Going Dutch

WINDING AND WINDMILLS:  After Dover, Dunkirk, and Bruges, the next big item on our 'to do' list was heading eastward, toward Germany. 

We drove through a bit of The Netherlands along the way. One can't help but think 'windmills' when thinking of The Netherlands. While we didn't see any traditional old windmills, we saw lots of these wind turbines!

A significant part of our entire trip involved driving from point to point, but we didn't just want to make the journey all about getting there, we wanted interesting stops along the way. That's where our stop at Labyrint Drielandenpunt came in. 

Back when we were plotting our map for our trip, I Googled interesting or odd places to visit in Europe. I wound up on the "Atlas Obscura" page, and on an article about Labyrint Drielandenpunt. Its name translates into three country labyrinth, and it's so named because on the grounds of the attraction, you can stand where Netherlands, Belgium and Germany meet.

Once we found the attraction, one of the hardest parts of the puzzle was figuring out where to park. With that hurdle out of the way, we made our way toward the hedgerow, Europe’s largest outdoor shrub maze. 

I have to say, I was not expecting to hear "Summer Nights" from the American musical "Grease" playing, loudly, over the PA as we approached the ticket booth. 

We paid our admission, and hoped we were up to the challenge. But before entering the maze, we couldn't pass up this photo opp. Nothing says The Netherlands like oversized wooden shoes!

Reviews I had read about the labyrinth said to expect to spend 1.5 to two hours to make your way through it, and that it was hard. Reviewers suggested asking other visitors for help. 

Well, we happened to be there late on a *** afternoon, and there were only two other small parties on site neither of which spoke English. That, and we didn't have phones with Internet access, nor do they give you maps at the entrance. 

We were on our own.  

The maze was definitely a challenge for four weary travelers. When it started to feel like maybe it was too tough, I reminded myself (and the family) that we had been in corn mazes that, geographically, were MUCH bigger than this here maze.

Fortunately, there were some uplifting distractions along the way, as well.

As we worked our way toward the center, we came to realize the way to the middle wasn't a straight line, and the route that got you closest to the center wasn't always the right route.

There were a couple of up-and-over bridges in the labyrinth. When we got to this one, we spied and tried to pick a path forward. 

Fortunately, our studying paid off, and we were soon to the gazebo in the center!

I went back to the bridge over and snapped a shot of the intrepid travelers in the middle!

Below, Annabelle shares some recollections from our brief visit to the labyrinth.

Labyrint Drielandenpunt is a large labyrinth technically located in Vaals, Netherlands. I say technically, because the labyrinth is actually located in Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands all at once- when you stand in the middle (at the finish) you can run around and be in all three countries at once!

The labyrinth is actually fairly difficult and requires a bit of thought and planning. It includes multiple water obstacles that you must step through to progress (some are on a timer- others are not).

The Labyrint is obviously oriented towards kids, as there are drums, chimes, and smaller mazes on certain signs throughout. A cool fact about the labyrinth is that it is in the shape of a lion, a falcon, and a dragon, each representing one country.

The labyrinth took us about an hour to complete, which seems to be the average time. The Labyrint was fun but challenging, and I would strongly recommend it if you’re ever in Vaals!

A couple of other interesting factoids: The site is not only the most South-Easterly place in the Netherlands, but it's also the country's highest spot. 

All in all, it was a super fun stop that certainly broke up the monotony of the drive!

Next stop: Achen, Germany!

Friet-ful Experience

WITH A SIDE OF FRIES:  In my seemingly never-ending quest to play catch up, I'm still way behind on chronicling our excellent European adventure.

We started off by landing in London (Gatwick), spent the night in Dover, took a ferry over to Dunkirk/Dunkerque, France, and then drove up to Bruges, Belgium, for night number two.

Before leaving Bruges, we had one important item to check off on our 'to do' list. Funnily enough, it wasn't even on the list until a bit after we arrived in Bruges.  However, in the lobby of our hotel, we happened to see a little flyer about the Friet Museum. 

We don't really read or write any Dutch or Flemish, but we know fries (frites) when we see them and the thought of a whole museum dedicated to the deep fried wonders? Be still our hearts! 

Suddenly, it became SUPER IMPORTANT to find said museum and tour it. So, that's just what we did. We were waiting at its door when it opened that morning.

A museum dedicated to the history of the fries is an interesting concept, and it was a surprisingly compelling collection.

We loved the artsy, suspended potato mobile near the entrance. 

The history of the potato was documented. Most agree its roots are in Peru.

Then, the story became about how potatoes made their way from Peru to Belgium. 

This book, below, is thought ot be one of the oldest writings about the glorious potato. 

Displays in the museum extolled the many attributes of potatoes, including its medicinal qualities. 

Throughout the museum, there were a number of photo opps. Who could past this one up? Not us!

One section of the museum was all about implements used to cut fries. I have to admit, it's hard not to type FRENCH fries. We learned in the museum that fries probably maybe might have originated in Belgium.

Did you know Belgian fries have been to space? I did not, but we saw a video of them heading space-ward in the museum!

 There was even a display all about the various paper kinda cones that they are served in in Belgium.

All sorts of friets art was to be found in the museum. I wish I had something to show you the scale of the friets shop below. It was micro tiny!! Half the size of a shoe box, and so detailed!

We saw this fry guy not just at the museum, but in a number of places in our travel in Europe. We're thinking he must be the face of friets for some restaurant chain or brand of friets. 

There were a couple of pretend friets stands in the museum. 

Christian and the kids pretended to whip up some.

A friets food truck!

So, before we came to the museum, we'd had the most WONDERFUL breakfast. We were stuffed. But, can I tell you that after wandering through three floors of friets-related displays, suddenly you're hungry. And not just for anything, but for FRIES!!!

As luck would have it, there is a fry shop right in the basement of the museum. 

We had the place to ourselves and had some AMAZING friets, complete with "American" sauce. :)

Bottom line: If you're ever in Bruges, Belgium, you simply MUST visited the Friet Museum. 

Here's a short review from CJ: 

Frietmuseum is a museum in Bruges, Belgium, dedicated to the history of fries (and, by extension, potatoes). Frietmuseum is the first (and currently only) known museum in the world with the subject of fries.

My family visited Frietmuseum during our European trip this year. The street floor of the museum tells the story of how potatoes started in Peru, were domesticated (made larger, tastier, and more edible) by Native Peruvians, and brought to Europe (in particular Belgium) by European colonists.

In Europe, some chefs cut the potatoes into rectangles and fried them, thus making food that resembles modern french fries. In the early 20th century, "fry shops" (carts like food trucks that sold fries) were commonplace.

In the basement of Frietmuseum, there is a cafe that sells fries. The fries are sold alongside a special sauce made with ketchup, mayonnaise, and pickle bits.

There were mentions of what sauces have been served with friets over the years. I wish I had taken a photo of them all - and the list of sauces offered in the restaurant - but this is what I have.

And I just found this photo on my phone. One of the many artsy freit displays. It was about as tall as me.