Texel

We spent today in Texel, a Dutch island I have wanted to visit since I moved to the Netherlands. It is known for its nature, beauty and peace and quiet - the latter in particular being something I miss in the Randstad. It was nice to have the sound of neighbours cutting tiles, hammering and screaming through the garden at each other replaced by silence.

We drove the length of the island, and in some places there really is nothing but farm land and scattered houses. Heerlijk!! There are more sheep on Texel than there are people, so you are more likely to hear ' BAAAAA' than anything else.

But let's start at the beginning. The tourist website for Texel states "The holiday feeling begins on the boat" and it does. Having to take a boat somewhere already makes it feel a little different to your regular day out or weekend away. The boats are operated every half and hour or hour depending on day and season. For a full timetable see the TESO boat service site.

Before you know it you are docked and on Texel and free to explore the island. There is plenty to do here if you like wad-walking, hiking, cycling, walking or lying/playing on the beach.



In fact, Texel has 30 km of beach, and from what we saw at the northerly tip of Texel (near De Cocksdorp) the beach is gorgeous - wide and sandy. From the beach though you do see one of the many oil rigs out in the North Sea, but you can also see the next island in the chain off the Dutch coast.



The Wadden Sea is abundant with nature and life - sea birds, seals, fish and little critters on the bottom of the sea, which are evident at low tide and what makes wadlopen so popular. A two year old in a Bugaboo makes wadlopen a little tricky so we visited the wildlife in Ecomare instead...... later in the week there will be a little more on that.

If you want to explore more about Texel (and if you are looking to explore The Netherlands then boat hopping along the islands is a great start) then visit the tourist board site for Texel in English... and for those still practicing their Dutch.....