Did you know that the (probably) most famous Dutch souvenir: the wooden clogs (Klompen) have been officially "accredited as safety shoes and can withstand almost any penetration including sharp objects and/or concentrated acids". The all-wooden footwear is nowadays mostly used by Dutchmen for working in the garden or in farms.
The Kooijman in Zaanse Schans (north from Amsterdam) still shows the old-fashion way of making the clogs, with 2 machines for having the shoe cut out of one piece of wood! A small walk through the history of clogs welcomes the visitos there. During the week the Dutch were wearing the non-painted clogs, but on Sunday was time for the nice shoes: black clogs for the guys and vanished with flower motives for the women. Some special models like the "Klompenschaats" (the iceskate-clog) or inline-skates-clogs are on display too. Today the choice in the Dutch shops is enormous, the once with windmills are the touristic ones, the typical ones are the yellow-painted clogs.
The collection of creative clogs in Zaanse Schans Klompenmakerij is indeed impressive, here between a clog-boat and the typical wedding Klompen from Marken.
Some tests in Delft this weekend even confirmed that if the clog is big enough, one may enter up to 5 inside (as a proof check the last picture:-)
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3 comments:
I have seen people wearing something that looks like plastic clogs over here in Washington State in their gardens. The wooden one's have such great feeling and flavour to them. Its like taking art with you wherever you may go.
Klompen makes wonderful souvenirs! I have a tiny version of the klompen. Received it as a gift from a colleague.
I like your post here, you really walked us through with these clogs. New info as well... such as "this is for safety"... I never knew that and for almost 2 years in Holland, I haveonly the souvenir version so far... ^^
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