Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip: The Netherlands

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 31, Monday – Road between Rotterdam and Amsterdam [the Netherlands] 

Drove around to see ruins and building being done.  Started on way to Amsterdam, arriving there at 12 noon.  Had difficulty finding hotel--streets narrow, some one way, cyclists driving one crazy.  Ate lunch (duck with mushrooms) at Victoria* where we are staying.  After lunch checked American Express then went on water tour of Amsterdam.  Very interesting sights were seen.  Even had to get up & go to front of boat under a bridge since water level was so high there.  Went out for dinner and then came back & went to bed.

* According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends spent this night at the Victoria Hotel in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.


The next two photos show scenes Mom and her friends might have seen on their water tour of Amsterdam, as these photos were taken in 1953:

Nederlands: Aalsmeerderveerhuis: Sloterkade 21 en 22 [1953]  / Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed [Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands] / CC-BY-SA-3.0-nl

Voorgevels [Façades] - Amsterdam [1953] / Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed
[Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands], Gerard (G.  J.) Dukker / CC-BY-SA-3.0-nl

Here is the Victoria Hotel, where Mom and her friends stayed.  The photo was taken in July 1979, but the hotel, built in 1890, is still there today.

[Victoria Hotel,] Overzicht [Overview] - Amsterdam [July 1979] / Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed
[Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands] / CC-BY-SA-3.0-nl

Looks like bicycles are still an issue in Amsterdam.  This photo was taken near the entrance to the Victoria Hotel in 2009:

Amsterdam Zentrum [Center] [2009] / Sterilgutassistentin / CC-BY-SA-3.0

This is the 24th in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip: Begonia Festival

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 30, Sunday – Road between Bruges [Belgium] and Rotterdam, the Netherlands

Went to Mass at Bruges Cathedral--couldn't understand sermon--knelt in cane bottom chair.  Drove to Ghent & Antwerp where we lunched.  On other side of Antwerp went through customs (immigration).  Drove into Rotterdam and found place to stay with a private bath.*  Hallelujah!  Joye and I walked around and saw the ruins of the flood (very bad), had sandwiches at a tea room and came back to hotel to hang out a terrific washing.  Talked to an English woman in tea room and found that English don't like food either.  Saw Begonia Festival in Lochristi [Belgium] today - very beautiful.

* According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends spent this night at the Atlanta Hotel in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Above left: [Stained glass window in] St. Salvators [Bruges Cathedral, 18 September 2012] / Steve Collis / CC-BY-2.0

Above right: Hotel Atlanta Rotterdam [circa 1935] / Public domain 

The Begonia Festival began in 1946 as a way for local begonia growers to make use of the flowers (they are raising the flowers to sell the tubers to gardeners).
The photos above and to the left were taken by my mother.

The flood my mother refers to was the North Sea flood of January 31 - February 1, 1953, which was most devastating to the Netherlands, with 1,836 deaths and extensive property damage.


This is the 23rd in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.


© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip: Ferry from Dover, England, to Bruges, Belgium

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 29, Saturday – Road between Canterbury, England and Bruges, Belgium

Drove into Dover [England] and tried to locate American Express man--he didn't arrive before 10:10 so had to leave--left forwarding address.  Made arrangements for passage to Ostend [Belgium]--cost £16 3d for car and us.  Had dinner on boat*--food good--things looking up.  Arrived at Ostend--got through customs without their checking luggage again, and drove to Bruges.  Found room in a hotel without a bath for $3 for all three.**  Walked around town a little bit--finally ate at a cafe at the Hotel de Londres where food was very good.  Service exceptional.  Lights went off for 45 minutes in whole town.***

* The ferry was probably the Prinses Josephine Charlotte (II) of the Belgian ferry operators Regie voor Maritiem Transport (RMT).  The ferry service quit operating a few years after the Channel Tunnel between Dover, England, and Calais, France opened in 1994.

** According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother spent this night at the Hotel Roode Leeuw in Bruges, Belgium.

***My mother mentioned this again in the "INCIDENTS" section of the trip diary:

In Bruges, whole town's lights went off for 45 minutes.  Quite strange--thought an air raid or something.

