| hoofddorp |
Hoofddorp is a small town (60,000 inhabitants), located some 20 km
from Amsterdam, and very close to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, the Dutch
national airport, which is expanding like mad, driven by the megalomania
of politicians in government and
"
parliament",
at the expense of massive sums of taxpayers' money, and despite the
severe impact on the health of people and environment... :-(
Hoofddorp is the municipal centre of the Haarlemmermeer, one of Holland's
largest pre-20th-century polders (185 sq.km., reclaimed between
1849 and 1852, after the water, swept up by storms, endangered the
cities of Amsterdam and Leiden).
A particularly interesting place to visit about the history of the
Haarlemmermeer polder, is the old pumping station
"
De Cruquius",
one of the three 19th century pumping stations that drained the lake
"Haarlemmermeer", reclaiming the land, and the only one of the three
in which the original steam engine and pumps have been preserved.
As a matter of fact, ground level in the Haarlemmermeer polder is
4 to 5 meters below sea level! So next time you land on Schiphol
Airport you may be aware of the fact that you're in fact landing
well below sea level...
| weather |
Except when bright & sunny, Dutch business as usual...
| location |
The Draverslaan is a small and quiet, almost rustic street, located
near the centre of Hoofddorp. Within a walking distance of only a
few hundred meters you'll find shops (including 3 computer shops),
shopping malls, banks, post office, bus stops, etc.
| get there |
| | car |
On the motorway (A4) take exit Hoofddorp/Aalsmeer.
At the traffic lights turn left (direction Hoofddorp).
Go straight on, passing 2 sets of traffic lights; at the
second set the signs now say direction Heemstede/Haarlem.
Shortly after that second set take exit Badhoevedorp/Zwanenburg.
At the traffic lights, just before the canal, turn left. The road
is named "Hoofdweg".
Straight on along the canal/Hoofdweg for a few hundred meters.
At the traffic lights turn left. The road is called "Burgemeester
Pabstlaan" (you'll pass a Kwik-Fit tyrecenter at right).
At the next crossing turn right: that's the Draverslaan. Nr. 25
is at your left hand; it has a stone sphere in the front garden.
Please do not use the large parking lot next to the house,
even if it's (almost) empty: that's private parking space for
freight trucks.
Should you get lost, give me a phone call.
|
| | bus |
Lots of regional buses stop in Hoofddorp centre (for information
see the
public transportation web site (in Dutch)).
From there it's about 3 minutes walking. Should you get lost,
give me a phone call.
|
| | train |
Take the train to Hoofddorp station (for information see the
journey planner ("Treinplanner") on the Dutch railways web site
(in Dutch
or English).
Then give me a phone call
and I'll pick you up at the station.
|
| | plane |
Sorry, don't have a landing strip, just a
runway
nearby. :-) So you'll have to go to Schiphol Airport;
there give me a
phone call
and I'll pick you up.
|
| coffee |
may already be waiting...
|
| links |
