Day of the Castle...

While writing the Announcements section of my final issue as Editor of Going Dutch, I came across another national open day: Day of the Castle. Not always a traditional castle, in this case it can also mean manor house. Jimmy and I were able to visit two in Voorschoten that we had cycled past many times. The first was called Berbice, which was built in 1785.

The house was lived in until fairly recently; when the 93-year-old owner died, she donated it to a foundation rather than allow her relatives to sell it off. Unfortunately, we couldn’t go inside as the building is in need of much renovation. The plan is to restore it to its former glory and use it as a cultural venue.

The English gardens were established in 1696, pre-dating the manor house. They are maintained by volunteers from the foundation. We bought some honey harvested from beehives on the property.

The woods between the house and the gardens were beautiful with well maintained paths, but off limits for hashing.