Soon after we left the dry dock and Aleau was once again where she belonged, we hoped to explore the Netherlands. Tinnemans was about to close for its annual one-month holiday. We fully agreed that their workers needed a break – and to be honest, so did we.
We decided to start our tour of the Netherlands in Roermond. It is a lovely town with a large marina and is only 10 kilometres from Maasbracht. What could go wrong?
Roermond is post-card pretty.
Getting there was no problem – although we weren’t alone in the lock. There were just as many boats behind us.
Being in the lock gave us a chance to see how our new fenders worked. I had asked Tinnemans to install three on each side of Aleau. They worked as I had hoped. In retrospect, I should have had them install a second row at the waterline. Unfortunately, Aleau needs to be out of the water for them to be installed so it will be a long time before we’re able to get that second row.
The marinas in Roermond stretch as far as the eye can see. Yes, that’s Anahita at the bottom of the shot. It was moored in front of Aleau in Paris. And then we saw Wayne and Liz in Namur, then in Maasbracht, and now, Roermond. Who’s stalking who? It was a pleasure to keep bumping into them.
Anahita is a cruiser – a different style of boat than a barge – and way more popular. Anahita was made by Linssen – a top of the line boat builder. Wayne and Liz were in Maasbracht to visit the Linssen factory – which I’ll get to in the next chapter. But back to Roermond and our aborted vacation.
We loved Roermond. Homes are a mixture of old and new.
It was a joy to stroll along the streets. As Roermond is in the Netherlands, everything is spotless – no graffiti, no litter. Anywhere. What was visible was honesty. Bikes all around the city were left unlocked.
And there were a lot of bicycles. On the sidewalks.
And at the train station.
Lips are what Roermond chose as its symbol. The Dutch word “mond” means “mouth” in English. No need to write it out in full.
Those lips are everywhere.
We came across a street where food and drink obviously take priority over cars.
Just down the street from that sign, a restaurant with what some people might say is a politically incorrect name – Brownies & Downies. It is a Dutch chain with 59 locations. It was started by a special-needs teacher who wanted to create job opportunities for those with learning disabilities and to de-stigmatise Trisomie.
Roermond has a charming town square surrounded by, what else, bicycles.
In the centre, restaurants – indoors and outdoors.
As it was my birthday, Jeannie treated me to dinner in Roermond. Not at one of the spots above – but at a Michelin-starred restaurant.
Kasteeltje Hattem is located on the edge of the city. It was worth the drive by taxi.
It’s always nice to take a look at the kitchen where your food will be prepared. At Kasteeltje Hattem, you walk by it as you enter. (The chef appears to be hiding behind the pillar.)
It’s not uncommon to see dogs in restaurants in Europe. Usually, they curl up under the table. There isn’t a table big enough for this Great Dane to sit under. That made it easier for Jeannie to give him (her?) a pet.
The menu went on for many pages. While that’s usually a bad sign, I am confident that was not the case here. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t get rid of the shadow from my phone.
We started with Champagne – with Jeannie’s new friend sitting nearby.
The Champagne had me feeling very mellow.
We both had fish. Different types. Different preparations.
And we both had desserts
As we left, I looked back at what had been a beautiful evening. Great food. Great company.
But things hadn’t alway been great in Roermond. In a shopping centre, photos showed what the Nazi invasion had done to the city.
As I walked through Roermond, I noticed a car with Ukrainian license plates, a reminder that 80 years after the photos above were taken, another war continues not too far away.
Canadian troops played a major role in driving Nazis from the Netherlands. Life in Roermond returned to normal. Today, two things many people equate with the Netherlands are on display – cheese and prostitution.
On our way back to Aleau, we noticed this cruiser – Nova Scotia. It had a Dutch flag and certainly couldn’t have crossed the Atlantic – unless it came as cargo on a freighter. We don’t know why it carried that name. But it was nice to see a bit of Canada in Roermond.
Nova Scotia is a cruiser – as is just about every boat in the Netherlands. And like almost every other boat, the owners made sure to get something no longer than 15-metres. And this is why, after three days, we had to abandon our Dutch holiday. The marinas around Roermond are huge. They seem to go on forever.
One would guess that finding a mooring wouldn’t be a problem. It was. The marinas don’t want any boat longer than 15-metres. Aleau is 20-metres. We were told we had to leave. And then, “Don’t come back.” In France, boats can tie up along the sides of the canals. In the Netherlands, that is illegal. You must stay at a marina. But the marinas won’t take anything longer than 15-metres. Talk about a Catch-22. We had to go back to Tinnemans. Our holiday lasted three days. We loved Roermond. And probably would have loved other parts of the Netherlands. If we had been allowed to see them.
As we approached the cranes at Tinnemans, we passed many cruisers. And almost wished we had one.
Actually, no. Aleau is our home.