PANDA Odyssey 2024 Week 29 - 350km
Total Distance: 353 km
Cities/Towns Visited: Zeist, Driebergen, Maarn, Leersum, Veenendaal, Amersfoort, Soest, Barneveld, Apeldoorn, Zwolle, Wijthmen, Kampen, Dronten, Lelystad, Enkhuizen.
Cocktails created: 2
1. Baijiu Kopstootje, Sumventure Flightbar, Utrecht
2. Baijiu Happy Ending, The Dublin Bar, Zwolle
The Diary of the Cycling Days
D1 16th, July, 2024
Another blessed day.
Route: Utrecht-Zeist-Direbergen-Maarn-Leersum-Elst-Veenendaal-Amersfoort-Soest-Utrecht（107km）
⚠️Partially NOT friendly for road bikes with thinner tyres than 700x23C⚠️
Today, the weather played a whimsical symphony; first, it baked me under a relentless sun, then drenched me in a sudden downpour, only to repeat the performance with a stubborn persistence. Yet, such meteorological caprices are no longer novel to me. They say to adopt the Dutch disposition, one must stroll through rain showers from light to moderate without a hint of rush, embodying the very essence of nonchalance. And so, I did precisely that.
In the midst of these elemental fluctuations, I made a fortuitous stop at Mon-Chouette, a quaint café offering simple sustenance for the weary traveler. Would you believe it? Amidst the torrents, I indulged in a robust double espresso, which proved a perfect interlude. No sooner had the rain paused than I resumed my journey atop my bicycle, cunningly evading another watery onslaught.
The path I traversed is ideal for a day’s ride on a gravel bike, a warning to those sporting the slender tires of a traditional road bike—beware, for the digital cartographers of Google hold little regard for the nuances between a road bike and its rugged cousins, including gravel bike, mountain bike and even downhill bike.
The path that Google might lead you to is here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/UieYaSZw3XjBSebg9 (full of thorny plants.)
My journey led me through a series of six liquor stores, culminating in a visit to Sumventure Flightbar, a cocktail den nestled to the north of the old center of Utrecht. Here, the barkeep, an inventive soul named Evan de With, introduced me to his new creation: the Baijiu Kopstootje, a spirited blend featuring the fiery essence of Baijiu. Such an exotic potion was a fitting end to a day marked by both meteorological and spirited adventures.
Read more details of the Baijiu Cocktail in Utrecht:
Hans Ngo Wurfbain
D2 17th, July, 2024
Route: Utrecht-Leersum-Barneveld-Apeldoorn-Zwolle-Wijthmen
Distance: 135 km
Leersum
Due to the advice from the shopkeeper of Liquor Store King William in Leersum, I expect to meet the owner today. So I decide to go on the same route yesterday to meet the owner of King William. I am very excited on the way to King William, because it is said that this liquor store has been there since 1561. The building of Slijterij King William is a part of a church. However, I don't have the chance to meet the owner, because he is too busy, and the shopkeeper tells me sorry for many times. I understand that they could not contact me as I didn't leave a name card yesterday. With a bit of irritation and disappointment, I walk out of the liquor store, looking up to the blue sky, and I say to myself, why not go further? Don't waste time in something that you could not change to any better. I look up in the Google Map, then I decide to end up in Zwolle, via Barneveld and Apeldoorn.
Barneveld
Barneveld is a famous chicken farming area, some of the chicken farm could easily keep up to 120,000 chickens. And there is also a Dutch Poultry Museum, where you can learn everything about a chicken and egg. The local liquor store owner asks me to leave him some Baijiu sample, and after knowing my family name Wurfbain, he tells me knows another 2 Wurfbains in his life. He will try to connect me with the other Wurfbains.
Apeldoorn
Apeldoorn is a nice city, one of most important cities in Gelderland, along side with Zutphen and Deventer in the area. And the liquor store Slijterij de Cognactheek Apeldoorn is selling our SHUNTUN Baijiu, while it is one of most professional brandy dealers in the Netherlands. Slijterij de Cognactheek is organising a lot of tasting events themselves. The tasting room of Slijterij de Cognactheek is fairly amazing with hundreds of brandy and whiskeys, and now, there is one more drink: Shuntun Baijiu, the 1st Baijiu brand from China has been delivered to local liquor stores owned by Dutch by a Chinese cyclist.
