Holland for Caro's Birthday

Off to Holland for Caroline's birthday. We spent a lazy weekend (27th - 30th July) at her flat in Vlissinger, enjoying the sun, beach and of course a little shopping !


The view from the balcony and the newly extended Prison Tower restaurant. A celebratory birthday dinner nearly came to a sticky end when the bill arrived and we discovered they don't take credit or charge cards ! The manager arrived and offered to escort Caro to the kitchen to wash up. Luckily we just managed to scrape together enough cash to cover it and save the day (she would never have lived it down).

This odd event is something of a Dutch tradition. Farmers would ride thier working horses, using a short pointed lance to "tilt" at suspended rings. Starting with rings some 30 or so cm's across, as the day wears on they get smaller until those not eliminated compete to lance a ring only 2cm's wide.

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