Farms, perfect or otherwise

Once you leave the kidney shaped town of Houten, you are in the countryside.   Consequently our bike rides each day are amongst the farms and orchards around Houten, and it is glorious cycling in the warm sunshine amongst green fields and trees.   Slightly smelly at times, of course, due to the liquid manure being sprayed on the fields.  

Farms here are immaculate, buildings painted, fences straight and ditches cleaned, trees pruned, grass cut.  Everything spick and span.  No old rusty objects lying around, cars, trucks, pieces of machinery, old windmills or derelict glasshouses and other buildings.   Not like in Australia, New Zealand and parts of the UK.   Oh no, this is the Netherlands, where it would be disgraceful to be anything but super tidy and organised.

The farm houses are also very substantial, as are the buildings either attached to them, or separate from them.   The buildings mostly contain animals, cows, sheep, pigs, who need to be housed during the winter months, or maybe all the time.   Once the grass is strong enough, the cows and sheep should be able to go into the fields.  Some of the buildings are used for storage of the fruit from the orchards.    And machinery of course.  Also we did see one that held poultry.   Even so, it would appear from the very large farmhouses and huge out buildings that farming is financially very viable here.    

The first stop was to buy appel moes from the vending machine at this farm.    We also booked a camp site in May.   Diversification includes a camping ground on this farm.      

 There was a lovely free range chicken run here.   Good idea to buy eggs from this farm too.

 An immaculate thatched farm house with the farm building attached.  

 A cluster of farm buildings.

 A tree lined road, in amongst the farms.

 An old water tower, we think.   It is now a very tall and thin house.   I wonder if they have a lift to get to the top of the building.   Running up and down the stairs would keep one very fit.   A marvellous view from the top bedroom.   Or maybe that is where they keep the princess.

 The cows lined up in their shed.   I think they get milked where they stand for the day.   Very efficient.    I wonder if the cows get sore legs from standing so long in one place.   Every time we cycle pass the cows are in the same place.

 An old, or still running, monastery, surrounded by fields.

 These cows have escaped.   They look very contented too.   And no wonder, after a winter spent in a shed.

These cows, or maybe they are steers, (I forget to have a look at their under parts) certainly live in cramped quarters (from the view point of someone from Australia or NZ), in an open fronted shed.   There were about 6 or 7 cows? per pen.

 Sleeping contently or not.   What else have they got to do.   Slightly grubby.   Not so clean and tidy either.    And open to the public view too.   The other buildings were not brilliant either.   Not good.   Letting the country down here.

We love cycling through the farmland.   Safely too, I might add.    On cycle paths or marked lines on the side of the road.   An activity that costs nothing either.   Bliss.