There's quite a lot to see here as well, made all the more special because it is not a popular tourist destination. The largest town in the area is Groningen, which I like a lot, despite not liking its biggest "attraction", the Groningen Museum, currently cursed with a truly awful Philippe Starck exhibit. Walking around the town is a joy though and the center is perfect for drinks and people watching. Nearby Haren has a large botanic garden, somewhat dilapedated, but still impressive. Several of the smaller towns in the area, such as Appingedam or Slochteren, are also well worth a visit.

We spend a day on the northern island of Schiermonnikoog, where cars are restricted. Biking, bird-watching, and beach are the best activities here and all are excellent. Back on the mainland, Rob takes me on a tour of the dykes and polders. The countryside is lovely here and varied, sometimes with wide open spaces cut by canals and sometimes with forested sections between peat and wetlands.

We visit the recreated fortress town of Bourtange, near the German border. We check out an old convent to the south. We tramp through an exhibit of peat art in Barger Compascuum. We see the largest hunebed (stone age burial rock tombs) in Holland near Borger. I learn how to spot tasty mushrooms in the nearby forests. Alie takes me over the German border to the cute harbor town of Ditzum, where the Ems river meets into the Dollard.

There are a few surpises in the area as well. Nearby Tjuchem has a huge statue of Lenin, taken from an East German airport. Some of the inland forests have sand dunes inside. Castles and tall church towers pop up in unexpected places. Large hemp fields are found away the main roads. There's a gay sauna outside of Groningen.

I love getting an insider's look at this peaceful area. We go boating on the lake or down the canals, or bike for long distances, revealing parts of Holland that can only be seen with the help of locals. I get a good, slow look at real Dutch life, far from the tourists of Amsterdam. I eat homemade stambot rauwe andijvie. Best of all, I make two new friends.