Venlo
A few snapshots below will summarize my experiences both in and out of Venlo. I consider it my good fortune that I got to spend a good measure of time in places that are not Amsterdam. To be fair, most people think of the Netherlands and they go – red light districts, canals and joints. I hope that with all the text and images, I have been able to not only share my experiences but also shine some light on some other aspects of (what my fellow blogger friends fondly refer to as) Hollandshire.
Venlo is a city in the south of the Netherlands, very near to the German border. It is in Limburg, the only province in relatively flat Netherlands that has a fair bit of hilly landscape. Venlo is situated on the Maas (River Meuse). Historically, this river was used as a rough indicator of the close proximity to the German border. There are road connections and a railway bridge over the river. During WWII, there was heavy presence of the occupying forces and the historical city center was severely damaged by bombing. The City Hall survived the war though.
There are road connections to Germany (Duisburg, Mönchengladbach and Essen) to the east, and to Eindhoven and Nijmegen in the north and Roermond, Sittard and Maastricht, further down south. The Venlo train station is well served by intercity trains operated by NS and commuter trains operated by Veolia. Right outside the train station is a bus terminus, which connects Venlo to nearby villages.
De Klep
I was invited by my project colleagues to a ‘borrel’ to Café de Klep, on Keizerstraat, right next to the Dominican Church. The location of this place is somewhat tucked away from unfamiliar eyes. The easier option to find it is when one knows a local to point out this place. For me, it was the venue of a few light hearted beers with colleagues after a major project related milestone and was I impressed! Everywhere you lay your eyes, there was something to do with beer and monks. Several fascinating and competently produced statues lined the shelves and lintels. There were some excellent beers and ales. The ambience is ideal for all generations and the staff members were very jovial and prompt. I have been there a couple of times and see myself going there in the future too (if/when I am back in Venlo). The pub is located in the city centre. Outside the entrance is a great view on the old convent. Generally speaking, I am not a big fan of beer, but I was pleasantly surprised (and impressed) on this occasion!
Around Venlo
Arcen, Belfeld, Tegelen and Velden are some towns around Venlo. They are on the same side as the Maas River. On the other side of Maas, lie Kessel, Hout-Blerick, Horst and Lottum. Weekend biking trips took me to all these places, where I got to look into windmills, among other things.
Arcen
Arcen is popular with Dutch tourists for its historic castle and its beautiful gardens. This area is also home to the Maasduinen National Park. Arcen sits locked between the Maas and the German border. The town is small and the castle is only a five minute walk from the town centre. Getting around on foot or by bike is fairly easy. Kasteeltuinen Arcen (Arcen castle gardens) is a 17th century Baroque castle that has been restored in recent times. It is often rented out for weddings and other events. The gardens, with some fine sculptures on display are the real attraction. They are divided into a variety of styles, including a classic rose garden, Japanese and Indonesian gardens (very Zen!) and many ponds. There is also a restaurant and a flower shop. Entry tickets are priced at €15 and I would recommend at least three hours to do justice to this charming spot.
Molen (windmills)
Although windmills are not a Dutch invention, they do get credit for taking it to a whole different level. At some point, there were 12,000 of them in the Netherlands. They are rightfully a part of Dutch national identity. A volunteer (vrijwiliger) told me: windmills created the Netherlands (drained water from low lying polders), secured food (enough productivity for man and animal needs of milled grains), gave a thrust to merchant expansion (sawmills provided wood for shipbuilding) and brought prosperity (inexpensive way to press oil from seeds). The orientation of the vanes of the windmills were important communication tools as well. For example, on Sundays, public holidays and other designated days of no work, the windmills stood with the vanes in a certain orientation. If the windmill was in operation, but the miller had stepped away temporarily after stopping the operations, that too would be in a unique orientation of the vanes. On festive occasions, the vanes were (still are) decorated with flags and banners. When somebody in a nearby village passed on, then too the windmills would be used to signal the mourning. And while it is technologically not impossible, of course, but I had not imagined that windmills built for use at one particular spot, could be dismantled and re-assembled at an entirely different location. Read on!
De Grauwe Beer
Built in 1604, de Grauwe Beer is one of them, today standing on the southern bank of the Maas, near Beesel. I visited it on a beautiful spring day, with the windmill being operational. There were school kids who were learning about the mechanisms. A small cafe was available, where one could enjoy tea, coffee or vlai. The lawn provides a nice spot to sit outside. I cycled my way there, but another option is to take the bus to Beesel town and walk the rest of the way.
