Was a classic summer day. Hot and sunny until mid-afternoon, then big clouds that didn't quite turn into a thunderstorm. Not a lot of miles on the bikes (15 - 20?) but really enjoyable ride.
The Biesbosch (means 'rush forest') is essentially a classic freshwater delta swamp, Dutch style. Lots of interesting ecological, economic and historical tie-ins, but I'll skip those and leave the details to Wiki.
Two things I do want to call out.
First, pronunciation. Through trial and error I've found that you must be native to the Netherlands to pronounce Biesbosch correctly. It looks easy, but is not possible for a foreigner. P. J. O'Rorke's classic analysis of Lebanese customs agents attempting to pronounce "passport" (Bassboat? Bizport? Passboot? Pisspot?) gives a good idea of the challenges. I've found my attempts to say Biesbosch run something like this:
Me: Beezbosh
Native Dutch speaker (after a pause): No, more like Beezbahs
Me: Beezbahs
N D s (a a p): Well, more like Beiezboss
Me: Beiezboss
N D s (a a p): Not exactly, more like Beeezsbahsh
Me: Beeezsbahsh
N D s (a a p): Maybe really a bit more like ... (repeat all afternoon)
Saying "we are going for a ride in the Biesbosch" to anyone here is great fun and a guaranteed conversation starter.
Second, the Biesbosch museum. We visited it about 15 years ago and remembered it very fondly -- it had dioramas of family life in the region! Was really looking forward to seeing the dioramas again (especially one I remember as showing Mom cooking in a tiny rush & willow hut meagerly provisioned with a baby in a cradle and a stuffed rat running along the rafter while Dad was out hip deep in cold watery muck cutting reeds). But the museum had gone upscale at some point with a new building, fancy projection technology and some ecology oriented stuff focused on school kids. Educational, but I miss the dioramas. They were way more realistic and touching.
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