Dogodivščine na nizki zemlji

Another sunny day, another wonderful destination. Delft - my second most beautiful town in Holland.
With its romantic canals, lively markets, narrow streets, it evokes the feeling of coziness and warmth.






















Our trip began as usual at the Leiden Central Station. I love trains. Back home, I never used them because in the valley I come from there aren't any and because in general train infrastructure in Slovenia isn't that good. So I'll definitely miss this aspect of Dutch life. Travelling by train is quick and comfortable, though it costs a lot. And despite many people complaining about the NS company, I really think they do their work well.



I guess what I like about train stations is, just for the same reason that I like hotel lobbies and airports, that hustle and bustle of people coming and go, meeting and saying goodbye, reading, listening to music, eating. All this activity, it just impresses me, that's all. Besides, there are free newspapers every morning, so the journey goes by even quicker.








Back to the main story.
Upon arriving to Delft, we were greeted by this lady with a pitcher standing at a table. It's a sculpure made after the Vermeer's painting Milkmaid. I had to take a picture of Irena next to it because I once bought her a puzzle with this motif which I don't think she's finished yet.














We took a stroll along the canals and learnt about the Dutch painting tradition on the way. There are such cubes with information on Dutch painters all around the town that you can rotate.
















We also did some shopping and took photos of the famous Delft blue - china and porcelain painted in blue in the Chinese tradition.

That day, the town centre was even more crowded than normal because there was a flea market. In the Netherlands, flea markets are extremely popular. You have to be aware of one difference though. You have 'rich' flea markets where people sell precious things for huge sums of money and you have 'cheap' flea markets where people sell things that they simply want to get rid of and make some money on the side. The latter are usually organized by the local church or are held on the Queen's Day (Koninginnedag) on the last April's day. That one in Delft was of the former sort so I took just a quick look.







Eventually, we had to eat something and I once again failed to persuade my visitor to try a herring (Dutch

(sandwich with salmon).
















We ended up in a small park close to the place where the famous Willem van Oranje had been assassinated. We sat down on a couch-like bench of stone, covered with splinters of Delft blue and recorded that the sisters Čušin were there!