Riding the cycle paths of Zwolle, NL - Part Two

[@Brutalion82]

What a beautiful city! Especially the almost car free centre. Would love to go there someday!

[@ageoflove1980]

Its quite typical for most medium sized Dutch towns. Places like Haarlem, Alkmaar, Leiden, Delft, Den Bosch, Amersfoort and Groningen (and others :D ) look very similar on a sunday morning. Its just was the style of city building in the 16th and 17th century, thats the period where the classic Dutch towns got their curent shape. The country was never heavily indutrialized like England, Belgium and Germany were, so hardly anything needed te be removed to make place for factories and such.

[@ActiveTowns]

Yes, indeed. Thanks so much for tuning in. Cheers! John

[@buddy1155]

This is a very typical Dutch city, you can find many other cities like this. For some reason people show Amsterdam a lot for its bike friendliness but it is definitely in the top 5 most hostile Dutch cities for bikes.

[@e-BikeLife]

What a nice wake up! Here in Yakima, at 6 in the morning with my coffee watching as you ride through the streets of one of our favorite stops this past summer. One of our favorite memories was taking shelter during a severe windstorm in Van der Velde Boeken Zwolle a hip bookstore housed in a 15th-century church with many Dutch & English titles, tours & a brasserie.

[@ActiveTowns]

Yay! So delighted that you enjoyed the video and that prompted some cherished memories. Cheers! John

[@LeafHuntress]

Hey, lovely to continue the journey. The point where you ended your video, an old street meant for cars is *really* due for an update, hence the substandard cycling features.(remember; ontvlechten!) I think the map had you turn one street sooner, onto the Philosophenallee, a cars as guest street which runs next to a canal* towards a lovely windmill. It's such a nice relaxing street that NJB live uses it as channel header. On the allee is the bicycle roundabout, which BicycleDutch wrote about on his blog about the cycling union's cycling city contest.(fietersbond - fietsstad) When you spoke about the width of some streets & needed to make a turn because you missed it, there on the right hand side when you exit that small alley is Pigalle, which serves breakfast, without reservation early on Sundays. But yeah, while Zwolle itself is a relatively liberal island, it is "surrounded" by but not _part_ of the bible belt & it shows on days like these. It took decades for shops to be able to open on rest days. The infamous Staphorst to the north & parts of the Veluwe to the south are very, very orthodox. It was funny that you swerved a loud group of people & then went on to talk about how quiet it was. To the right of that group was eetcafé De Kleine, which as the name suggests has stuff to eat. Some guys were sitting outside, but i wouldn't guarantee a meal on a Sunday morning. I also spotted that Bagels & Beans was open a little bit further on, they're good. Their pecan pie is yummy. * it _is_ an actual canal, formerly used to transport seeds via ships to the mills to make oil. Unlike the times you spoke about canals which were parts of the moat surrounding the city for defence.(kasteelgracht = castle moat , stadsgracht = city moat)

[@ActiveTowns]

Thanks for tuning in and all the great info. Yeah, it's funny how many places were actually open that I passed up because I was back in filming mode and convinced myself that I wasn't all that hungry. hehe 🤣

[@ageoflove1980]

I hope you also made it to Kampen, very close to Zwolle. Its a very underrated town but its mindblowingly beautiful, especially the old city gates, there are several still completely intact. Its a town, like Zwolle and a couple of others along the IJssel river, that was part of the Hanseatic League and that period it grew very wealthy as a part of this first-of-a-kind international maritime trade alliance.

[@ActiveTowns]

Oh wow! I really appreciate the info on Kampen. I wasn't able to visit on this trip. I will put it on my list for the future. Thanks for watching. Cheers! John

[@e-BikeLife]

I can attest to how enjoyable Kampen is. We took the train there for a day rip from Zwolle.@@ActiveTowns

[@ActiveTowns]

@@e-BikeLife Cool! 😁

[@FacelessJanus]

Did not know, you visited my home town. Next time let me know, I could show you around. From landmarks to bike lanes and anything between. There are quite a few things to see in regard to bicycling, so do not hesitate to ask.

[@ActiveTowns]

Yes! Next time. This was a rather last minute decision. The day before I was in Paris, and when I woke up that Sunday morning, I was like "well =, where shall I go today?" hehe 🤣

[@pavld335]

What a beautiful place.

[@ActiveTowns]

It really is! 😀

[@johansilwouden3403]

Told you to go to Mcdonalds for breakfast! 😂 I am old enough to remember the traffic mess it was in the 70s and 80s! All those small roads full of cars, looking for a parking spot in the old town center, and full-sized busses from the city transit company making their way through the old city! In the area where you crossed the bridge to that nice restaurant where you had to reserve, it was all rundown warehouses, with all kinds of shady shops, and an enormous parking lot. We often went there on Sundays to dine at my mother's favourite chinese restaurant. The only day that you could easily park your car! Now there is a large building left from this bridge with underground parking, big box stores like Mediamarkt at ground level and dozens of nice ( and Unfortunately expensive) appartments on top. At 7.42, the nice square behind the church, it was always a sea of parked cars well into the 90s. Now it has outdoor seating from the various bars and restaurants in the area. Next to the "Provinciehuis", the seat of the provincial government of the province of Overijssel, there is free parking during the weekends. It is about 10 minutes walking to the old town center. Apparently the hard-working governor and his officials do not work during weekends......😂

[@ActiveTowns]

lol 🤣 Wow! Yeah, I'll be sure to track down some of those historical photos if I ever do an in depth profile video on the city.

[@colleenharrison2942]

Beautiful city.

