From Schiedam to Rotterdam...

Veronica and I first visited the Floating Farm in December 2019, but Jimmy had never seen it. 

It was closed, so visiting wasn’t an option, but we could see the cows from the road. 

In nearby Delfshaven was our next destination: Dakpark, the largest public roof park in Europe.

It’s 0.75 miles (1.2K) long, built over a shopping center...

…with views of interesting buildings at the port.

In addition to fountains, there is a playground and several gardens. 

This was a restaurant before the pandemic hit.

As we neared the historic center of Delfshaven, we saw more boats...

…and a floating platform for picnics. 

Delfshaven was mostly spared the massive bombings by the Nazis that wiped out nearby Rotterdam, so there’s still some buildings remaining from the 17th century. 

As we neared Het Park (The Park), we were surprised to see this warning sign.

Walking Across Schiedam...

The following day, Carlin and I had another walking adventure. Jimmy ran from home as part of his marathon training to meet us in Schiedam. He wasn’t with us as we walked from the train station and spotted this tall windmill...

…ruins of the keep from Castle Mathenesse built in 1262...

…and the lovely old city hall built in 1606 with the double staircase added in 1718. 

I couldn’t resist taking Carlin to see the library. 

It was closed, but one of the employees let us in for a quick look.  

We settled down at the Post Schiedam, the old post office transformed into a cocktail bar. 

We were really impressed with their homemade bread and dips as well as the vegetarian bitterballen.

Jimmy was thrilled that we had some food left and had a carafe of water waiting for him after running 18.5 miles (30K). 

He was clearly a glutton for punishment since after running so far, he then walked 5 miles (8K) with us.

We passed several places we’d like to come back to explore, including the Jenever Museum and this chocolate factory. 

 

Spotted in Den Bosch...

I love these window boxes that overhang the Binnendieze, the city’s inner canal. 

 Spotted art alongside a house...

…above a store...

…and in the canal.

Also spotted this charming gable house that looks straight out of an ad for Vespa. 

 

Bosch Art Center: The Art...

Our timing was perfect to get front row seats to see the hourly show of the medieval astronomical clock. While it was a reproduction made from remnants of the original, it was still completely fascinating to see the incredible show that occurred on the hour. 

The doors opened to Bosch’s colorful display depicting the Last Judgment...

…with sinners dragged to hell...

…and believers soaring to heaven. 

In addition to the time, the clock showed the date, religious holidays and the phases of the moon and sun in the Zodiac. Pretty impressive for 1513, when the clock was originally installed on the cathedral. 

Despite all 60 paintings being reproductions, they were mesmerizing. The largest was The Garden of Earthly Delights triptych with the Garden of Eden on the left and Hell on the right. In the center, real and imaginary creatures co-exist with lots of amorous humans. It is incredible that it was painted around 1505 as it was so much more elaborate than other religious paintings of its era with heavy use of symbolism; it has been on display at The Prado in Madrid since 1939. 

On an adjacent wall hung modern interpretations of scenes from his paintings.

I was especially impressed with these lovely dresses depicting scenes from Bosch’s paintings.

 

Bosch Art Center: The Building...

Mike had been before, so left me and Carlin to explore the Bosch Art Center on our own to learn more about Den Bosch’s most famous artist: Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516). The inspiration for this sculpture in front of the museum was a fountain in Bosch’s most famous painting: The Garden of Earthly Delights.

Housed in the New St. James Church built in 1907, which ceased to be a church in 2002, the center opened in 2007. Throughout are a selection of contemporary works of art inspired by Bosch...

…and original works of religious art...

…including the Star of Bethlehem with the constellations visible in Europe painted in the dome.

 

St. John’s Cathedral...

When we were hashing in Den Bosch in May, the massive cathedral was hardly visible. Luckily all of the scaffolding was gone and we could see the majestic cathedral.

The earliest church was built on this site in 1220. This gothic church was primarily built between 1340 and 1525. This use of double flying buttresses makes this cathedral unique in the Netherlands. 

In total there are around 600 statues of animals, monsters and people scattered across the massive building. During the latest renovation in 2010, 25 new angel statues were created with the most famous being this one with a cell phone. I was happy that I could share this with Mike as he didn’t know about this modern addition. The sculptor explained, “The phone has just one button. It dials directly to God.”

Apparently she’s a conduit between Heaven and Earth. Visitors can call her for 80 cents per minute to learn, hear, ask, pray and marvel with the entire proceeds going towards maintenance of the church. 

We managed to see the cathedral from just about every angle, including from the tower of the Hieronymus Bosch Art Center.

It was very impressive from the inside as well. I quickly spotted Saint Veronica.

There are still old tombstones on the floor, including this one from 1677.

There were a lot of statues throughout the city of the Virgin Mary, the patron saint of Den Bosch. This particular statue is about four feet tall, made of wood and was originally placed in St. John’s in 1380. During a siege in 1629, she was smuggled out to Brussels where she stayed until 1853. It was a charming spot to light a candle in my father’s honor.

Not only does this cathedral have an angel using 21st century technology, but I could purchase a candle by Apple Pay. 

The large organ was built between 1618 and 1638.

I thought this stained glass was particularly beautiful.