, and used as military hospital during French colonial period.

Kloveniersdoelen, Middelburg

After a quick lunch in the city center, I walked around the center to visit the canals surrounding the city center. The canals also had been built in VOC era, and the warehouses were located beside the canals. Some old buildings are still exist and most buildings still have a basement storage room. Walking along the canal, I arrived back at the train station.

Vlissingen is the neighbor city of Middelburg, and can be reached only 6 minutes by train from Middelburg. The train station of Vlissingen is located quite far from the city center, and it is surrounded by waters. It became a confusion for me, so by mistake I took a ferry boat (that I thought will go to the city center). Once I sat inside the ferry, I just realized that the ferry could be going to another city! And it turned out to be true, the ferry was going to Breskens, a city located at the other side of the sea. So I spent about half an hour sitting in the ferry, going to and from Breskens. Unfortunately the weather was not so bright, so the view from the ferry was limited by the fogs.

Oranje Molen, Vlissingen

Arrived back in Vlissingen, I found out the walking route to the center. It was a nice walking route, along the coastline. There is a windmill located in the middle of the route, and the route is ended in the harbour for fishing boats, near the city center.

Harbour, Vlissingen

Since I ran out of time, I did not visit the center but walked back to the train station and went home.