If you had driven into the parking lot of the Postillion Hotel in Dordrecht, South Holland, this past Saturday, you might have been a little surprised to see dozens of beautiful Harley motorcycles filling one end of their enormous parking lot. You may have been even more surprised to walk in and find a matching number of ladies dressed in motorcycle leathers drinking coffee, eating cake, and preparing for a ride-out. These women may come from all walks of life, aged from young twenties to mid-sixties, but we all share the passion of riding our Harleys.
Jenny and Gerra led us through cobble-stone streets of local villages, past more than a hundred windmills, some active and some at rest. When we reached Kinderdike, the only way to see those historic windmills was either by bicycle or boat, so our leaders took us to an enclosed parking area where bikes were parked, helmets were stored in a van, and the fearless Takkey guarded the whole lot while we walked away. The big surprise of the morning was that the Ladies were greeted by a tour boat decorated to the hilt in Ladies of Harley banners.
We glided along the main canal that runs between the windmills with our guide chatting about each windmill. Apparently the group of windmills there were rescued by the government at some point and were offered to willing families for one guilder each - roughly $.60 - with the agreement that the windmills would be restored or kept in working condition and well-maintained. Visitors can still see the water being pumped by the windmills from the polders to the canal or from the canal to a reservoir. Some of the buildings had thatched roofs and tall brick walls while others were mostly thatching with only the first floor bricked in.
After our pleasant cruise, we walked back to the Panarama Restaurant where the bikes were parked and ascended to the top floor where we could see all of Kinderdike's windmills along with a river with barges, sailboats, and recreational boats. Homemade chunky tomato soup, vegetable soup, and sandwiches - either cheese or ham, with a choice of soft drinks were on the menu for our lunch. I don't know about the cheese sandwiches and vegetable soup, but the tomato soup and ham sandwich I had were some of the best I've ever eaten. Conversation at the table ranged from shopping to concern over a motorcycle seatbelt law for children riding as passengers. It was interesting to hear some of the stories of how the other ladies came to be Harley owners.
One lady I chatted with at lunch has even had her license for more than thirty-five years. She told of the struggle she had just to get her license because she was a woman. She had to give justification that satisfied the one who governed the licensing. Another said she had wanted her own bike since she was thirteen years old and riding behind her father. I'm hoping over time to collect more stories of how these wonderful women came to ride motorcycles. I would also like to find the statistics of the number of women riding against the total number of riders in the BeNeLux countries.
While we were gearing up in the parking lot for the afternoon leg of our ride, we were surprised by an invitation to ride down to the lot next to the tour boat. The boat owner had arranged for us to be allowed in for a group photo - four across so we'd all fit into the picture! We had orange-vested guides who stopped traffic for us going into the lot and again coming back out. What fun!
The afternoon ride was a little different than the morning ride. We went alongside many small canals, wound through several small villages, and then finally ended our ride at the stork museum. A charming momma stork and her babies were in their nest atop the main building that housed the restaurant, gift shop, and small museum. She's possibly the most photographed bird in all the Netherlands! At least she was this past Saturday!
My biggest, nicest surprise of the day was when I walked out of the parking lot and towards the museum Kevin was there to meet me!
Jenny and Gerra led us through cobble-stone streets of local villages, past more than a hundred windmills, some active and some at rest. When we reached Kinderdike, the only way to see those historic windmills was either by bicycle or boat, so our leaders took us to an enclosed parking area where bikes were parked, helmets were stored in a van, and the fearless Takkey guarded the whole lot while we walked away. The big surprise of the morning was that the Ladies were greeted by a tour boat decorated to the hilt in Ladies of Harley banners.
We glided along the main canal that runs between the windmills with our guide chatting about each windmill. Apparently the group of windmills there were rescued by the government at some point and were offered to willing families for one guilder each - roughly $.60 - with the agreement that the windmills would be restored or kept in working condition and well-maintained. Visitors can still see the water being pumped by the windmills from the polders to the canal or from the canal to a reservoir. Some of the buildings had thatched roofs and tall brick walls while others were mostly thatching with only the first floor bricked in.
After our pleasant cruise, we walked back to the Panarama Restaurant where the bikes were parked and ascended to the top floor where we could see all of Kinderdike's windmills along with a river with barges, sailboats, and recreational boats. Homemade chunky tomato soup, vegetable soup, and sandwiches - either cheese or ham, with a choice of soft drinks were on the menu for our lunch. I don't know about the cheese sandwiches and vegetable soup, but the tomato soup and ham sandwich I had were some of the best I've ever eaten. Conversation at the table ranged from shopping to concern over a motorcycle seatbelt law for children riding as passengers. It was interesting to hear some of the stories of how the other ladies came to be Harley owners.
One lady I chatted with at lunch has even had her license for more than thirty-five years. She told of the struggle she had just to get her license because she was a woman. She had to give justification that satisfied the one who governed the licensing. Another said she had wanted her own bike since she was thirteen years old and riding behind her father. I'm hoping over time to collect more stories of how these wonderful women came to ride motorcycles. I would also like to find the statistics of the number of women riding against the total number of riders in the BeNeLux countries.
While we were gearing up in the parking lot for the afternoon leg of our ride, we were surprised by an invitation to ride down to the lot next to the tour boat. The boat owner had arranged for us to be allowed in for a group photo - four across so we'd all fit into the picture! We had orange-vested guides who stopped traffic for us going into the lot and again coming back out. What fun!
The afternoon ride was a little different than the morning ride. We went alongside many small canals, wound through several small villages, and then finally ended our ride at the stork museum. A charming momma stork and her babies were in their nest atop the main building that housed the restaurant, gift shop, and small museum. She's possibly the most photographed bird in all the Netherlands! At least she was this past Saturday!
My biggest, nicest surprise of the day was when I walked out of the parking lot and towards the museum Kevin was there to meet me!
