Wim De Vriend

Betsy Boerhave's Diary Wim De Vriend

Duck through a gate and into a little alley in the center of the ancient Dutch city of Utrecht, and you will come to the tiniest grocery store you've ever seen-a grocery museum, actually. During renovations in 1974, a workman found a rusty tin can with some old papers under the shop floor. It was reported that the tin can contained diaries kept by Elizabeth (Betsy) Boerhave, the shop's owner, from 1874 until 1891. The Museum Board published the diaries, with considerable success. Now, almost thirty years later, Betsy Boerhave's Diary has been translated for the American reader. The address of Betsy's shop is Hoogt 6, Utrecht. Literally, Hoogt means "height" or "high place."For ease of reading, many names of people and streets in the diary have been translated into English, but it was thought that maintaining the Hoogt 6 address would make it easier to find Betsy's little shop. No doubt, many readers visiting the Netherlands will want to see it, and while in Utrecht, they may want to visit other nearby locations such as the picturesque village of Breukelen, where Betsy's "little cheese farmer" lived.