Den Bosch

We left our campsite just outside of Arnhem around 11.00 on Tuesday, September 8 to make our way to Camping Distelloo, some 60 plus miles away in the Brabant region of The Netherlands. This would be our home for the next six nights whilst we watch the Solheim Cup. This is a biannual golf match between Europe and the USA featuring some of the best women golfers in the world. As you can imagine, the rivalry is intense but also played with mutual respect. That goes for the spectators as well. We obviously wanted Europe to win but it’s equally a showcase for women’s sport which so rarely gets the media coverage it should.

Anyway, before we arrive at our campsite outside of ‘s Hertogenbosch (known as Den Bosch, woods in English) we pop into the lovely town of Buren. This was the home of Anna van Egmond, the first wife of William of Orange and became part of the Orange family dynasty. Although the town promotes its connection as much as possible, it is still a quaint little town. It had the added advantage of easy parking and a supermarket close by.

We then drove onto our campsite, which was set in the woods. We found it via a google search as it wasn’t on any of our apps.

It became full over the week with many campervans and motor homes, mainly for the golf as it was only a ten minute cycle ride through the woods to the cycle park at Bernardus Golf Club. The organisers were running shuttle buses to and from various locations, including Den Bosch, so we jumped on one on Weds afternoon to see the city. Torrential rain was also forecast so it seemed a good idea as it was only a practice day for the players.

Den Bosch has a wonderful old quarter, Uilenburg, dating back to the 12th and 13th centuries and, unusually for The Netherlands, many of the canals went through tunnels rather than just having bridges over them. The twice weekly market was just finishing up when we finally arrived so we were able to enjoy a Dutch staple, kibberling. This is a freshly made fried fish in bite sized chunks that you have with either mayonnaise or rémoulade. Delicious and not expensive. As the heavens opened, we thought it appropriate to pop into the Sint Jan’s cathedral for shelter, which has one of the largest organ walls in Europe. After all this culture we had to stop and have a Bossche Bol that was a huge profiterole.

The woods in the nearby town of Vught was the setting for a concentration camp during WWII. Whilst it wasn’t an extermination camp, many people died or were executed there or were moved onto other camps in Poland or Germany. A well thought through exhibition highlighting that there never is just black and white in war.

Back to the golf course to pick up our bikes and then back to the van. The theme of torrential downpours continued for the rest of our time there but the golf did not disappoint. World class golfers playing for each other was nail biting stuff. All square after days one and two with 12 singles matches on the Sunday to decide who will take home the trophy. Europe prevailed 15-13 and the place roared with each hole won let alone when we won a match. Great stuff.