Day 109

6 Aug 2013

The (Delft) Blues.

I had just parked my motorcycle next to an outdoor eating area in the city of Delft. I usually park in the busiest area as that is safer for the bike and I don't have to lock everything away. An older lady walked past and then stopped to admire the bike. "What a big and beautiful motorcycle" she said. “ And have you been to all those countries?” pointing to the few stickers on the side cases. “ eh…yes” I said. “I used to ride a motorcycle when I was young”, she continued while I put my gear away. “What brand of motorcycle is this”, I asked. “Oh a BMW” she said. “Yes” I said “I can read the badge too. So what model or age is this then” . “No idea” she said, “ maybe 4 years old?” “Yes that is close enough” I said, not going into detail as I did not fancy a long conversation. “You have been in Austria”,she said, and continued , ” I was there last week, I went to Mauthausen concentration camp…do you know where that is? “ “ Yes” I said, “I was there 2 weeks ago.” Obviously surprised she continued to tell me that she was Jewish and her father had perished in the camp during the last weeks before the liberation. I told her about my walk on the steps to the quarry and me wanting to do this without stopping although I was walking in my motorcycle gear and the heat was effecting me badly. “I wanted to feel a little of the pain” I said. I can only imagine what it would have been like with 40 kg of rock on your back. She was in her late 70’s and told me about the time when her father was picked up and she and her mother were hiding under the floor boards. Her father was dragged away and they never knew where her went or what happened to him until a few years after the war. Interesting to meet a person like that.

The city of Delft is famous for several things. Delft Blue for one, the local pottery is world famous. The painter Vermeer hails from Delft and for the Dutch, this is the place where in the big church on the central square all members of the royal family are buried. Delft blue pottery is very expensive as it is handmade. You find this commodity in every Dutch souvenir shops, however the cheaper items are nearly always made in China or other Asian countries.

Something typical Dutch is the amount of cheese people consume. The are many shop who specialize only in the sale of cheese. This day the local shops were in competition with the “cheese only” stalls in the town square market. I noticed an old Chemist shop dating back to 1759 and according to the man I spoke to inside had been owned by one and the same family for many generations. The shop looked like a museum piece; the smell of the spices completed the good feeling inside. Judging by the wear of the granite steps leading into the store many 1000’s of feet had walked on them. I remembered that in my home town of Haarlem there is a similar store which I must have a look as well.

The road smaller B roads leading to Delft were nothing short of amazing; the pictures tell the story.