Most readers here know that I commute regularly between Rotterdam and the crumbly cottage in the far south of the Netherlands. Now, while I try and vary my route as much as possible, I rarely take sidesteps to explore places off the beaten track, mostly because I’m in a hurry to get from A to B.
It does happen now and then, though, when Koos is with me. Since it’s usually him I am hurrying to get home to, the occasions when he travels with me make for a more relaxing ride, and a bit of diversion gives the journey the feeling of a day trip rather than a commute.
Last week was one such occasion, so on the way back from Rotterdam, I mentioned to Koos that I’d never been to Yerseke before. “Well, there’s no time like the present,” he said, amazing me once again with his knowledge of English expressions.
According to Wikipedia, Yerseke is a “small village on the southern shore of the Oosterschelde estuary” and has a population of 6,695 inhabitants. That doesn’t seem very small, but then the Dutch interpretation of cities, towns and villages has always puzzled me.
Essentially, Yerseke is a fishing town and has, predictably, several fish restaurants around its busy harbour area. It also has a row of oyster breeding ponds behind the sea dyke, so these delicacies are a great attraction for those who enjoy eating them. It was grey blustery day, though, so two things prevented us from sampling any of their offerings. The first was the smell of fish, which I can’t bear, and the second was the need to sit outside. That said, others were braver and it was good to see the restaurants open again. Koos did go into one restaurant to see if he could buy some kibbeling (small portions of fish in batter) to take away, but they totally ignored him, so he left without ordering. An odd attitude given that they must be desperate to make up for lost custom during the lockdowns.
We had a pleasant walk around the harbour as I hope the photos below will show. However, our general assessment was that the most appealing parts of Yerseke are its old dock area and its wonderful, long and unspoilt beach.
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| The marina dominates the main tourist spots |
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| But this old dock area with its tidal mudflats is what I really liked. |
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| Low tide reveals where water exits from (I presume) the oyster breeding ponds, but I’m not sure of that. |
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| A closer view of the outlet. |
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| Notice the height of the poles on which the pontoons are fixed. High tides can be very high here, it seems. |
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| This is real |
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| The wide, unspoilt beach |
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| I love the fact there are no huts, kiosks or attractions here. The only points of colour are the bins! |
Although not a very picturesque place, we found Yerseke attractive and could understand why it’s a popular holiday spot. Koos did eventually find his kibbeling at a fishy takeaway further off the main track. He pronounced it to be the best he’d ever eaten, so that’s a great compliment to Yerseke.
Enjoy your weekend allemaal and hopefully the summer will return before my next blog. It seems to have given up trying for the moment.