By This was the day. I was walking behind some folks as we wandered around Haarlingen…and this gentleman coughed. There was nowhere for me to run and hide. And you guessed it…I got sick. This Old World virus did take a few days to properly incubate (from Wednesday until Monday’s flight home). Let’s not speak anymore of this unpleasantry. Let us enjoy Haarlingen and Franeker. The first part of the day was an easy walking tour (maybe 15 – 20 minutes) where Tomas, our cruise director, told us a little bit about the town and then sent us off to wander. I appreciate the creativity of the townsfolk. There were two structures no longer in use that they turned into Airbnb’s. You can spend the night in a crane! Of course I’ve got links for you to visit, in case you don’t believe me. I’m told they’re sold out months in advance.
The crane: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/crane-hotel
I don’t know what this structure was – something with the harbor patrol I guess – https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/42850678?source_impression_id=p3_1724272226_P3GlXxBDCR4p_1Hk
Haarlingen was a picturesque town but I’m more excited to share about the afternoon’s activity. There were two choices: a tour in Franeker to see a planetarium and working windmill or a visit to a farm that raises Frisian horses. This was a tough decision for me, but I opted for the windmill/planetarium. And so after a lovely lunch on board, we hopped on a bus to Franeker. First stop was an old school windmill which has been lovingly restored by volunteers. It’s amazing the effort that it took to get ground flour back in the day…I mean when I want flour, I pop in the car to drive 5 minutes to Kroger, which is open 24 hours a day, and buy a bag of flour. easy peasy. Seeing this windmill in action gave me perspective. And they totally let us climb up and around the windmill, so I did.
Then it was back on the bus to Franeker. I enjoyed the planetarium, which is a Unesco site. Eise Eisinga designed and built this planetarium in his home. Without google or the internet or AI to guide him. How is this possible? It made me think – 1) this guy is really smart and 2) his wife must have really loved him. Because I can tell you if my hubby came home one day and said he was going to turn our bedroom/home into a planetarium, I would have had some choice words. But perhaps that is why I am divorced?
Anyway Franeker was neat discovery.
The day concluded with 70’s night, which I was prepared for because the Eastern Europe cruise last October also had a 70’s night. Great music and a great way to end the night.
