This Week in Wijnjewoude 2024

  Week 42 and 43 Interesting stuff More Insulation work Crumpets Remembering the Dead Daylight Savings ends The Boat comes out on Thursday UNESCO recognizes Dutch inland shipping as Intangible Cultural Heritage October 22, 2024 Inland shipping has been officially included in the Network of Intangible Heritage Netherlands. This recognition underlines the unique cultural and historical importance of inland shipping in the Netherlands. Inland shipping has a rich history that goes back to the time of the skippers’ guilds in the 19th century. Traditionally, it was a family business, with both husband and wife on board involved in sailing, loading and unloading cargo. This led to a unique intertwining of family life and work, making inland shipping an exceptional cultural phenomenon. Generations of skippers’ children grew up on board ships, learning the tricks of the trade and developing skills that were essential for the successful management of their ships. Change through modern develo...

 Week 41 Including a bit of boat stuff Toilets in Boats Since 2009, it has been prohibited to discharge untreated toilet water, but according to the ministry, this is violated on a large scale. The aim of this amendment is to oblige owners of pleasure craft to seal the valve in the pipe between (the holding tank of) their toilet and the hull fitting when closed. This makes it impossible to discharge untreated toilet water below the water level and forces them to have the storage tank pumped out at a receiving installation. If there is a purification installation on board that has a type approval, or if it is guaranteed that only urine is discharged via the toilet, the sealing obligation does not apply. The introduction of the sealing obligation makes the discharge ban more enforceable. I can imagine that the more practical, sometimes ingenious, boat owners will still find a way around it. The lack of pump out stations is obvious but even then I have only ever seen ONE boat actuall...