Countryside coasting: working windmills, active art, and desert dunes

This weekend marked the halfway point of the program, as only two weeks are left until I return to the States. I spent most of Friday at Zaanse Schans, located in the province of Northern Holland, known for its unique collection of windmills. It was an amazing experience to actually go inside those windmills and climb up incredibly steep steps to get near the spinning blades. Along the way, it was funny to see danger signs everywhere (complete with skulls and bones) inside the windmills that warned about the extreme flammability of the windmills. Indeed, the thatched roofing and wooden floors, not to mention combustible paint products, left the windmills vulnerable to fire. The inner gears of the mill are still turning to this very day; I still can't believe they have been functioning for centuries without electricity.

Standing on the balcony of a paint mill.

Saturday was filled with even more action as the class, and I headed to Hoge Veluwe National Park. Inside this park was the Kröller-Müller Museum which housed an assorted collection of modern art ranging from the works of Van Gogh to Picasso and their contemporaries. Having visited a number of museums in Europe already, I did recognize a couple of masterpieces. I personally think that the hidden jewel of the museum is its sculpture garden that is located near its entrance. I was able to see interesting structures like a needle tower (composed entirely of wire and metal cylinders), a hill of bones, and a somewhat endless (not really) stairway to heaven. In comparison to the paintings that were protected indoors, I felt like I got more meaning out of the sculptures in the garden. Their physical and dimensional existence in the outdoors evoked a stronger sense of engagement and interaction.

A floating sculpture.

Though I love windmills and museums just as much as the next person, the highlight of my weekend was my trek across the desert sand dunes of the Hoge Veluwe National Park. Immediately after I left the museum, my peers and I grabbed the randomly parked bikes of the museum and headed off to explore. Our professor informed us of the park's anomaly: a small desert microclimate was located within the Dutch national park. The transition from woodland surroundings to desert-like terrain left me bewildered, but nothing topped the experience of riding through sand dunes on a bike at full speed. Coasting along the  countryside was a peaceful weekend getaway from the noisy urban sprawls of the larger cities.

It's almost like I'm in South Africa.

Survival Guide Tips: Trip Planning

16. When purchasing train tickets, ask for any current discounts. In many cases, you can save money when buying tickets in pairs.

17. It may help to travel with an agenda in mind. You'll need to remember the final departures of buses and trains to avoid getting stuck with transportation.

18. When separating from a group of people, make sure to establish a time and place to reunite. This is very important if you are not carrying a cell phone (and will save much time, confusion, and worry)

19. Train conductors can and will check your tickets for valid purchases. Don't look like an ignorant fool caught by the authorities. Remember to check into the train station with your chip card or purchase a separate train ticket if your card is under 20 euros.

20. When browsing souvenir shops on these travels, be sure to not touch any delicate items. You will have to pay the price once they break, and they almost always will. I had to learn the hard way when I barely touched a model windmill blade that cracked when it dropped to the floor. And even though it was an accident, I had to purchase the worthless, flimsy piece of trash. There went four euros that I'll never see again.