'So....explain to me right there why I am the only one here who is not living close to the beach guys?'
We were all sitting at a big table somewhere outside on the beach overlooking the sea, but most of all talking about all kinds of stuff that eas brought up from back in the days there.
And it was true, the ocean is like 2 hours away from my place at the moment, and these guys are just having the ocean right there in their back yard.
Damn,..I was more than envious!
It had been a couple of years already since we had all seen each other, but everything felt instantly in order and back to normal again. A weekend day, meeting up in somewhere in the afternoon, because we all don't want to reach home that late again.
The only different: That was back in the Caribbean where we were all living back then, and currently we are all residing in the Netherlands in different parts of the country.
Same same, but ow so different!
Art in town
As I was walking over from the trainstation from an endless ride coming from the South, I realised this place was not that bad at all in the pre-season. I was walking the promenade in Zandvoort in the North of Holland. Yeah, this place is also know for its F1 racing circuit where the is a gigantic influx of people heading towards this circuit.
But nothing of that was here today on this early Spring day. While when I was heading towards here what I have heard is that the town was not so super pretty.
In that way...I was prepared for the concrete jungle urban style. But honestly, while walking through the town over the promenade, I saw some really nice elements in town. There were even a couple of statues on the promenade which did cheer up the town. I saw a couple of nice areas where I guess a lot people are also living in low season.
On the promenade on the other hand...the apartments seem empty. Waiting for the summer guests to come, which is always a bit of a pity. You would want those nice places overlooking the ocean to be used throughout the whole year, not just for people as their second home.
So I like the fact of fome art here and there to cheer up the place a little bit on the spots where it is needed.
When heading to the beach, you need some beach clubs
I guess what most people know Zandvoort know as well is the large amount of beach clubs headed next to each other. And I mean like 20 or more even in a row.
Where back in the days a beach club was mostly known for the mushy french fries and terrible cheese sandwiches. Nowadays beach clubs are totally worthy restaurants with awesome menus and are a true substitute for a restaurant in the city.
Inside spots which are nicely heated when you would want that, but also great outdoor terraces with big and small table even some lounge areas in the sand.
These kinds of places have everything to chill out for a whole day!
And when you want to spot a bit more, maybe something like the overflying planes on their way heading towards Schiphol airport, which is not that far away.
For that you have these super old school binoculars which you have to pay for. Feels a bit ancient right?
But a day at the beach, and so easy spontaneous in a laid back situation. Damn, I miss those kinds of days. And heading out towards Zandvoort to catch some salty air....that was just everything that I needed!
The Dutch shore line has so many beautiful elements!
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Oh, I know that feeling of envy for not living close to the beach. Both my wife and I love the ocean and spending time at the beach, but for many years we were living 6 hours away from the ocean. We have moved down to Durban (South Africa) just over twenty years ago and absolutely love it. We live about twenty minutes away from the nearest beach, but hey, that's way better than 6 hours...lol!
Until three weeks ago I was a 2 minute walk to the sea, although there was no beach. The nearest actual beach was a 2 stop ride on the subway. The sea is a bout a 15 minute walk from my new place.