No copyright friendly images available for this post either, so here is another map, of the approximate route from Chichester, England, to Bruges, Belgium:

This is the 22nd in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Those Places Thursday: Mom's 1953 Europe Trip - Canterbury

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 28, Friday – Road between Chichester and Canterbury [England]

Left Chichester around 10 a.m. driving northeast to Canterbury.  Stopped for lunch at Ashford.  Found out that Bovril was a beef extract--comes in concentrated form to which water is added.  Got into Canterbury around 3 and found a room at a guest house.*  Went through the Cathedral--saw where Thomas a Becket was murdered.  After dinner we had coffee in drawing room with an English woman who was a resident.  Enjoyed talking to her. 

* According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother spent this night at the Westgate Court Guest House in Canterbury, England.

In the "INCIDENTS" section of the trip diary, my mother wrote:

In Canterbury we carried an old lady's bags upstairs for her. (They weighed a ton.)  We were told afterward that she had a title. 

Canterbury Cathedral - Portal Nave Cross-spire, September 2005 / Hans Musil / CC BY-SA 3.0

"Joye [Murphy] & Gerrie [Guokas] having tea in Canterbury at residence (hotel)," [August 28, 1953] / Sylvia John

This is the 21st in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.


© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip: Errand Day

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 27, Thursday – Road between Bristol and Chichester [England]

After breakfast, drove to Southampton where we got rid of packages, made reservations for car on Ostend ferry for Saturday by long distance to London, and did a few other shopping chores.  Left S/hampton around 3:00 and drove on to Chichester where we got rooms in separate hotels because we were afraid situation might be worse along road.  I spent the night in a single that cost 25 shillings.* 

'
* According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother spent this night at the Ship Hotel in Chichester, England. 

 No copyright friendly images available, so here is another map, of the approximate route from Dublin/Dún Laoghaire, Ireland, to Holyhead, Wales, to Chichester, England:

This is the twentieth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Travel Tuesday: Mom's 1953 Europe Trip - Wales

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 26, Wednesday – Road between Holyhead  [Wales] and Bristol, [England]

Arrived in Holyhead at 11:45.  Slept on steamer until 7 a.m., got off, had breakfast, & watched them unload car.  Drove through mountains in Wales which were beautiful.  Also drove through Severn River valley which looked lush and green.  Had lunch in Wales on a small hill - cheese, sardines, crackers, olives, tomato juice.  Very tasty, although almost froze to death.  Drove on into Bristol to spend night.*

* According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends stayed at Hawthorns Hotel in Bristol, England this night.

Part of the River Severn floodplain at Caersws [Wales, 25 August 2010] / © Jeremy Bolwell / CC BY-SA 2.0

The Hawthorns, University of Bristol [29 April 2008, cropped] / Francium12 / released to public domain

The Hawthorns Hotel was originally a row of Victorian villas built in 1888, altered and extended, and joined together with infills constructed in the early 1950s (and one in the 1960s).  It has been a residence hall at the University of Bristol since 1991.


This is the nineteenth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.


© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mappy Monday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip - Last Day in Éire

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 25, Tuesday – Dublin, Éire

Left Dún Laoghaire & went into Dublin to see about shipping car.  Made reservation & went shopping* for tweeds - bought 2 pieces - one gray with blue flecks & yellow flecks in it for Fred** -- one brown with red & white flecks for Charles.**  Had car lubricated & oil changed.  Also tires rotated.  Finally got car on boat - it cost about 12 pounds.  Our passage also cost about 2 pounds each.  These crossings are quite expensive -- at least more than I thought.  Rode train back to Dún Laoghaire where we caught steamer*** for Holyhead [Wales].

* From the PURCHASES section of the trip diary, it indicates Mom bought two cuts, each 4.5 yards, of Donegal tweeds from O'Beirne & Fitzgibbon in Dublin.

** Fred is my dad, Frederick Henry Pape, who my mother was dating at the time.  Charles is my uncle, Charles Guokas III, Mom's brother.

*** According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends spent the night on the steamship Hibernia between Dún Laoghaire and Holyhead this night.

