Naarden Grote Kerk

The Grote Kerk is at ground zero Naarden and is, on the outside, your standard dark red brick northern European Protestant structure. We had every expectation of seeing the standard stark yet severe blank white interior inside.

We walked in and--as we have been
trained in French cathedrals--looked up 

and whoa! what's that?! Apparently, the barrel-
vault wooden ceiling had been painted, prior
to the Reformation, then white-washed, and
then rediscovered and uncovered in a recent
renovation...what a treat!

The Judgement is over the chancel, and then each successive
bay contains both an Old Testament and a New Testament
depiction, the New, as always, showing how the Old Testament
is fulfilled

Thus, the mocking of Jesus/the mocking of Elisha

And, the Deposition (Jesus going into the tomb for 3 days)/
Jonah going into the fish for 3 days (the Deposition is known
to be a copy of a Durer print)

Organ and elevation; the church is known for
an annual performance of Bach's St. Mattthew
Passion

Vicki using a mirror to study the ceiling

Judgement

Heaven: in the most informative detail we have
yet scene, it appears that in Heaven girls have
to be fully clothed, boy, um, not so much

Hell

Neat place...no hint of which nor of Naarden generally was in
guidebook

Naarden Town

We spent a pleasant few hours walking around old Naarden, looking at the fort, the church (next post), and looking for a place to have dinner (next next post).

There

Judging from the shops, the homes, the cars parked out front,
it's not an impoverished place

Thus; unlocked, top-down

Now the museum of weights and measures

Thus

But, on this site, in 1572, Catholic Spanish troops summoned
the townspeople to hear a new peace proposal...and then
massacred them, shooting those they could, then burning the
building they had fled into...700 killed

The Utrecht Portal

City hall

More historic maps and photos

More great decorating ideas for city council chambers, Carole

More civic art

Roses in bloom everywhere

And more beautiful old buildings

Star Fort Naarden

Long before there were Star Ships, Star Fleets, or even Star Dates, there were Star Forts. These occurred in that brief shining moment after the Renaissance but before military architects realized that artillery could pound nearly anything to smithereens. Naarden--which Kathy and Rick put us onto--is such a place and probably an exemplary one. I wasn't all that excited about seeing another fortified town, but the aerial view of this place was more than intriguing. If you want to know more about star forts, go to Starforts.com.

Thus; it is said that Allied pilots used Naarden as a navigational aid in WWII;
what you're looking at is a tiny town inside a double moat and massive fortifications,
casemates, artillery, the works; the town was walled from the Middle Ages on, but
only since the 16th century did the works take on the star-shaped configuration,
which was a Renaissance innovation (think: cross-fire, killing- fields, etc.);
continually upgraded and strengthened well into the 19th century, when they should
have known better; part of Amsterdam's defensive perimeter

Approaching Naarden on foot; that's the Grote Kerk, center of town; only from
Google Earth can you really appreciate the star shape, etc.

Ditto

Now in town, interesting place, separate post later

Of course I had to do the Naarden Museum and the Netherlands Fortress Museum

Gunner's view

The explanatory video (Dutch only) was in the powder room: no smoking

The usual, um, interesting displays

Thus

Napoleon is said to have had lunch while touring the Naarden
fortifications

Early map of Naarden

WWII view?

Another starfort-enclosed town, in Italy (Palmanova?)

Naarden more recently; there are many star forts, but only a few star fort enclosed
towns

JachtHaven Naarden

We have camped in a few marinas before...Oslo, St. Malo, Evoiko (near Athens)...but never anything so nice as the JachtHaven in Naarden...and we were the only land-faring yacht there!

Land entrance

Only 15E a night for two, including everything

Neighbors

Our encampment, I mean, berth

Decor (a rubbish bin); not pictured: the great
marine supply store (much applicable to land
yachts too)

Plus, to top it all, a coin-operated dishwasher;
life is good

Otterlo

Gateway to the De Hoge Veluwe National Park and the Kroller Muller Museum, the town of Otterlo is a pretty neat place by itself.

Outside the museum...the family that rides together...

A beautiful circle of trees...I would have taken a better shot, but
then occurred my incident with the bicycle...people with Mal
de Debarquement Syndrome should know better...

Kroller-Muller summer house/hunting lodge

Closer up

"Van Gogh lives in Otterlo!" The whole town, businesses,
homes, rotaries, all are duded-up with Vincent's work and its
emblems

Thus

On an evening walk near our campground, the Beek en Hei...note
the bicycle path is paved

Highland cattle, of course

A nice hiking path someone has set up in their own little forest

With woodland sculpture

And craft

Thus

And thus; neat place, Otterlo