Delft stuff part 2

We were lucky enough to get to know some people during our four days in Delft. First we met Betty and Sharon who were traveling to France next so we gave them our ideas on France and they gave me ideas for Delft. They are from Portland Oregon. We would run into each other mostly while checking mail or working out travel plans in the lobby of our hotel where there was free wifi. Kind of glad there was not free wifi in the rooms as the lobby turned out to be a great place to meet and talk.
Here we are at breakfast one morning...news ail friends but I will have to get them to join Facebook...


We also met Jane and Chris who live in State College, PA. Chris is retired but still travels to consult on solar energy and Jane, like me, was going along on the trip. We were amazed to find a close connection - she is from West Pittston PA, not far from the towns that Bill's parents came from....and knew of his great uncle, Dr John Cotter.


Bill talking with Jane in the lobby - my newest Facebook friend - hoping we'll meet again somewhere in our travels...




When I wrote the summary yesterday of topics, I had no idea we would run into someone from Bill's meeting but we met Chuck in the market square looking for places to eat. We went to the Beestenmarkt for a beer - 3 beers later we decided to just eat there... So another new travel friend... Chuck from Cleveland. Turns out he and Bill had a lot in common - British humor for one...





Delft is well known for it's iconic blue painted dishes and other objects. There are a few levels of these .... Cheap ones not made the same way as the "authentic" ones...then the hand painted ones made in many small factories/workshops which are considerably more expensive and the antique delftware, much more expensive even.
















I found this interesting - to me having the biggest selection in town (of touristy cheap stuff) was not at all tempting...


I went to the Vermeer center - which has done a wonderful job of presenting Vermeer's work as well as some idea of the times he lived in. Vermeer was born in 1632 and died in 1675 and really only painted about 50 pictures but they showed an incredible conception of how to portray light and almost all his pictures showed light coming in a window off to one side rather than the style of the Dutch Masters of having the background dark and light mostly being assumed from the front.
The center sadly, does not have any original Vermeers - they were all sold to large museums or collectors by an in-law after the death of his descendants in Delft. Probably the most famous, the girl with a pearl earing.



Our first two nights in The Vermeer Room at our hotel had a room decorated in memory anyway of the painter.

Here I am writing up in the loft above our room...


A painting "in progress" in the room


William of Orange was credited with saving the Netherlands from Spanish rule. He set up residence in Delft in the Prinzenhof and it was here he was assassinated at 51 yrs old. The building had formerly been a convent until he took over part of it. It is now a museum.









Delft was a very rich city and was coveted by many countries for it's position as one of the ports of the East India Trading company. It has suffered from attacks and also a catastrophic fire and later a large explosion that destroyed large parts of the city. Only brick buildings survived so most buildings were rebuilt of brick in the 1500's and 1600's.

Will finish Delft with the rest of our meals, the gypsy caravan we stayed in the 2nd two nights and any missing odds and ends....then off on train adventures to Effelsberg to visit relatives...