7 days... driving through Holland (4)

The fourth day of our road trip through the Netherlands took us to one of the country's major port cities. While the city itself offered a vibrant urban experience, our primary destination lay beyond its limits. We were drawn to Kinderdijk, a small town housing a collection of historic windmills, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. These ancient water-pumping structures stand as a testament to Dutch ingenuity and serve as a reminder of the country's rich history.

The journey from the accommodation to Rotterdam is 70km, and from Rotterdam to Kinderdijk is 25km. In total, the round trip is 200km. I plan to stay in Rotterdam tonight and not return to my original accommodation. I have booked a room in Rotterdam for tonight and will forfeit the cost of one night at my original accommodation. This will allow me to drive to various cities tomorrow and return without having to make another round trip.

Arriving at noon, I wasted a significant amount of time before entering the city. There was a roundabout with eight exits, both large and small. Believe it or not, it took me almost half an hour to navigate out of that roundabout correctly. Google Maps led me in and out of the wrong exits, resulting in several loops. Driving in a large city with heavy traffic is extremely challenging.

Upon entering the city center, I parked my car on the side of the road in a designated parking space. This is where I encountered a problem. I was unaware that I had to pay for parking in advance. I assumed I could pay later when I exited the parking lot. However, the reality is that when parking, we must use a machine to indicate how many hours we intend to park and pay accordingly. Since I misunderstood this, I attempted to pay later, which resulted in a violation. I was informed by locals that I should exit the parking lot and wait to see if I receive a ticket. Fortunately, I did not receive a ticket. If I had, the fine would have been significantly higher.

Let's take a look at the atmosphere. CUBE HOUSE is a landmark that is often photographed upon arrival. It is a hotel that is open to the public.

MARKET HALL is an artfully designed market hall... Inside, it features murals by renowned artist Arno Coenen, completed in 2014.

Wandering around, I started to feel hungry. I decided to support this food stall and bought some snacks. They were tasty, but not exceptionally so.

OLD HARBOUR ROTTERDAM

Afternoon-evening... It looked like it was going to rain... So I had to hurry to check in and go to the highlight, a World Heritage Site... KINDERDIJK.... 25km drive from the city...... I had to go there twice, in the evening and the next morning... because the sky was too cloudy today, so I couldn't get good pictures... So I had to come back in the morning to take some more pictures... The sky wasn't very beautiful, but it was better than the first evening.

Walking around the area twice was truly worthwhile, allowing me to experience the atmosphere both in the morning and evening.

After walking around until the sun got hot, it was time to move on… Stay tuned for the fifth day in the next episode.