Here are maps showing the places mentioned and rough routes from Edinburg, Scotland to Portrush, Ireland, and from the Giant's Causeway (near Portrush) to Dún Laoghaire (near Dublin):

This is the eighteenth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Sentimental Sunday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip - Irish Milk Carts

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 24, Monday – Road between Limerick and Dún Laoghaire, [Éire]

Drove to Tipperary and Clonmel and thence north to Dublin.  Went through some pretty countryside - especially noticed milk carts drawn by donkeys.  Children without socks on and barefoot.  Dirty faces.  Couldn't get place to stay in Dublin so drove to Dún Laoghaire & after much looking & telephoning managed to get room on seaside.*  Checked with boat sailings and have decided to go to Holyhead on night boat which will save hotel bill.

* According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends stayed at the Ardeen Hotel in Dún Laoghaire this night.

Irish Boys and Milk Cart, October 1962 / Don O' Brien / CC BY 2.0

This is the seventeenth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Sentimental Sunday: Happy Birthday to My Sweetie!

Mark with his sisters June and Ann on Mark's birthday in 1954, in Pensacola, Florida.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mom's Trip to Europe, 1953: Lough Mask and Limerick

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 23, Sunday – Road between Ballyshannon and Limerick, [Éire]

Went to Mass at Ballyshannon.  Drove through mist thru counties Sligo & Mayo.  Lunched beside Lough Mask.  Saw plenty of peat fields, some mountains, and lots of loughs.*  Had tea in Galway.  Drove to Limerick and spent night.**

Impressions - countryside more messy than England - plenty of rock fences marking about 1 acre, some beautiful shrubs with red blossoms, a few mountains, people going long distances to Mass, and not all greenness of country.

* A lough (or loch) is a lake.

** According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends stayed at the National Hotel in Limerick this night.

Lakeside panorama [southernmost part of Lough Mask, 6 February 2006] / Mark Grealish / CC BY-NC 2.0

A prospect of Lough Mask, ["on a rather misty day," 9 May 2011] / © Oliver Dixon / CC BY-SA 2.0

Photograph of the old National Hotel, Baker Place, circa 1988 / Joe Ranson / freely available from the Limerick Archives

This is the sixteenth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Mom's Trip to Europe, 1953: Giant's Causeway and Belleek Ware

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 22, Saturday – Road between Giant's Causeway and Ballyshannon, Éire

Causeway terrific.  It was raining & wind howling which made it even more interesting.  Sat in wishing seat and made a wish.  Drove to Londonderry & lunched.  Decided to drive to Belleek to get china -- got through British customs O.K. -- at Éire customs they had to contact man in Ballyshannon & get him to wait as after 5 P.M. he wouldn't have been on duty until Monday morning.  Man waited & drove into Ballyshannon where I got two cream & sugars and 1 dish of Irish Belleek for only £1.6/6.*

* From the PURCHASES section of the trip diary, it indicates Mom bought 5 pieces of Belleek ware at P. B. Stephens & Co. in Ballyshannon.

According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends stayed at the Commercial Hotel in Ballyshannon this night.

Giant's Causeway [July] 1968 / © Duncan David McColl / CC BY-SA 2.0

The Giant's Causeway is a popular tourist attraction in Ireland.  It's a coastal area with about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns that were created by volcanic activity.  There are a lot of stories and legends associated with the formations.  One area has been called the Wishing Chair because of its shape, similar to a throne.  Apparently, in the past, only ladies were allowed to sit there to make a wish.

Wishing Chair - Giant's Causeway, 1912 / W. J. Topley Studios - Canada. Patent and Copyright Office; Library and Archives Canada / CC BY 2.0

Wishing Chair - sign identifying the formation, 1 April 2013 / Elizabethe / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Irish Belleek china, 3 August 2011 / Abby flat-coat / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

The Belleek pottery was started in 1857 or 1858, and is still in existence today.  It's known for its "porcelain that is characterized by its thinness, [and] slightly iridescent surface."

The next time I am at my parents' home, I need to see if my mother still has her Belleek ware.

This is the fifteenth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.


© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Those Places Thursday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip - Ulster, Éire

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 21, Friday – Road between Larne and Giant's Causeway

Drove to Belfast where we got papers for trip through Éire.*  Shopped** and did I go hog wild.  Bought a linen damask tablecloth with 12 napkins, 12 salmon [linen] guest towels, and a [linen] luncheon set.  About 60 dollars worth.  Am I pleased.  Also bought a green linen place mat set.  Left Belfast and drove to Giant's Causeway.  Hotel too expensive so drove on to Portrush which is beautiful seacoast town.  Actually saw people bowling on green.

