Texel: The dyke

No matter how many times I visit Holland, I still love visiting and driving around dykes.

I love leaning to catch sight of water above those high embankments. I love the silhouette of walkers and joggers and cyclists atop the dyke path. I start reluctantly but arrive at the top of the dyke with great excitement, for now I can see the water clearly--no matter that the wind threatens to make me serious competition for Mary Poppins. I love the grass yielding to the will of the wind and flowers that stay close to the ground but manage to survive getting blown away. I love the ridged glass designs visible in the water. And where the embankment yields to the natural sea-bed, I love the patterns created by pebbles and reeds that lie just beneath the surface of the water, shifting like glass pieces in a kaleidoscope.


Dykes are my favourite places to visit, I'd say!

In Texel too, we drove by and climbed to look over a dyke.

This was what the land-side looked like, so we climbed these stairs to the top of the dyke.

On closer examination (by zooming, not climbing down!), this is what we could see.

While on the town side, when we could tear our eyes away, this is what it looked like. 

Fantastic Friesland: Sneek

The road to Sneek (you pronounce it 'snake') was very pretty. Here is a photographic glimpse.

Where else do you see people walking on dykes?

Sneek is most famous for its Waterpoort which dates back to 1613. A passing boat brought traffic to a halt and so I could take these photographs although we did not stop there.

This brought to a close our Friesland excursion.