10 Nov - Day 4. Breda - De Bilt

When I woke up the next morning, I started writing my diary until [Melocrie] came back from school. She baked me some gorgeous eggs with mushroom, on bread. Then we set up for "Adventure". We were to go next to some shopping mall not that far from her school, but to do so we decided to go there on bike. The thing is, that there was only one bike for two people. So we tried to get both on the bike. It was a typical big dutch bike with no hand breaks. It's been ages I hadn't been on a bicycle, so it felt very weird, and after a few meters it became clear I wouldn't be able to take the lead.

Holland... A flat country...

Paulien rode the bike and I sat on the luggage carrier for a while. It seemed to be a very precary position, but it worked out. It just hurted each time the bike was coming across a bump, though. After a while it become clear that I could not stay on the luggage spot any longer. So I decided to ride the bicycle and Paulien would be behind. After a few tries, I eventually managed roughly to make it stay balanced. That why, we made it somehow safe to the shopping mall, where stood a giant sundial, a street of shops and a fountain at the back.

Nice sundial, shame for the lack of sun, really...

We visited the shops a bit, took a few pictures, then Paulien went to school, and I explored the shopping mall.

[Melocrie]!!!!

The shops were filled with decorations about Sint-Nikolaas, who somehow looks a bit like Santa Claus (I think the two legends have the same roots). That holiday, that happen on the 5th of december, is about a saint, called Nikolaas, who has been to Spain. He actually lives there, in a big house full of little helpful black people. All year long, he recieve from children lists of gifts they'd like, and on the 5th of december, he turns up on a tall white horse, and give gifts to children. At this occasion, Dutch people usually give each other Chocolate letters and eat lots of sweet things, mainly made of almond, or chocolate, but definitely with sugar. The sweetshops are filled with goodies, very colourful, and it's very hard not to leave the shop with something if you dare to enter it.

Shopping street

I also visited a "natural" shop with all sorts of essences, stones, essential oils and things like that. The kind of shop where you're surrounded by flowery scents and zen music, and where you can get stones with names such as Tiger eye... Quite relaxing. I shopped a bit, taking my time, trying to look for curiosities, and waited for Paulien's return, watching people feed the ducks that were swimming on the fountain.

The duck fountain

10 Nov - Day 4. Breda - De Bilt Part 2
May-lea's roadtrip to the Netherlands