There is this very nice dunes and heather preserve near Rolde called Balloerveld. Having driven passed it so many times in the past, we decided to have a picnic there one spring weekend. Though Daddy and Ali have cycled there previously the year Aisya was born, this is the first time for Mommy and Aisya.
Balloerveld is very popular with walkers, cyclist and birdwatchers, and it forms part of the network of the National Drente Landscape. It's populated by heather, silver birch and ancient pines. The silver birch is most beautiful in autumn and spring while the heather holds its own in late summer/ early autumn when the entire place is turned purple by its tiny blooms.
We selected a nice shaded spot near the central sand dunes under some ancient pines and hanged out among the pine cones and heather all morning long. Ali recognised it as a "European old growth forest" (in his own words) though to the uninitiated it may look more like a well tended garden with only the odd twigs and broken pine cones littering the ground.
Aisya was fussy at first but later took quite well to the pine cones, heather and the numerous rabbit trails. Mommy only wished we'd been here more often and maybe even export a piece of "this" back to Malaysia for into own backyard. Daddy already felt at home.
We left the outdoors to the confines of home a couple of hours after lunch just in time for the children nap in the car.
