Tuesday 25th October – Noordwijkerhout, Holland

It was only a relatively short drive over to the Dutch coast but we wanted to stop at the old city of Leiden on the way. It had rained overnight and was very overcast in the morning – not very auspicious for a walk around a city.

We had no map of Leiden nor we did we have any idea of where the suitable car parks were. On the journey we passed many windmills that had been used for pumping water from the land into the canals above. They looked very pretty but you will have to take my word for it as there was nowhere to stop to take photographs. We headed for a camperstop that Jane had found in the Europe Stellplatz book that came with the one that we used throughout Germany. This turned out to be a park and ride car park (Haagweg), ideal for us. We got on the shuttle bus (included in the parking charge), which acted as a taxi and dropped each person off where they requested. It was then that we discovered that we were so close to the centre of the city that we could have walked in within 10 minutes.

Unfortunately, the weather forecast turned out to be correct and it was cold and raining most of our time in Leiden. We both liked the city with its many canals, bridges and pretty architecture. There were even two windmills, one of which, a museum, was shrouded in scaffolding and plastic sheeting. Our only regret was that we didn't see the architecture above street level because the ever-present umbrella blocked the view. We will have to return in better weather – strolling around the centre in warm sun would be lovely. We tried to have Nasi Goreng for lunch but failed to find anywhere serving it so we opted for another Dutch speciality – Pannekoeken. There were three restaurants in the main square specialising in these pancakes, one of which offers 100 options – sweet and savoury. We were both feeling savoury so Jane had apple, bacon and raisins and I had apple, bacon and cheese. The pancakes are thicker and larger (over a foot across) than those in France and they were both delicious and very filling.

The car park cost €6 for 4-6 hours and for another €5 we could have stayed for 24 hours but we decided to move on to the coast. The De Duinpan campsite is just outside Noordwijkerhout in one of the famous bulb field areas. Obviously there aren't any fields of tulips at this time of the year but we did pass a few fields full of flowers.

By the time that we arrived, it was getting close to dusk so we found a pitch in the surprisingly busy site, connected to the electricity and hunkered down with the fan heater on.

Photos: Bikes are very popular in Leiden as this multi-storey bike park shows; Jane in heaven enjoying a Pannekoeken – only the one nearest to her is hers, honest; Space was obviously at a premium when this house was built.