Delft The sequel!

As mentioned in a previous entry, I quite rightly said Delft was worthy of a second visit and therefore another blog on TB, well here it is. This time with my other half Jaap and my parents (or 'The Golden Oldies' as we affectionately refer to them!) in tow with me today....and what a day to choose to visit. It was absolutely glorious weather, the complete opposite of a typical bank holiday weekend in the UK where it generally pours down all holiday!

My parents are here to visit us for five days and as it's their first trip to The Netherlands they wanted to see somewhere typically Dutch. Mum had thorougly enjoyed the photo's from my previous visit to Delft so we decided to pay this lovely, little town a visit with them. Well I say little, but it's quite deceptive - we still didn't find time to do half the things I had planned.

Oh well looks like I shall be visiting Delft for a third time on my own to ensure I finally climb the tower of the Grote Kerk in the Market square. Yes thats right I didn't manage to drag Jaap up there kicking and screaming as I mentioned in my previous blog, well it was unbelievably hot today so I don't blame him for preferring a more sedate activity. My Dad agreed to climb the tower with me whilst Mum browsed in some more souvenir shops whilst Jaap rested on a bench (which one's are supposed to be the 'golden oldies' hmmmm?!) Unfortunately a HUGE party of tourists beat us to it by seconds and we were refused entry, only a maximum of 60 people are permitted in the church at any one time. With the church tower due to close within 30 minutes we decided to soak up a little more sun outside a bar, sipping Desperados Tequila beer, heaven.

Prior to this we had done enough walking to last a lifetime around the outskirts of the town, wandering the canals, eyeing up properties and boats we wished to purchase should we win the lottery. The highlight of the day for me had to be climbing up the windmill, which was a bit of an ordeal for my Mum who is petrified of heights and struggles with ladders. The tiny, steep ladders, many without proper handrails, were a bit of a challenge for her, but well worth it once we reached the summit. Fantastic views and photo opportunities over Delft not to mention the chance to watch a working windmill in action which I found fascinating.

The other great highlight today had to be lunch - I finally got to eat on a floating restaurant! Something I have wanted to do since I arrived here! The Stads Pannekoeckhuys is well worth a visit.

My parents and I enjoyed pancakes washed down with Heineken (even the lager tastes nicer here! Heineken is really weak and has a bad reputation in the UK) Jaap is not such a huge fan of pancakes, unusual for a Dutch person! Fortunately there were many other dishes on the menu for him to choose from, he enjoyed a Kroket (or Croquette, which is a meat ragout covered in breadcrumbs in a sausage form) with fries and salad. Hmm it was ok, not too offensive but not one of my favourite local delicacies I have sampled so far.

After the respite from the baking, hot sunshine we were now ready to explore further into the centre of the town. Mum was ecstatic to discover Saturday is antique and curiousity market day in Delft so she could buy a couple of souvenirs to remember her first full day in The Netherlands. Hmm wonder how long before they retire here :-D