OOTMARSUM and Ton Schulten Day

This was Wednesday and designated as Ton Schulten Day. He's a Dutch painter as above and I have loved his work for many years now. I had a calendar once. So at long last I thought we'd travel the day to go see his gallery and museum. This involved travelling to Ootmarsum which is a 2.5- 3 hour train journey to Almelo and then a number 64 bus for 45 minutes to Ootmarsum.
We waited for a train with only one change as some involved as many as 3 or 4 changes and packed our lunch and tea and plenty to read or do for this travel day.

We were just amazed yet again- as we were a few years ago- how MANY bicycles are parked at the station. It's double decker style or double layering this time. There were many many rows just like this all coded so you could find your bike.

We chose a train where we change in The Hague only, it was funny when Miss E realised that Den Haag was the same as The Hague, a city we have visited a few years ago.

Then there were lovely views from the train...

Chatting and reading.

Sleeping.

Playing Scrabble on the i-Pad.

And I sat crocheting a turquoise and blue/greens scarf for my friend Wendy.

And ate grapes as they have no points on the WW eating programme. I have ''lost'' 15 lbs now but accept that I'll be gaining a few over Easter ( chocolate!, roast lamb!) and then also the lovely food in Holland: poffertjes, stroopwafels, rookworst,appel gebak etc)

Then at Almelo we missed the first bus as the sign for the number 64 was apart from all the other buses and to the far right and with the sun on it we could not see it said #64 at first. Then when it whizzed past us we kind of said oh ***. Half an hour wait. Then on the bus there were nice views again:This is TWENTE a county I have never visited before.

At last in Ootmarsum it was warm and sunny and we walked up through the town to the Ton Schulten Museum- he's still alive but this holds all his older works that he didn't wish to part with. Here's Miss Y standing in front of the house.

And just to prove we were really there:It was amazing, quite wonderful and well worth all that travelling! Many colour coded rooms with paintings and some sculptures too. And there's a film to watch about the painter's life lasting about 20 minutes and really interesting.

Outside we enjoyed the sunshine by the main church opposite which Ton grew up as a baker's son and at first entered the seminary. We had ice creams.

A very pretty village or town, the attraction of their home-grown artist has resulted in many more galleries and smart arty creative and colourful dress fashion shops too.

There's one on the far right there but I only looked in , didn't go inside because the kids were ready to go home.

Nice Dutch architecture and traditional dark green paintwork.

Like I said: many other galleries with fun stuff on display.

This is the high street with the Ton Schulten Gallery on the left. This is where you can buy his current paintings.

Couldn't resist this dachshund!

Tulips - well of course to attract the tourist pound?

The the bus ride back to Almelo and the light was really unusual:

How turquoise the sky and how luminous the grass?

I love these older farm houses with their wide bas and angled low roofline.

Yep, we were all very tired by now. Sleepnig even on the bus.

Then from the train: I took many pictures, mainly to stay awake! Here's just a few.

Willows

This is in Hilversum I think?

In all I came home with 300 photos in just 3 days?