We have been living in De Rijp for over 25 years and, yes, we really do live  among windmills and tulips. And canals, dykes, polders,  cheese, wooden shoes, skates, bicycles - everything in fact for which Holland is famous. 

Although it is more than eight years since I created this web page, little has changed.  De Rijp is still the ultimate Dutch village.  There are  windmills in the neighbourhood, notably in the adjoining  Schermer polder, and many of our neighbours still  regard clogs as the most comfortable footwear for working in the garden - until the canals freeze over,  when they exchange their wooden shoes for skates. And every Spring the nearby Beemster polder is a mass  of colour as the tulips come into flower. But there is more.  De Rijp has a lively cultural life and is popular with artists, some of whom live here and others who display their works during the biennial "Kunst op Kamers" which brings art into the living rooms and gardens of houseowners in De Rijp. It is also investing more into displaying its rich historical heritage: the Museum has moved to a new location on the Rechtestraat and there is now a "Haring en Hennep" (herring and hemp) route linking up various sites from De Rijp's golden age.

This site is voluntarily maintained. It started out as a fairly  tongue-in-cheek "essay" about the place where we live, mainly for the benefit of family and friends in other countries. Although it wasn't my intention to update it regularly,  English-language information about De Rijp and its surroundings is still fairly difficult to track down on the Internet, so in response to requests to add and amend the links I have throughly revised the site. Please note though that I do not have information about accommodation, opening times, walking routes, etc.  If you are travelling to the area I recommend that you contact one of the tourist organisations listed on the WWW page.

Tot ziens!

Judith Taylor, De Rijp, July 2004