Texel Island.. Where there are more sheep than people

This past weekend I was able to participate in an optional trip to Texel Island, one of the Dutch Islands. On Friday we took the train to Den Burg and then boarded the ferry boat to take us a short way to Texel. Right after arriving, we picked up our bikes and began the 15 minute ride to the house. This was no easy bike ride. Each person had their backpack filled with items for the weekend, as well as having an unexpected sleet storm pelting us in the face. So, we were all relieved to finally make it! That night we went into town and picked up groceries for the weekend. Another "dutch favorite" was bought that night at the grocery store... buttermilk, which is basically spoiled milk. A red flag should have gone up right away after my experience with herring, but a few of use decided to try it. It tasted like a liquid blue cheese.. basically awful!

On Saturday we rode around the island. We were able to see friesian horses, sheep, and a breathtaking landscape. We came upon a man made fort that dated back to the 17th century. It was absolutely beautiful. We continued on our bikes up a hill and were amazed when we reached the top. The hill overlooked the sea. We were able to ride our bikes along the sea to reach our next destination the Maritime and Beachcombers Museum, where we explored for 2 hours. Our last stop, my favorite, was going on a shrimp boat. The boat took us out to sea, and allowed us to try fresh shrimp! It was absolutely freezing, but so well worth it.

On Sunday we went to the Econmare. This museum housed rescued seals, and we were able to see them get fed. This museum was right next to the North Sea, so we spent some time there exploring the dunes and wishing we could get in the water :). One of our directors decided to take the "scenic route" back and it ended up being an hour of biking again with the wind blowing us down. We all hobbled in and gave him a hard time for doing something like that to us! ha!

Overall this trip to Texel has been my favorite experience so far! It was an unforgettable weekend to say the least.