Life in the Netherlands: Sunday walk at Doorn Castle

No matter how well-laid our plans are, there is that unseen hand which can stir us in a completely different direction. Such was the case of our lives when in the last week of July instead of having that weekend in The Hague exploring the rosarium (a place Siefko and I used to cycle to when we still live in The Hague because of its hundreds of types of roses which are in full bloom in summer) and showing Madurudam (Holland's miniature city) to Francesca, Siefko ended up going under the knife for appendectomy. The first few days were not so pleasant but towards the end of the week, he started feeling better again although restrained from carrying/lifting Francesca.

Nothing is much nicer than having our usual Sunday walk in the forest so I suggested that we go to Doorn and have our stroll on the castle grounds. Doorn Castle which used to belong to the family of Audrey Hepburn's Dutch mother before WWI has been the home and in its ground is the final resting place of Emperor Willem II, the last German emperor. The castle is still frequented by many German royalists, by the way.

We love it here in Doorn because the small forest is very nice especially in autumn and there are also quite some 4-legged creatures gracefully roaming around.

The day which started somewhat gloomy brightened up a bit so we had a bit of a picnic and Francesca enjoyed a bit of a chase by her father.

It was a day full of surprises, there was also a flea market just across the road from the castle entrance. Though we are not inclined to buy other people's junk, it was simply nice to roam around and later have junk foods instead ;-)