Haarlem and Zaanse Schans

One of the joys of travel is getting to worship in different settings. I've wanted to experience worship in a "gothic cathedral". I'm not sure that St. Bavokerk in Haarlem qualifies as "gothic", but it certainly is a classic European cathedral. This church started as a Catholic church, but became Protestant in 1578.

Here are some snippets of the organ playing. This is an organ that Mozart played on, as well as Mendelssohn, and Händel.

Despite the fact that the entire service was conducted in Dutch, it was still a wonderful thing to be part of.

The list of pastors starts in 1572 - that's quite a record of God's faithfulness.

After church, we enjoyed a bit of time in the market square. There was some kind of "organic" theme to all the stalls.

The market included a poffertjes stand, so of course we had to indulge.

 Next, we headed a bit north to Zaanse Schans. This was an area where hundreds of molens operated at one time. Tsar Peter of Russia came here to visit and learn about shipbuilding. Today it's a tourist area that preserves the story of these mills and the surrounding area.

We also visited the very first Albert Heijn grocery store - started in the 1800s. Quite a far cry from today's grocery giant!

 Lunch included a bit of nostalgia - we ate Pannenkoeken at the same restaurant with our kids in 1997. They are still the same - not the fanciest fare, but very yummy!