Living in The Netherlands: Water and Bridges

I would guess that most of my readers live in English speaking countries. So I thought it a nice idea to, every now and then, give you a glimpse into what it is like to live in The Netherlands. First stop: water!

We live in a large (by Dutch standards) town, round the corner from a large canal. There is a bridge we cross often to visit the supermarket and the open air market or to go the metro station. It is a busy canal and the bridge opens at least once every hour to let the ships pass: empty ones on their way back to the locks and the port of Rotterdam, full ones on their way to Delft or inland ports further north. It is with reason that one of the most used excuses for being late at school is: 'de brug was open' (the bridge opened). Here is what the ships look like:

So, we were shocked to hear that a defect had been discovered which made it dangerous to open the bridge, necessitating urgent repairs. Suddenly the bridge stood open permanently, like this:

The small building on the right side of the bridge is the former 'brugwachtershuisje' ('bridgekeeper's house'), now a tiny coffee bar. The bridgekeeper now occupies the new building, just seen on the left of the bridge. From this building he can operate two other bridges as well.

All road traffic had to use other bridges.  For us, it meant about 30 minutes extra walk (though the council did operate a shuttle bus). After a few weeks we heard repairs where going to take longer than expected, and instead of a bus we would get a ferry! 

And here it is (the building above that bridge is also a bridgekeeper's house ). I suppose people in a hurry may dislike it, but we enjoy it. It feels like a tiny holiday every time you board. And also: people talk to each other.

I am sure we will miss it after the bridge is fixed!