Discovering the Charm of Zaanse Schans with Gert
During our visit to Amsterdam, we had the privilege of meeting Gert Jansen at the Toren Bar next door to where we were staying. We became friends and still talk to this day. On a Saturday afternoon, he took us to the countryside to visit the windmills of Zaanse Schans.
Zaanse Schans is a neighborhood of Zaandam near Zaandijk, Netherlands. It is best known for its collection of well-preserved historic windmills and houses. We toured two of the windmills, De Kat and De Gekroonde Poelenburg.
De Kat is the only remaining working windmill in the world that makes paint. The mill is in the Zaanse Schans, Zaanstad. The original mill, ‘De Kat,’ was built in 1646 as an oil mill. In 1782, it was destroyed by fire, but it was rapidly rebuilt again. Learn more about this windmill here.
De Gekroonde Poelenburg, or the Young Sheep, is a paltrok mill in Zaandam, North Holland, the Netherlands, restored to working order. As with all Dutch paltrok mills, it is a wind-powered sawmill. If you visit Zaanse Schans, you must stop by the cocoa shop, where you can make hot chocolate from scratch. It's a nice treat on a cold day. Check out the video and pictures below.
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