Kampen

View onto one of the old city gates of Kampen city; behind the cyclists and the laternpole you can see the blue of the river Isala, what runs into Lake Isala / IJsselmeer, what's a lake since 1932 when the 30 kms dam was realized and cut off all the cities around the "Dutch fjord" from the North Sea. 
Kampen is named in the annals since 1227, but there is settlement known from 1150. The city has a rich history and as it had (and has still) a harbour from which ships sailed into the East Sea,  trading with Denmark and Sweden etc. it was an important and powerful city in the Middle Ages, like Rotterdam is nowadays. In the 15th C it became one of the Hanseatic cities.

Walking around the city in warm sunny weather, people filled the terraces and I did spot several young men smoking cigars... I wasn't familiar with the fact that Kampen has a tabacco industry since 1815 and produces sigars! They knew that and enjoyed that :-) 
There's so much more to tell about this city; to all Blippers who fancy a visit to the Netherlands... go visit Kampen too!