The True Windy City
Trip Start
May 05, 2010
1
10
40
Trip End
Aug 17, 2010
Rotterdam, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Today we visited Kinderdijk, a collection of 19 windmills deemed a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997. The place was absolutely perfect. The morning began with two excellent lectures by two members of the Rivierenland Waterboard. For those not following the USF blog (email me and I can email the link...), waterboards are actually the oldest form of democratic government in The Netherlands, dating back to the 13th century. They basically handle the maintenance of levees and canals on a local level, enforcing the national and provincial standards. They focus mainly on surface water and flood protection. There used to be over 3,000 waterboards, but have been consolidated to 26 over the past few decades. The waterboards are elected, have the right to raise taxes, and are almost self supporting. The ability to control their own funds is key, as that means money will never be diverted from flood protection to other uses, such as private jets or bridges to nowhere.
Anyway, on our YouTube Channel are a couple interviews with the gentlemen who gave the lectures.... the link to it is at the top of the school blog, or I can email it out to who's interested.
Basically, these windmills are no longer used (they were replaced by the Archimedes pump shown in the video, which is much more efficient) but they do still work. There was a movement in the 30s to tear them down (much like most had been throughout the country), but someone recognized the cultural value and decided to keep them. This worked out well because during WWII, the Germans cut off diesel fuel supply, so the windmills were essential to keep the area dry. A note to all you pack rats out there.....
Comments
Ivy My roots on my mother's side are from the Essen area of Germany (we think) or the Aachen area of Holland. The name is Verscharen
Ivy, you're my first blog post ever. You deserve it. I really like it so far and you seem very Happy. It shows through in the writing. Love the Tulips. Looks like beuatiful area, I'm jealous!
Ivy,
You got to see the pumps run in Kinderdijk. I am jealous. They seem to run mainly at night. I am glad you have time to see the country. Nothing is very far away from anywhere. i want to jump on a plane and go back. YOur blog is great and your visiting many of the place I went when I was there.
Dorothy