Edam

We arrived here yesterday, the camp site is good including a washing and drying machine. Today after doing the laundry and van cleaning we walked into the town for lunch - and very good it was. Later a wander around the two museums one had a floating cellar, weird and wonderful, the other told us about the flood disasters over the centuries and how the huge sluice mechanism developed in 1932 helps control the water.

From the internet
Edam Museum
Opposite the Town hall, across the dam, is Edam's oldest brick house. This was built around 1530 as a private house and converted to a museum in 1895. The house represents typical Dutch construction of the period, and the internal layout is completely original. The house has a deeper kitchen with mezzanine living quarters above it. The kitchen leads to a floating cellar; a brick box room floating freely on ground water. According to folklore the cellar was built by a sea captain who missed the sea. However, it is more likely that cellar was built simply to keep the contents dry, while at the same time not requiring waterproof foundations.[1]