Upper portions:-

Off to the side of the Airborne Monument, almost hidden by trees, is a monument to 1st Airborme Reconaissance, dedicated to the “Freddie Gough Squadron.”

In a green space off the main road through Osterbeek town lies an impressive monument to the paratroops who landed at Oosterbeek in the Battle of Arnhem. It seems to be known as the Needle:-

This marker gives information about the monument, built in 1947 despite a shortage of materials at the time:-

Neraby is this information stone about the Battle of Arnhem and the Monument:-

Perimeter Route marker:-

View of monument from approach path:-

A bit further on from the farmworker’s cottage at Burg Verhildersum there was a museum of old agricultural equipment housed in a barn.

I love places like this.

Farm implements:-

Haywain and buggy:-

Threshing Machine?

Hay Separator?

On the upper level there was a sleigh. Useful in cold Dutch winters no doubt:-

After visiting the ‘big house‘ we went for a walk around the surrounding farmland and decided to visit the farm worker’s house which we could see in the distance. We’ve been to loads of stately homes in the UK but I don’t ever recall any of them also having a farm worker’s house that you could look inside. Most probably the small estate houses in the UK have been modernised and rented out to holidaymakers.

This photo of the outside of the worker’s cottage is copied from the Burg’s website.

Cottage interior:-

It would have been a lovely living space. Still is, but no-one actually does live in it now.

The rectangular box in front of the chair in the photo below is lined with metal and you put hot coals in it and put your feet on it with a blanket or long dress draped over it to keep your feet and legs nice and warm.

The wee house is surrounded by farmland and of course you are never far from a canal in The Netherlands over one of which this bridge crosses:-

The upper level of Burg Verhildersum was where the young children of the house must have spent most of their time.

Doll:-

Doll’s House:-

Toy castle + skates:-

More toys:-

Curiously there was a laundry room at the further end of the level, fenced off from the rest, no doubt to stop the children wandering into it. The screen you can see was playing a video of how the laundry would have been done back in the day:-

Stacked pots in basement of Burg Verhildersum:-

Storage:-

Hole in basement wall. The hole led through to an area which seemed to be filled with birds judging by the birdsong we could hear:-

A reasonably wide but steep wooden staircase led to the upper story of Burg Verhildersum. This child’s bed was near to where the stairs emerged:-

This suitcase and pram were close to the child’s bed:-

In my previous post about the interior of the burg I forgot to include this bird cage sitting atop a door frame:-

Kitchen:-

Dresser and box bed. The box bed would have been for a servant:-

Contrast that with this elaborate bed for the owners whose bedroom has wooden ceilings, plaster must have been used for the areas that would be seen by visitors. I think that the shutters on the wall above the bed are there just so that you can see what an earlier wall decoration looked like:-

The interior of Burg Verhildersum isn’t unlike a British country house except a bit more cramped.

Reception room:-

Model of burg:-

Dining room:-

Dining Room ceiling:-

Sitting room:-

The floor was strewn with toys to represent how it might have looked when the family was living there:-

Possibly a ladies sewing room:-

Burg Verhildersum, Leens, Groningen Province, Netherlands is a kind of Dutch equivalent of the English Country House.

From approach path:-

Entrance:-

The Burg is surrounded by a moat. In many ways it reminded me of Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk which we had visited a few days before.

Moat and cafe from bridge to entrance:-

View to side. Note topiary:-

Further round moat going anti-clockwise:-

Gardens and topiary to rear:-

View of rear of the Burg:-

Reverse side view:-

Moat to left side of entrance:-

Women’s European Championship Final, De Grolsch Veste (Arke Stadion,) Enschede, 6/8/17.

This was a great watch – certainly in the first half. Attacking football, end-to-end stuff, four goals, lead changing hands, two equalisers.

The Netherlands had the best of the opening exchanges but Denmark had shown intent before the penalty with which they took the lead, Afghan refugee Nadim putting it away with aparently no nerves.

The main Dutch ploy in the early stages was to exploit De Sanden’s pace down the right which led directly to their equaliser, her pinpoint cross converted by Miedema. Martens then made a goal out of nothing by running across the defence and turning it back against the goalkeeper’s expectation. The keeper maybe still ought to have made the save though.

Denmark’s equaliser was a supreme example of a forward making a goal for herself. Harder bent her offside beating run beautifully, staying in her own half till the pass was played before running half the length of the pitch, cutting across the defender and clipping the ball back between her opponent’s legs into the near corner.

It had been a breathless first half.

It couldn’t continue. Things settled to a slightly slower pace in the second.

The Dutch got themselves in front via a free kick given away too cheaply and the goalkeeper’s mistaken anticipation of where Spitse would place the ball. From there Denmark huffed and puffed, even hitting the frame of the goal, but never looked composed enough to take it away from Holland. The writing was on the wall when they threw a centre half up front and they duly paid the price as Miedema more or less replicated the latter movement Harder had made for her goal.

Some iffy goalkeeping apart this was a great advert for women’s football. (Iffy goalkeeping is not unknown in the men’s game too.)