* According to Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition, Éire is:

1. the Irish Gaelic name for Ireland, and 
2. a former official name (1937–49) for Republic of Ireland.

** From the PURCHASES section, it indicates Mom bought these items at Robinson & Cleaver, and spent £26.36/12.  All of the items were linen.

According to the "HOTELS STOPPED AT" section of the trip diary, my mother and her friends stayed at the Cloughcor Hotel in Portrush this night.

Belfast: Robinson & Cleaver building, 11 November 2007 / © Chris Downer / CC BY-SA 2.0

Robinson and Cleaver originally opened in 1874, and moved to this location pictured, at the corner of Donegall Place and Donegall Square North in Belfast, when the building was completed in 1888. Originally a linen warehouse, the building had six stories, a clock tower, copper domes, and 50 stone busts of supposed patrons such as Queen Victoria and the Emperor and Empress of Germany, plus symbolic references to distant marketplaces.  As Belfast's most exclusive department store, it was famous for its Irish linens and excellent service.  Sadly, the store closed in 1984, and its elegant interior marble staircase was auctioned off and can now be found at Ballyedmond Castle, Rostrevor, County Down.

Former Robinson & Cleaver, Belfast (3) - store’s name, at roof level, on the Donegall Place side, 11 October 2009 / © Albert Bridge / CC BY-SA 2.0

Former Robinson & Cleaver building, Belfast (2) - exceptionally rich in detail., this is but a sample of what is to be seen on the Donegall Square North façade, 20 May 2007 / © Albert Bridge / CC BY-SA 2.0

Portrush harbour, 23 September 2013 [cropped] / © Gareth James / CC BY-SA 2.0

This is the fourteenth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

(Not-So-) Wordless Wednesday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip - Leaving Scotland

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 18, 19, & 20 – Road between Bridge of Allan and Larne, Ulster [2 pages]

Next morning [Aug. 20] got up and drove to Stranraer where we waited until 5:15 for car ferry to leave. Also ate lunch on road. Ferry trip 2.5 hours arrived in Larne and spent night at Kings Arms Inn in Larne.

Practically our whole trip through Scotland was in rain so therefore do not have many pictures.

Country very beautiful, especially heather topped hills, black headed sheep, carrot topped kids who were adorable, friendliness of people. 

Enjoyed stay in Scotland very much.

High Street, Stranraer 5 June 2008 /  © Rose and Trev Clough / CC BY-SA 2.0

 1500 feet high! above Larne town. Taken during a helicopter trip over Larne; image details  include Larne Town/Harbour in the foreground, European Highlander (car ferry) departing Larne for Cairnryan. Mid picture; Ballylumford Oil Jetties and Power Station,and Islandmagee, 20 September 2003 / © Wilson Adams / CC BY-SA 2.0

Excursion party, Kings Arms Hotel, Larne, Co. Antrim / National Library of Ireland / No known copyright restrictions

This is the thirteenth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.

Travel Tuesday: Mom's 1953 Europe Road Trip - Scotland

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "PLACES VISITED" section:

August 18, 19, & 20 – Road between Bridge of Allan and Larne, Ulster [2 pages]

Next day [Aug 19] drove through Trossachs and to Loch Katrine, then went north and drove along side of Loch Lomond, where we had lunch. Drove through Glasgow and stopped for night at Symington—place called Half Way Hotel. Very nice.

 The Trossachs 26 July 2013 / Remi Mathis (Own work) / CC-BY-SA-3.0

Loch Katrine October 2000, taken just above Stronachlachar, looking eastward the length of the loch
which supplies Glasgow with drinking water.  / ©  Richard Webb / CC BY-SA 2.0

View of Loch Lomond, 15 December 2005 / Abubakr Hussain, Mohammed-Hayat Ashrafi, Maaz Farooq,
 Farmaan Akhtar, Mohammed Shah / CC-BY-SA-2.5

1960s Glasgow - George Square in 1966 / © Gerald England / CC-BY-SA-2.0 

Symington War Memorial, 10 March 2011
/ Rosser1954 Roger Griffith (Own work) / CC-BY-SA-3.0 or GFDL

This is the twelfth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.