A typical Dutch Family

Tuesday dawns cool and damp, after breakfast we decide that today would be the best day to visit Utrecht, which is only about four miles away. It is a much bigger city than I had anticipated but we follow the signs to the station and manage to park without any problem. Graham bought a chip card, which you need to park just about anywhere in a Dutch city. The lift from the car park brings us out in a Mall, but we didn't come to Holland to visit Meadowhall or Trafford Park lookalikes, so after a quick visit to the loo, actually called "2theloo", we venture outside and soon find our way to the old town. The centre of Utrecht is a grid of canals with old multi storey houses lining the banks, there are tourist boats, cruisers and people in kayaks on the water. Numerous pavement cafes, pubs and restaurants and shops of every kind, having just missed the one o'clock tourist boat, we wonder alongside the canal until we are driven into a cafe by a sudden downpour. The place is packed but we find a table and are soon tucking into apple pie and coffee. Eventually the rain eases and we decide to find somewhere with more comfortable seats, as Jackie and Gino had been sat on a fairly hard bench. We find a place a little further on around a corner and order some beer, and lemonade for me, as I have to drive. A young guy asks if he can take our photo and Gino is immediately suspicious of a scam, but it turns out he is a student with a Turkish girlfriend, who is going back to Istanbul in the morning and he thought we looked like a typical Dutch family, for her to photograph and take back. They both seemed nice, so we bought them a beer and asked them to join us, which they did and we chatted happily for half an hour and parted swapping email addresses, he was called Benjamin and she Alara. They told me that the guy that doesn't drink and does the driving, is called Bob in Holland. After some more mooching about, we found an Italian restaurant called La Pozza, and all had Pizza. Gino didn't know what it mean't, so when he went to the loo we asked the waiter. It means "The Well", and sure enough there was a picture of a well on the wall. Jackie ended up giving half her Pizza to the ducks that were swimming on the canal and act as aquatic pigeons. She is very kind and makes sure that the smaller, weaker ducks get their fair share. Gradually we make our way back to the car and leave the city around half past four, ahead of the rush hour traffic. At some future date, Utrecht would merit a visit of several days, as we hardly scratched the surface. We arrive back in Maarssen at tea time and park near the square again and top up our supplies from the supermarket in readiness for Graham and Lillianne's visit in the morning. Back at the Hof van Ede, we make some more ante pasta for our evening meal, followed by fresh strawberries and cream and then drink a little wine or beer until bedtime. Interrupted only by Graham telephoning for instructions on how to get there. He says they will be here before ten so we will need to be up early in the morning. To bed at eleven.