Well, I was a tad too optimistic last week about finishing a wee Norwegian sweater. There is no news on the knitting front, and I hope you’ll enjoy a trip to Kampen instead. It’ll be cold and wet, so wrap up warmly and bring an umbrella! We’re walking to the old town centre through the park and one of the three city gates.
It can get quite busy here with tourists in summer, but today it’s just the locals and us. We could go on a guided tour, visit a museum or the cigar factory, but we’re not doing any of that. We’re just here for some shopping and a stroll.
The medieval town hall is very impressive, and there are many other interesting monuments. But what I like even more are the narrow alleys leading off the main shopping street.
One of the nice things about Kampen is that it has many small independent shops. Some of our favourites are the cheese shop, the Italian delicatessen and De Swaen with its handmade chocolates.
I know that some of you are quilters as well as knitters, and thought you might like to visit the quilt shop. The owner writes an inspiring blog, too. I don’t know how she does it – running the shop on her own, being a mum of four, blogging and making beautiful quilts. I’ll just let you browse on your own before we walk on to the river IJssel.
Ah, there you are again. Did you enjoy that? Now, let’s get some fresh air and take a walk along the river. The boats that will be sailing with groups of passengers later in the year are all at home.
Oh, we’re lucky! The Kogge (the replica of a medieval cargo ship) is here, too. Compared to today’s freight ships it’s tiny.
I don’t know about you, but I feel chilled to the bone. Time for some tea or coffee in the restaurant with the swan over the door.
And some sweet treats to go with it. I hope you’ve enjoyed our trip to Kampen. Next week I really hope to have some knitting to talk about. See you then!
Och wat heerlijk om zo de dag te beginnen met jullie belevenissen in Kampen.
Mooie foto’s!
Dank je! In het echt was het ook een heerlijke dag.
Heel veel zin nu om naar Kampen te wandelen langs de IJssel en met trein weer terug, na natuurlijk een stop in al die leuke winkeltjes en vooral De Swaen!
Wandelend naar Kampen is natuurlijk helemaal heerlijk! Vanaf ons iets te ver, maar vanaf Zwolle goed te doen. Ik hoop dat je er binnenkort een keertje aan toe komt.
A lovely visit, such an interesting place, special shops, thank you for taking me along.
It was a pleasure and I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Wow – what a fun trip – but I am left salivating over the chocolates and final treats. I am curious as to how big of town is this to sustain a handmade chocolate store? Since you said that tourists come in the summer, they do a good business then – but what about the other non tourist months? I don’t quilt, but I loved the pictures of the quilt shop.
Thanks so much.
Kampen isn’t huge (around 55.000) but apparently big enough for a handmade chocolate shop. They do not have a webshop and are doing fine outside the tourist season, so the locals must LOVE chocolate. We have done our share of supporting them, too – yum!
Ik heb genoten van je wandeling, tot de volgende keer!
Ha, leuk je hier even te zien. En ik hoop gauw weer eens langs te komen.
Wat leuk zo’n trip naar Kampen en door Kampen….langs allemaal leuke Hollandse gevels en winkels en boten….ook nog wat gekocht in de winkel van Supergoof….ik denk een tas, die ik gemaakt heb en die verkocht worden door Ingrid….ik vind het heel leuk dat deze tas helemaal naar Amerika gaat, wie had dat gedacht dat mijn tassen met en verhaal daar nog eens terecht zouden komen…..als je nog eens tassen wilt kijken kun je mij volgen op mijn blog Zininquilten.nl…..veel plezier met de tas hoop dat hij heel lang met je meegaat…
Groetjes, Marion Blaauw
Hoi Marion. Fijn dat je het bezoekje aan Kampen leuk vond. Je opmerkingen over tassen kan ik niet plaatsen; ik heb geen tas gekocht. Waarschijnlijk verwarring met iemand anders.