Lakefront rooms for free

We are in Volendam, a village once known for fishing but now mostly a tourist town on the shores of the Ijsselmeer. On the way to Volendam, we cycled through Hoorn, a former Dutch East India Company village. Quite picturesque (first two photos from below). AThe third photo is for inspiration to those who say biking is difficult. It's a kindergarten teacher who is pedalling with SIX children in the compartment in the front of her bike. And if it's a typical Dutch bike, it has only one gear, so she's really working.

The two photos above the kindergarten teacher are from Edam, of Edam cheese fame. (For extra info, Edam is a type of cheese with less fat than Gouda and may be produced anywhere in Holland. The name refers to the fat content, not the city of origin.)

The last photos (or first, if you count from the top) are from Volendam.First is a large cruise ship flying the Red Cross flag. While we were walking about in Volendam we noticed a lot of folks in wheelchairs. The reason is that the ship is one of two operated by the Dutch Red Cross that takes disabled people in the last year or so of life out for excursions. While the ship's crew is salaried, all the caregivers are volunteers, and there are two caregivers for each disabled person. One can be a family member and the other is someone else (RN or other medical personnel) who volunteers to help. This is done free of cost to make the end days of these people happier. What a lovely idea!

The photo of the ship and of the paintings relate to the title of this blog posting. One of the reasons Volendam is well known relates to the fact that in the past artists came here and stayed in one of the local lakefront hotels for free, painting local people as they went about their daily village life (in costume in the past, not so much anymore). The paintings are displayed in the hotel today, along with models of ships commonly used in the past. I couldn't resist snapping a couple of photos of paintings involving local women knitting. It's for my friends in the Knot Club.

Today we cycle to Marken, another picturesque lakeside village and then back to Amsterdam. Tomorrow we have a free day in Amsterdam and then, alas, our bike saga is finished. More tomorrow.