The 'Zandwijkse Molen', Almkerk

'Zandwijk' sounds like 'Zand-wike', which in English can be transformed into 'Sandwick' or, you might not know, into 'Sandwich'.  There is still a town called Sandwich in the UK, so you might now have an idea as to the ancient roots of this name.

This was Plan B.  Plan A was a little further on, and the clouds were cooperative, but the traffic on the A27 was not.  I'd been MOOCking while the skies were grey, and they didn't clear till mid-afternoon, but, by then, with the days so short, I was pressed for time.  I hadn't done this mill before because the area can be quite muddy so I was reserving it for dryer weather, but I didn't want to return home empty-handed so I detoured, and it turned out to be a good idea.  I certainly trespassed with this one as the 'Forbidden to Enter' sign was loud and clear on the gate, but there was absolutely no one around, and a 5-second climb put me inside the gate and I could shoot up close.  Also did some panoramic shots but the glare made the pictures a little flashy.  You don't mind this close-up, do you?

The Zandwijk mill was built in 1699, so it's more than 300 years old, and for a long time it drained and maintained the Zandwijk polder.  Now, it's sitting pretty and retired, but still good for shots, no?  If it's useless, why not just tear it down?  Horror of horrors!  Whatever for?  It's not like it's in anyone's way, is it?  All alone there in the middle of the muddy fields...

Some colouring but a lot of MOOCking.  While I would like to squeeze in as much as possible these four short weeks, the topic of the course had become more interesting as well, the more I dug into it.  Sustainability is a serious issue, and comments from a fellow learner from London were very instructive and insightful, and we shared a lot of info and ideas.

Thankful for some hunting time and hunting weather, but doubly thankful for our solar panels as they have cut our energy bills to zero.  Gas costs us nothing now, and energy also nothing, and that's our version of sustainability at this moment.  Now if only some of these windmills could be recycled for sustainability purposes, what a wonderful world it would be!