round 9: Witmarsum and Pingjum, and a bit o' the North Sea, Holland.

Question: who has two thumbs and comes home from a walk beet-red, swollen, and covered in hives? Answer: THIS GAL. Got in a quick walk Wednesday afternoon before the rain set in, and saw the youngest lamb I've ever seen, about three minutes from my front door. Went home to get the camera to document the occasion, and by the time I was in my apartment, the aforementioned condition had set in. NO. IDEA. WHY. And who doesn't love a good, spontaneous, allergic reaction with an unknown cause?? Not to worry, it mostly went away within 12 hours. Although my face is still a little swollen, what a delight.

Anyway. This post may be a short one, kids: these towns were tiny. And why did we go there, you might ask? We went to Witmarsum and Pingjum because of Menno Simons, an Anabaptist preacher in the Friesland (far north) territory of what is now Holland. Simons was ordained as a Catholic priest in 1515 or 1516, then moved to Pingjum in order to be the chaplain there. In the course of studying the Bible, in order to resolve his questions concerning transsubstantiation, he came to the conclusion that infant Baptism was not a Biblical concept; after a transfer to neighboring Witmarsum, he came into contact with his first Anabaptists, some of whom were Münsterites. The tragedy in Münster, and its Anabaptist connections, moved Simons in two distinct ways: he rejected the fanaticism and violence of the leaders there, and believed the Münster Anabaptists were extremely misled, but he also admired their conviction and zeal. Reflections on the event, and on his Biblical discoveries, led Simons to a spiritual decision: he left the Catholic church in 1536 and began preaching the Anabaptist doctrine in Holland. His scripture-centric writings, emphasis on nonviolence, and baptism as an adult brought him notoriety, and he was forced to take his beliefs and his ministry on the run. During the course of his travels, he met with Anabaptist and Reform leaders in Holland and Germany, gaining influence and rejuvenating the movement as he went.  His prominence as an Anabaptist teacher during this time is reflected in the name of the Dutch Anabaptists who followed him--the Mennonites. The modern variety of which, as we've learned, are the descendants of the Anabaptists whose trail we've been following north. Naturally, then, we had to go see his home town and the monuments dedicated to him there.

Entering Witmarsum: some houses here have thatched roofs. Seriously.

These little towns are neat, quiet, and postcard-adorable, with their tiny brick houses with colorful shutters, and their canals with bridges and whatnot.

Needed a bathroom and directions to the Menno Simons monument, so we strolled into the Otterbar...the only open place we could find in Witmarsum.

Looks and sounds unappetizing, but don't kid yourselves: double-fried french fries + peanut sauce = crazy delicious. 

The current Mennonite church in Witmarsum, built in the 1960s.

Across the street was this family loading these noisy little goats into trailers.

And then there was this kitteh, whom we first saw rolling in the seashell "gravel" next to the little church in the city. He followed us over to the church for copious pettings.

The "meetinghouse" sculpture was built here in 2008 to honor the founding of the Mennonite community. The variety of shapes and colors represents the varied, but still united, nature of the contemporary Mennonite church.

The Menno Simons monument, built on the site of the hidden church where Simons preached the Anabaptist message (according to tradition). 

And then, to Pingjum! Lovely tree-lined drive.

TOO. CUTE.

YET MORE CHARM.

Wee church in Pingjum.

Another of Menno's hidden churches.

View of Pingjum's main church, from Menno's hidden church.

These guys were watching us quietly until I got a little closer to take a picture...and then they went nuts.

Delicious cappuccino from the kind folks at the Pizzeria Pingjum. The only place open, and the owners were extremely friendly and spoke fluent English.

Mostly flourless chocolate cake at Pizzeria Pingjum. So tasty.

These guys were all over the place, quite literally: Friesian horses. 

Seeing as our tours of Witmarsum and Pingjum combined took under two hours, we decided to go see the North Sea and headed to Zürich. Zürich, Holland, that is. 

Signs in Dutch and in a Frisian dialect (of which, naturally, there are many).

It's the Zürich Bank. 

Climbin' to the North Sea.

Aaaand the North Sea itself.

This being Holland, there are, of course, sheep grazing at the North Sea.

Wee little brick church in Zürich.

The drive to Amsterdam, across this crazy long and straight dike (it's called "Afsluitdijk," if you must know.)

Actual windmills! Four of them! We kept an eye out for these bad boys the whole time we were in the Netherlands, and saw probably no more than 10. (It's all wind turbines now.) (And I apologize for the from-the-car shooting.)

What I'm reading: finished The Sweet Life in Paris, by David Lebovitz, vignettes from his experience moving to Paris and learning about the culture...and since he's a pastry chef, the book includes recipes. Sigh. Every book should be this delightfully written and include some seriously delicious-sounding recipes. (I've only tried one, but it was fantastic: a plum and raspberry custard, super easy to make and quite, quite tasty.) Loved this book. Next up: The Rape of Europa: the Fate of Europe's Treasures in the Third Reich and the Second World War, by Lynn H. Nicholas. I've read a similar book within the last year or so, but having recently been in Berlin and having gone to some serious art museums in the last month has rekindled my interest in the subject. It's a pretty interesting topic and one I'm looking forward to reading about, again.

Next up: Amsterdam. Such an interesting city.