The Dutch continue to amaze with their ability to harness the power of wind and water. They are brilliant sailors, dam builders, and windmill makers. Consider that at least one third of this country lies below sea level, next consider how these windmills were used to control the water in the lowlands. By pumping water to the rivers through a vast network of canals, the Dutch were able to turn land that was under water into farmland. Consider now that this engineering feat was achieved in the 1300's and there were 10,000 windmills in use to accomplish the task. The windmill we visited, The Museum Mill, operated from 1634 until 1928 when it was replaced by electrical drainage. However, this mill is kept up and running and able to pump if needed. It is hard to imagine the minds that could devise the gears, working parts and metal pieces to assemble this machine much less have it function successfully for over 300 years. But it still moves these massive sails and the turret continues to rotate in the direction needed to capture the wind. With this ingenuity it is no wonder this is the 15 largest economy in the world.
We also made a stop in Edam, a quaint little town, which is famous for its cheese by the same name. We had samples of several different flavors and they were all delicious. Plaques like the one found below are a sad reminder that the Nazi's came thru this neighborhood and took people from their homes. The plaques lists the names of the people who once lived there.
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| Schermer Windmill |
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Inside windmill   |
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