Zwolle
Zwolle is a city in the northeastern Netherlands, serving as the capital of the province of Overijssel. Known for its rich history and vibrant cultural scene, Zwolle offers a blend of old-world charm and modern amenities. The city boasts well-preserved medieval architecture, including the Gothic-style Sassenpoort gate and the majestic St. Michael’s Church, which dates back to the 15th century.
Zwolle is also famous for its annual events and festivals, such as the Blauwvingerdagen (Blue Fingers Days) market and the Zwolle International Guitar Festival. The city’s culinary scene is highlighted by De Librije, a Michelin three-star restaurant renowned for its innovative cuisine.
In addition to its historical and cultural attractions, Zwolle features numerous parks and green spaces, making it an ideal destination for outdoor activities. The city’s strategic location along the IJssel River and its proximity to other major Dutch cities make it a convenient and attractive place to visit or reside.
You can find Shuntun Baijiu in Zwolle at Wijnkoperij Bartels, which is best known liquor store in the city.
The Dublin House in Zwolle
As I arrive at Zwolle around 20:00, I really want something to drink. Then I walk into the best bar and restaurant in Zwolle, the Dublin House. In the Lucas Bols Bartender Competition 2024, the silver medal and bronze medal were both taken by the bartenders from Zwolle, and one of them is from the Dublin House, while the other one is from Peacock Bar, the first speak easy bar in Zwolle.
Kevin Marchant is the Silver Medalist of Lucas Bols Bartender Competition in Benelux 2024. He created a new Baijiu Cocktail called: Happy Ending. After I tried the cocktail, the peachy fruity baijiu cocktail made my day perfect ending with a great drink. I joked with Kevin, "you made me a Happy Ending!"
All boys are laughing! Oh, yeah, this is a Happy Ending, especially after cycling from Utrecht to Zwolle, through the forest and sand dunes.
Read More About Happy Ending 👇
Hans Ngo Wurfbain
The Wood Hut
My brother Michiel saw my photos of my trip on the social media, and then he tells about his friend, Lyoeske, in Zwolle. After a while, he sends me his friend's contact and tells me I am welcome to join his friends in the countryside.
After saying goodbye to Kevin, Oisin, Andrea and Valentijn in The Dublin House, I go on cycling on the fietspad towards the village Wijthmen. The view in the countryside near Zwolle in the sunset is great. I couldn't help letting go both of my hands away from the handlebar and sit up straight to enjoy the breeze with the light smell of green grass and tinny bit of sour of koeienstront(cow shit), which once again confirms one fact: I am no longer in a city, and I am in the artificial nature with real air without heavy industry. So, do you believe it? Since I was living a city of 23 million people in China, I enjoy the sour smell of cow shit somehow, once a while, I want to smell it, because the civilised air, no matter in Amsterdam, or Chengdu, or Los Angles, or Paris, or Berlin, smells like rotten rust with mold.
I join with Lyoeske and her boyfriend in the end. Lyoeske gets me the food and drink, and of course, as a Chinese Dionysus on a Bicycle, I pull out a bottle of Chinese Baijiu on the table. A sip of Baijiu brings me back to the land where I am from. Jan enjoys Baijiu, because he likes funky rum too.
After eating, they settle me in a wood hut in the garden. I love it so much. Taking some notes, reflecting about conversations, then I go to bed. All the water bottles I see are Zuidam Jenever bottles.
D3 18th, July, 2024
Route: Wijthmen - Zwolle - Kampen - Dronte-Zuid - Lelystad - Enkhuizen
Distance: 101 km
Wijthmen
Wijthmen is a village, located in the province of Overijssel, approximately 6 kilometers east of the largest city in the province, Zwolle. It is a agricultural area, you will see miles and miles of connected fields, decorated with cows and lambs.
In the morning, while I have my breakfast, Lyoeske introduces me to her father, Piet. He is a Christian deeply influenced by Calvinism. He wears Dutch dairy farmer wooden shoes—well, not exactly a pair, but one new and one old shoe. His reasoning is that if one shoe wears out, it should be replaced with a new one, while the other, still in good condition, should continue to be used. I think this is really cool. In a big city, such a practice would be a statement in support of the SDGs and might even face criticism from commercial entities, as the world today encourages consumerism—consume, consume, consume, especially impulsive and meaningless consumption, even consumption with a high sense of moral satisfaction. However, I believe that most consumption is merely a waste of resources and increases our carbon footprint. It's impossible to reduce existing carbon emissions through new consumption. I told Piet, "I truly admire you. In contrast, I lack any trace of Calvinist influence because my bicycle is too high-end..." I now greatly miss the steel-framed road bike I bought three years ago for just 90 euros.
