Salvinia Archives - Witte Travel

2012 Netherlands Waterway Cruise – Transportation

Our flights were on Delta Air Lines. Check in at GR Gerald R. Ford went smoothly with the assistance of Annette. Service on the flights to and from Amsterdam was cheerful and friendly. Airline food needs no description. Each seat had its own screen with a good variety of entertainment available. The headsets were difficult to use. Mike gave up and took a nap. On the return, airport check-in at Schiphol went smoothly but customs and security lines in Detroit were very long. We parked in the new covered lot at Gerald R. Ford at a cost of $72 for the week.

The Salvinia is a relatively small ship accommodating 120 passengers, plus the crew. The ship size allows it to travel the canals and smaller waterways and visit the interesting villages along the way. Cabins are small, but arranged so that everything you need is close at hand and comfortable. Bouquets of tulips greeted guests when they arrived in their cabins and in the lobby and lounge. The ship has a small library, a variety of board games, an exercise bike, a whirlpool and sauna and a very pleasant lounge and sun deck (which unfortunately did not get much use due to the cold and rain). The food on board ship is good and plentiful. Breakfast and lunch are served buffet style and provided plenty of choices. Dinner is served family style and although not gourmet, was always tasty. Everyone seemed to enjoy the ship, the service, staff and food.

Motorcoaches were excellent, clean and quite new. The larger one that we were on several times had a bit of trouble negotiating a few of the narrow roads with tight turns that Ellen chose, but each time the driver managed it somehow to the cheers of his passengers. The drivers were excellent, polite and friendly—along with being extremely good at maneuvering the buses.

Why the Netherlands Waterway Cruise?

This cruise has something for everyone, whether you are part of Generation X, Baby Boomers, or beyond. You can join in as many walking tours and excursions as you want and truly “custom” design your experience. If you want a leisurely cruise or an action-packed cruise, it’s your call. For me:

I LOVED being able to unpack and make the cabin my “home” for the duration of the cruise vs. a typical tour where you stay in multiple hotels and don’t have a true “home” base.
Participating in as many evening walking tours that I wished to.
Being able to pick and choose the excursions I wanted to join in vs. having it automatically built into the cruise package.
The option to explore independently, but at the same time being a part of a mini community (there were 100+ passengers on the trip) where I was guaranteed to run into my fellow passengers while investigating new villages and cities.
Having all meals, except the first lunch upon arrival, included in the cruise, as well as tipping to our tour manager and cruise personnel.
I appreciated the smiling and helpful staff of the Salvinia who were always helpful. I now know why Henk has used the Salvinia for so long. Not only is the ship “simply perfect” for our passengers and the cruise, but the staff is top-notch.
Surprising highlights at every turn of the cruise. I must admit that the Organ recital at the Martinikerk (Groningen and Friesland excursion), the Orchid Farm (Overijssel, Northeast Polder, and Friesland excursion), and the Frisian folklore group performance in Franeker didn’t sound interesting to me at all. Guess what? I was totally wrong on all three scores. I am so glad the two sites were included on the excursions I joined and that my good friend Barb talked me into participating when the folklore group came on board or I would have missed out on three amazing experiences.
Cruising the waterways was a highlight in itself. You never knew exactly what you’d see and the scenery was spectacular.

The cruise and Amsterdam pre-tour through images

Franeker and the tulip fields

A quick trip into the town of Franeker before hoisting anchor, and then we crossed the Waddenzee, which is normally very, very calm, but decided to be a bit choppy today. The Salvinia held steady, however, and soon we were back in the narrow channels. And suddenly we are in the midst of one tulip field after another. Row upon row of blazing color. I heard more than one person say, “How many pictures of tulip fields do you need to take?” Good question but we kept on shooting. Tulips are grown in Holland like we grow corn in Kansas. So the tulips are allowed to bloom to check for color. After that, the flowers are removed and the rest of the plant is allowed to go dormant as part of the process for growing the famous bulbs that are shipped all over the world.

Shanty singers came on board to end our day with some lively Dutch tunes. Quite a colorful day, in more ways than one!

Groningen and the North Sea

Today our motorcoach excursion took us into Groningen, where we had a chance to look around before meeting Sietze de Vries at the Martinikerk (Martin’s Church). Sietze is the organist at the Martinikerk and is also a world-renowned performer who has taken first prize in many international organ competitions. He talked to us about the history of the two organs within the church and then led us through a musical demonstration of the horns, reeds, flutes, and other components that make up the distinctly different sounds. Talk about shaking the rafters! It was incredible.