It all started when Cornelis Cornelisz invented the sawmill in 1592. The VOC or the Dutch East India Company was established and there was a tremendous need for timbre, for ship building among other applications. Zaandam purchased the invention of Cornelis and a certain Dirk Sybrants, shipbuilder, was tasked with the construction of the mill De Grauwe Beer. This mill made it possible to cut heavy beams for shipbuilding and in that sense, it was one the first mill of this kind. The Grauwe Beer was struck by ligthning and then it was made redundant with the adoption of a steam engine. In 1890, a Beesel resident purchased the out of work Grauwe Beer and had its dismantled parts shipped from Zaandam to Beesel. Since 1891, it was no longer a sawmill, but a corn mill.
Sint Antonius
This mill is nowadays open only on Saturdays from 13:30 to 17:00. Volunteer millers are only glad to give a tour and explanation on the working mechanisms of the mill. As I understood, looking out of the circular peephole, one should be able to see a vane sailing past every second (or 15RPM), to be assured of sufficient power to grind. While it may not sound like a high speed, it still requires considerable wind power, and can be an obstacle with the built up vicinity. For the long term, there are plans to move the mill to a more open location. The current mill was built in 1800 (the main timbre column bears an inscription to that effect) in nearby Meijel .
There was already a mill there and to avoid competition, it was sold to Lodewijk Pennings of Kessel and since 1878, it has occupied this location on the Roode Eggeweg. Toon Gastreich bought the mill in 1943 and had the mill repaired; he was also the one who christened the mill Sint Anthoniusmolen. During WWII, the mill was heavily damaged by German artillery from across the river Maas. The municipality of Kessel became the owner of the mill in 1955. There have been several restorations and key components replaced over the decades. Flour for bakeries, buckwheat and cattle feed are the main output from this mill today. In addition to the heavy milling stones, the wind power also drives a rope to haul and lower grain bags. Additionally, a rotating, barrel shaped sieve is used to filter the ground flour.
There was already a mill there and to avoid competition, it was sold to Lodewijk Pennings of Kessel and since 1878, it has occupied this location on the Roode Eggeweg. Toon Gastreich bought the mill in 1943 and had the mill repaired; he was also the one who christened the mill Sint Anthoniusmolen. During WWII, the mill was heavily damaged by German artillery from across the river Maas. The municipality of Kessel became the owner of the mill in 1955. There have been several restorations and key components replaced over the decades. Flour for bakeries, buckwheat and cattle feed are the main output from this mill today. In addition to the heavy milling stones, the wind power also drives a rope to haul and lower grain bags. Additionally, a rotating, barrel shaped sieve is used to filter the ground flour.
Eendract Maakt Macht
They did not have sufficient funds to build a parish church, so they built a windmill instead. Yes, that's right. When the Meterik community wanted its own church in the village around 1890, there was no money allocated and a rather lukewarm response from the town council of Horst. So, the mill 'Eendracht Maakt Macht', which was built in Meterik in 1899, was employed to grind cattle feed for the farmers. Not only was the church built, it also had money from the mill for its annual running expenses. The name 'Eendracht Maakt Macht' stands for "together makes us strong" - how apt! In 1952 the mill underwent a major refurbishment. About eight years later, the mill became redundant due to more modern milling methods and shut operations. Fearing that the lack of use would lead to accelerated decay, the municipality of Horst decided in 1976 to take over the mill. A bakery was added at the rear of the mill. Since 1994, the management of the mill is in the hands of the Molen Eendracht Maakt Macht foundation, volunteer millers who run the mill once a week. Minor repairs are done by the millers themselves; any serious repair and maintenance work means that more qualified personnel need to be brought in. The mill operates on Saturdays and is open to the visitors to walk in and take a look around. It is also visited by school children. The mill sits on an elevated mound and it is excellent that there are obviously no tall buildings in the immediate vicinity.
Houthuizer Molen
This mill (or at least this spot) has been known since around 1800. The original mill was owned by Peter Hoefnagels, and after him, by his sons. The mill was used to process barley. There were some changes in ownership and by the turn of the century, it passed to the miller, Antoon Clevers. His son soon followed in his footsteps, but was driven out during WWII. After the war, the damaged windmill was not repaired, rather the operations were mechanized. It was only on the initiative of the Lottum inhabitants, that the need to rebuild the mill was recognized. De Houthuizermolen Foundation, in partnership with the Stichting Het Limburgs Landschap, raised funds, secured permits and realized this vision. In addition to the Nationale Molendag and the Limburgse Molendag, there are also a lot of visitors on Saturdays and other days that the mill is open. There is a cozy cafeteria and an information display, both adding to a pleasant and memorable couple of hours spent here.