After patching my rear tyre, Piet takes me to his garage to show me his bike, which is almost 20-year old. And then he showed me the distilling port parts in the garage, maybe we can distill some fermented fruit wine with the fruits in the garden in future.
Kampen
I ride 25 km northwest to Kampen via Zwolle. Kampen is a city by the river IJssel. The history of Kampen dates back to 13th century. It was a prominent member of the Hanseatic League, which fostered trade across Northern Europe. The city thrived during the Middle Ages as a center of commerce and shipbuilding. Notable historical events include the construction of its iconic city gates and the 1572 capture by the Geuzen during the Eighty Years’ War. Kampen has produced several notable figures, including theologian Albertus Risaeus and Renaissance scholar Johan van Suchtelen.
In Kampen, I visit the liquor store Slijterij Post, and the owner Maarten voor de Poorte loves unique flavours. Our conversation is fruitful, and Kampen becomes the 27th city selling Baijiu in the Netherlands. I make a more step of my mission: To ensure anyone on this planet is able to get a bottle of Baijiu whenever he or she needs one.
Dronte and Lelystad
After Kampen, I cycle toward the province of Flevoland, the youngest province in the Netherlands, created through an ambitious land reclamation project from the Ijsselmeer, formerly known as Zuiderzee. This project began in the early 20th century, with the province officially established in 1986. The engineering feats of the Zuiderzee Works, including the Afsluitdijk and the creation of polders such as the Noordoostpolder and Flevopolder, transformed water into land, making Flevoland a testament to Dutch ingenuity in water management and land reclamation. The area that is now Flevoland was underwater until the mid-20th century, making its history unique and modern.
Around Dronte, you can see a lot of wildlife, especially all kinds of birds. I see a lot of hikers on the paths in the tall grass along the cycling paths, most of them carry a telescopes around their necks. Also, I saw a lot of slugs on the road. Up to the slugs, I write about it in a separate article, because I have a lot to talk about slugs.
My first visit to Lelystad was during the Xmas holiday 2019 with my Egyptian classmate for shopping at the Outlet by the Lake IJsselmeer. Today, it is so popular, but it is less crowed than before. All the shops are filled up with unsold products from the cities' shopping mall and with at least 2 more layers of re-pricing stickers. Somehow the Outlets in Lelystad is better than the one in Roermond, because people just buy discounted branded stuff there, no matter tourists or the local, while the outlets in Roermond not only sells discounted products but also killed the local stores. In Roermond, the Outlets is on the northside of the high way. If you walk from Outlets in Roermond towards to NS Train Station, you can see the old shops in the original old town are mostly closed.
IJsselmeer and Enkhuizen
Originally I was about going to Amsterdam from Lelytad and then took train to Utrecht. But the view of the road from Lelystad to Enkhuizen trigger me to go Northwest.
The road cutting through IJsselmeer from Lelystad to Enkhuizen is beautiful and windy. You can see a lot of giant wind power generators along the way. The birds are gliding in the air against the wind, as if they are fixed in the sky. The shores of the road are mostly closed to the public, but there are people from near places camping there and enjoying the sunshine totally naked. From Lelystad, it is 31 km across the lake to Enkhuizen, a city with a history dating back to the 14th century. It flourished during the Dutch Golden Age as a major fishing and trading port. Enkhuizen was a prominent member of the Dutch East India Company (VOC), and its prosperity is reflected in the many historic buildings and structures that remain today. Notable historical events include the city’s role in the Eighty Years’ War and its subsequent economic decline in the 18th century when trade routes shifted.
My rear tyre is leaking, and I have to pump it up every 20 kilometers. I pray not to have a flat tire in the middle of the lake, as it is hard to put the tire beads back into right position without soapy water and good air pump. The rear tire lasts till I reach Brouwerij de Werf, a beer brewery with a restaurant, and the terrace in the back is very nice.
I treat myself with a big size fruity beer and find my rear tire dead after the beer. The message tells me to go home. Luckily there is direct Intercity from Enkhuizen to Utrecht, it takes a bout 90 mins.