[@ActiveTowns]

It really is! 😀

[@knarf_on_a_bike]

Streets with no cars. So beautiful and quiet!

[@ActiveTowns]

Yep, seeing is believing. And I’m hearing that in the 70s these streets were clogged with cars. So there’s more validation that change is possible.

[@ratbert1]

Excellent video, what a lovely city.

[@ActiveTowns]

Thanks so much! It sure is. Cheers! John

[@GurHaenouasHazourem]

Wow! This one was impecable. Downloading. I'm hoping and working towards employing some of the principles observed here in my city. I find that you have amassed a valuable archive of footage from these remarkable walkable places that serve as an eloquent example of how to solve the toxic mess that most of our cities have become. Against these images, there are no arguments! Once you see them, you'll tend to see your normal asphaltic streets with plenty of reserves and opposition, to put it mildly, having the tools to understand that another way is possible. The only way forward is walkability, pedestrianization, zoning that prioritizes active travels. Thanks! Until later...

[@ActiveTowns]

You are quite welcome. Delighted that you are finding these helpful. Yeah, share with gusto. Hehe 😂 Cheers! John

[@gerarddekoe4358]

Zwolle is part of the bible belt, so most shops en cafés are closed on sunday

[@markcramer14]

I was wondering how people do not go out and get fresh bread on a Sunday morning. Where I am, the boulangerie is sacred, and you can always got something for breakfast. Thanks for explaining that this is the bible belt.

[@ActiveTowns]

Ah, gotcha.😀 Thanks for the info and for tuning in. I hope you are enjoying the Channel. Cheers! John

[@ukrytykrytyk8477]

I enjoy so much watching the Netherlands videos. Reminds me of my own holiday there. Side question, what bike have you ridden there because it sounds quite rattly and looks bumpy. On the contrary the filming equipment seems super stabile!

[@ActiveTowns]

Yay! Thanks so much for tuning in. Delighted that you enjoy these "ride along videos." I am on my old Brompton folding bike hence it is a little louder* on the rougher surfaces than a "normal" bike. The camera is a GoPro Hero Black 9 and has very good stabilization. I've recently upgraded to the GoPro Hero Black 12 which has even better stabilization and much better color and resolution. I've only posted one video with that camera thus far: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZoO4p4quq5usgpY * Note: I needed replace quite a few worn out parts on the bike after this trip and now it rolls a lot quieter these days Cheers! John

[@ukrytykrytyk8477]

@@ActiveTowns Thanks for your answer! I'll check the video out. Funny, we had our Bromptons in Netherlands as well and I admit some brick paved roads are not so great to ride on, nevertheless the infrastructure completely makes up for the slight decrease of comfort, especially when compared with UK.

[@ActiveTowns]

@@ukrytykrytyk8477 Agree 💯 😁

[@ltg8382]

13:56 that mister said "hoi" to you, aka hello/good day 🤭

[@ActiveTowns]

Love it! Hoi, back to you! Thanks so much for tuning in. Cheers! John

[@therealdutchidiot]

As you can see, much of Zwolle's city center is "autoluw", and most of it can be classified as "fietsstraat". A fietsstraat isn't about what it looks like, but how it functions, as I'm sure you've gleaned from the CROW manual; a fietsstraat is not about signage, it's about how effectively one can divert car traffic.

[@ActiveTowns]

Yes! Precisely. I do keep my copy of the CROW manual close by at all times. Thanks so much for tuning in and for contributing to the conversation. Always appreciated. Cheers! John

[@anrmlumlwundlistr7620]

It is rumored that John Simmerman is still riding around Zwolle, looking for breakfast.

[@ActiveTowns]

Hehe 🤣 I resemble this comment. Thanks so much for tuning in. Cheers! John

[@kailahmann1823]

This silence… especially compared to the very very few cars.

[@ActiveTowns]

Yeah, it's pretty amazing. 😀

[@bartvschuylenburg]

Al the towns and cities along the river IJssel are that beautiful. Zwolle is the largest of them, but Kampen, Hattem Deventer, Doesburg, Zutphen are all worthy of a tourist visit.

[@ActiveTowns]

@@bartvschuylenburg So many places yet to explore! I love it. 😀

[@RViscara]

Lol 😂 Welcome to Dutch culture as you don’t just do something spur of the moment you have to plan it a month or 6 months in advance on your calendar book. The Dutch are notorious for having to make dates way in advance never last minute. Also you don’t find breakfast places in the Netherlands as every Dutch person eats at home. The restaurants don’t do breakfast at all really. They make their money at night. Best place to have eatin on the cheap wild have been “Hema” dept store.

[@ActiveTowns]

Hehe 😅 Lesson learned. Thanks so much for tuning in. I hope you are enjoying the Channel. Cheers! John

[@buddy1155]

Any reasonable sized hotel has also breakfast ... And you past one in the very beginning. But beside very touristy areas it would be hard to find a place that has breakfast, not a very Dutch thing to do.

[@dianaschwengle-croes3073]

The Netherlands is not the place for breakfasts or brunches.

[@ActiveTowns]

Hehe 🤣 Definitely not on a Sunday morning. Thanks so much for watching. I hope you are enjoying the Channel. Cheers! John

[@strikeformatik]

Yeah, thats not entirely accurate. Zwolle on a sunday morning however is very quiet. Monday morning can also be slow. The rest of the week its business as usual.

[@JoshuaGroot-r6t]

Nowadays Its different

[@fransezomer]

Pro-tip, if you are looking for breakfast in any city, try at a hotel first. Love the vlog! Greetz from Amsterdam xxx

[@ActiveTowns]

Great tip and thanks so much for watching. Cheers! John