Aurora Molen
The Aurora is a post mill (the entire mill can be turned about its vertical axis/post) in Baexem in the Leudal municipality of Limburg province. It was in the year 1800 that certain change in regulations took place and in 1817, a mill (De Hoop) started in nearby Horn. The Aurora was built in 1845, previously at a different location. Fearing increased competition, the then owner of the mill, sold this mill to a brewer in Baexem, by the name of Canoy. It later passed to his son, and in 1918, to Jan Winkelmolen. After his passing away, it was run by his widow until 1930. It was purchased by the baker, Grubben, who was performing maintenance works on the vanes, when they suddenly started to turn. In panic, he jumped and did not make the fall. The mill was then sold by his widow to the municipality. In 1968, the Aurora moved to its current location and opened in 1971 after much restoration. I did not fully gather at which was the mill named Aurora. At some point of time, an electric motor had also been installed. The volunteer miller on the day of my visit informed me that the post takes on a load of 30 tons and is still the same oaken wood as the original mill. Some names of previous millers were seen carved into the timbre. Apparently, the sides of the exterior were sometimes used for painted adverts. In the nineten hundred twenties and thirties, it provided some additional revenues. The miller also explained how a functioning mill has its movements and vibrations that keep insects and birds at bay. Running my hand over the weathered surface, I could feel the reassuring solidness of the oak. On the 2nd and 4th Sundays of every month, the mill is open from 13.00 to 17.00 and is used to grind maize, gerst (barley) or haver (oats), subject to availability of wind. It is heartening to see that there is still considerable open space all around, and the houses beyond that are not too tall in height. Not far from the mill, a newly built house contains some exhibits.
Molen van Verbeek
The Molen van Verbeek of St. Odiliënberg is a stone grain mill in Sint Odiliënberg, a municipality of Roerdalen, in the Dutch province of Limburg . A belt mill (standing on a natural or artificially raised hill) was built in 1883 to replace the previous grondzeiler (operated from the ground) mill, which burned down in 1882. With the advent of the industrial revolution, an electric motor was added to boost productivity of the mill. The transmission makes use of a leather belt in conjunction with two mating bevel gears. The mill was lucky in the sense that it escaped being bombed during WWII (possibly because it is comparatively inwards from the river Maas - the border between the then Dutch and Germans). There was however some minor damage, which was repaired in 1945-46. The wicks of the vanes were painted in the Dutch tricolor. In 1989, the Verbeek heirs sold the mill to the municipality of St. Odiliënberg. Today the mill can be visited on Saturdays in the afternoon fro 1300 onwards.Though the village of St. Odiliënberg has expanded considerably over the years, the residential blocks near the mill are not to be higher than a single storey and therefore, the mill enjoys an unobstructed windfall. The volunteer millers were very helpful and led tours in Dutch, English and German for visitors. They showed the mechanisms to control the incline (and therefore the delivery speed) of the grains hopper.
Leonardusmolen
The belt mill Leonardusmolen stands in the town of Maasbracht and was approved in 1865. It was ready by 1867 and the Vos family was the first owner. In 1905, ownership passed to the Faems family. It suffered some reversible damage in 1946 due to grenades and was repaired. However it suffered some more damages that were attributed to an unusually hot summer and further repairs were abandoned. Instead, milling was electrically performed. In 1973, the then miller fell in ill and since no replacements were found, all operations finally came to an end. Much (if not all) of the wooden work was dismantled. All that remained was the stone tower and it was converted into a loft for doves. In 1987 "Molenstichting Maasbracht" was established and it was in 1992 that it got the name Leonardus (for the last miller Leo Faems). In 1997, extensive restoration was completed and by 2000, new milling equipment was in place. A fair bit of the wooden components, however come from other defunct windmills, so it is possible that some of them go back in age. In the meantime, there is certainly quite a bit of urban development, but the mill manages to pick up some wind. It caught my eye that the horizontal wheel that mates with the bovenwiel, was conical, unlike what I remembered from other mills. The volunteer guide pointed out that the bovenwiel being inclined from the vertical (to maximize catching the wind), also results in the combs being at an angle. The conical shape of the horizontal wheel can therefore accommodate the meshing with the combs. Although it makes perfect sense, I cannot confirm that other mills that I saw have a corresponding conical shape. Perhaps other mills address the meshing in a different way. Even after having visited several windmills, I still discovered here something that got me pondering. The Leonardus mill can be visited on Saturdays from 13.00 to 16.00. It is possible to get married at the Leonardus mill for a price of 125 euros, the amount which goes to the municipality of Maasgouw and designated for the Leonardusmolen.