Hengstenstation Van Uitert

I found a little hostel to stay in The Netherlands out in the countryside. What a little treasure this place has turned out to be. A short bike ride away is the Hengstenstation Van Uitert where several of the top Dutch Warmblood Stallions stand. In fact Anky van Grunsvens horse Krack C stands here in the summers for breeding. In the dressage world it doesn't get much better. Yesterday I got to tour the facility, which is like most things in Holland. There isn't necesserily a large quantity of animals, they are just the best. In particular I saw a young stallion named Zhivago who moves like a dream. Tomorrow they ride and collect from the stallions again and they offered for me to come back then, when it is busier.

I've also been to the Mauritshuis museum. It is also small, but has the most important paintings by the dutch masters. I really enjoyed myself there. I saw the girl with the pearl earring by Vermeer, the old lady with the young boy by Rembrandt, and a huge mural by Potter of two cows in a field with sheep and a farmer. Very incredible to see paintings in real life. Adriean Coorte also had a special exhibition which was so beautiful. He painted lots of still lifes of fruits and vegetables that are extraordinary in their simplicity.