Saturday September 8, 2018

On my first day in the Netherlands I disembarked at the ferry port of IJmuiden, and I then had a very short ride to the town where my hosts live. With several extra hours to while away, I spent the afternoon on the beach of Castricum aan Zee, watching talented athletes enjoying the wind and waves.

(An interesting side note about this place: I later learned that the huge sand dunes that separate the beach from the town played a role in art history. During World War II, many treasures from the Amsterdam’s Stedelijk Museum were hidden in vaults under these dunes to protect them from Nazi confiscation or destruction.)