Haarlem to Alkmaar

Today we cycled 50 km. The highlights were the statue of Hans Brinker; the tale of the little dutch boy who put his finger in the dike to stop the flooding. After a good morning ride we had our picnic lunch at an open air windmill museum which included a traditional dutch village. The weather was windy, a little drizzly and cool, but we continued on, actually we had no choice as the barge always heads off in anotherdirection where we meet it later that afternoon. Today also included two ferry crossings as part of our adventure. The countryside had many farms with a variety of livestock, mostly sheep and goats. The farm houses were very impressive; most are brick construction on the main living level and many had thatched and tiled roofs which were very peaked. The peaks were built at 52 degrees which is the same as the Egyptian Pyramids……. not sure the history on this. However, in the past the family lived on the ground level and the hay and livestock feed was stored in the upstairs peaked area. The thatched roofs were considered a poor farmers roof at one time, however nowadays they are extremely expensive as it is a dying art. So what you do see in a lot of new home construction is thatch and tile combination; plus the peaked area upstairs now is all living space with small dormers or skylights.