A day in Utrecht

A day in Utrecht with Emma and Kylie.   And Raphy too, as it was a teacher training day in the infant part of his school.

We set off after coffee, to cycle to Utrecht.   Kylie on her bike, with Raphy on the back, Emma on Abi's bike, with the seat raised a bit, and me on the spare bike, which is a little antiquated and squeaky.  Like me. I think Utrecht is roughly a 7 km ride from Houten.   Luckily there was no wind, which can whip across the flat land, and make cycling hard work.

The first sight.   The Dom, standing up straight, for a change.

The church, in the photograph below, used to be attached to the tower.   During a storm about three hundred years ago, the connecting building was blown down, and never rebuilt.

There were three weddings in the vicinity of the church.   I am not sure if the weddings took place in the church or in the building opposite.   But it was a great place for wedding photographs.  

I loved the wedding cars.   I hope the wedding party did not travel too far.

A dirty rusty bike, still with the lock on it, and with a note for the council to collect it.   It had been pulled out of the canal.   No doubt thrown there by vandals.

Window cleaning, via a very long pole.  A bit hard on the arms.

Raphy posing on the curved staircase, of a very ornate bar/restaurant.   The building once housed a department store.   Although the building was very ornate but the menu looked very mediocre.

This dog was real, as it slept happily on the couch in a furniture shop.   It even let me pat it.   I wonder if it helped sell the furniture.

After a delicious lunch, followed by an afternoon tea in a cafe, which served the best apple cake I have ever eaten,  we set off back to Houten.

Another really lovely day together.   Plus Raphy of course, and he behaved perfectly, as always.

Back in Houten, on the Saturday, the beach ball competition was attracting plenty of attention.   Every year, tons and tons of sand are dumped on the square, and activities take place for the local residents.   There is also a bar, which is well supported by the adult residents.   A beach is not complete without a bar.

Emma and I reluctantly left at lunchtime on Saturday order to catch the plane back to Southend.     A truly great three days.