This is the dike about which my brother Steve asked me in a recent post. To the right is an inland (country) canal, to the left what I believe can already be called the Wattenmeer or Wadden Sea here, although most folks think of it as being much further east. Texel is the westernmost of the many Frisian islands which collectively – I believe? – form the outer boundary of the Wattenmeer. Correct me in a comment if I’m wrong, someone, please. This dike runs most of the length of the eastern edge of Texel, where natural dunes aren’t as prevalent as they are on the western (much windier!) side. The road – also named Lancasterdijk – runs up nearly to de Cocksdorp, which you’ll see again from this vantage point in our next post :-).
Foreground, behive; background, stork on nesting platform. At least, I think it’s a stork but maybe different migratory birds use those platforms at different times. That’d be a smartly-adaptive Dutch approach to supporting migratory bird populations in the midst of probably the most famous park in the nation…
Both taken along the Amstel by where the Dutch National Ballet & Opera company are housed in the same building as City Hall. The one below taken from a balcony during intermission of an evening (yes – summer in the north) ballet performance.