Later in the afternoon, we found ourselves at Lauwersoog, where the Waddenzee meets the North Sea. It was quite windy and wild up on the seawall barrier, and quite a hike down to the water’s edge on the manmade rock wall. With the help of a fellow passenger, I braced myself against the rocky hillside and stuck my foot into the North Sea (it’s my little “souvenir” to myself whenever I travel to a major body of water). It was a bit exhilarating and felt like quite an accomplishment considering either me or my helper or, at the very least, my shoe, could have floated or blown away in the process!

Back on board the Salvinia, we enjoyed another scrumptious meal—did I mention how delish the dinner is? It’s a sit-down affair complete with a salad course, and then soup, and the main meal served country style. There is always plenty to eat and more where that came from. I never heard anyone complain that they left the dinner table hungry!

After dinner, a Frisian folklore group came onboard to entertain use with some dances from centuries past. They explained the various costumes and how one could tell social status or wealth depending on the type or amount of fabric and embellishments used. The most fun was watching some of our own passengers who “volunteered” to try the dance steps.

Groningen, the North Sea, and Frisian folklore images

Giethoorn, Sloten, and Sneek

I have read about Giethoorn “the Venice of the North” for many years and seeing it in person was well worth the wait. I enjoyed the canal ride, which allowed us to see this picturesque village. Our stop in Luttelgeest to visit the Orchid Farm was another sleeper hit for me. Viewing the orchids, the coy pond, and the butterflies was truly a site you need to see to believe.

Sloten is another cozy city and had lovely homes and small shops. We enjoyed a little free time in this city. For me, the highlight was shopping at H.J. de Jong Kunstnijverheid. It was originally closed for the day; however, Henk requested the owner open his shop to our delight. I purchased a handmade porcelain item from the store. They also had line drawings, paintings, and many other porcelain items as well. It was so quaint…a true highlight of its very own. If you visit Sloten, be sure to check out this delightful shop.

We met up again with the Salvinia in Sneek. After dinner, those that wanted to joined Ellen on an evening walking tour to the Water Gate. I enjoyed this walking tour…spectacular.

NWC – First Full day in the Netherlands

Once everyone was present and accounted for, we got on board the buses that were to take us to the cruise vessel waiting for us some distance from the airport. We stopped in Gouda for an hour or so to browse around the shops or simply sit in one of the many open-air restaurants and people-watch as they checked out the merchandise in the marketplace on the main square.

One of the highlights of our bus journey across Holland was a stopover to see the windmills at Kinderdijk. There are 19 working windmills in four different styles; and you can aim your camera in almost any direction and capture a beautiful scene. We were lucky enough to be there when a newly-married couple walked along the nearest row of windmills, which made for some even more interesting photo ops.

Toward the late afternoon, we are finally on our boat, the Salvinia, where our crew was waiting to welcome us with cold drinks or hot coffee (some of the best I’ve had, by the way), and a variety of cookies. All we had to do was sit and enjoy the snacks and warm sunny afternoon while the crew carried our luggage to our rooms. And oh! How good that hot shower felt. After a marvelous dinner (more rum-raisin ice cream, please!) it was time for a good night’s rest. So wonderful to sleep horizontally again!

Images from my first day

Gouda and Kinderdijk

Our first stop of the tour was in Gouda and lasted an hour. I decided to visit St. Janskerk. The entrance fee is €3.50 and it was well worth the cost. The church, and especially the stand-glass windows, are simply spectacular. Afterwards, myself and two of my fellow travelers headed to the open-air market. At this point I broke off from my mini group as they needed to break for lunch, while I continued exploring the market. I got a glimpse of the City Hall and Weigh House while looking around, and even had a chance to pick up a special souvenir for my mother-in-law. I had a “simple” lunch of french fries with mayonnaise. I must say, I wish I would have tried this combination (popular in the Netherlands) when I was in Amsterdam, because it was quite good.

I was so excited to see that Henk had added Kinderdijk (a World Heritage site) into the final itinerary. Originally when I signed up for the cruise, it wasn’t included. I have wanted to see this site since I first read about it 10 years ago when I started working at Witte Travel. I must say all the images I’ve seen, and even the ones I finally got a chance to take, doesn’t do it justice. Many of us headed out see get as close as we could to the windmills…there are 19 in total. We only had a short time here, a mere 20 minutes, to take pictures and get a drink at the small café before we had to be on the road again to meet up with the Salvinia and begin our cruise.

Gouda and Kinderdijk Slideshow