Cycling to the historic city center of Leiden

Leiden is referred to as Key City - referring to the city coat of arms with a white shield and two crossed red keys. The history of the city dates back to at least the year 860, when it was still a dike village built at the foot of an artificial hill. The city grew into an important fortified city, and present-day Leiden is primarily a center of scientific knowledge and new technology. It is not without reason that Leiden is home to the oldest university in the Netherlands. Furthermore, a lot of water characterizes the city center; beautiful canals and canals full of greenery give the city extra cachet. Anyone who wants to know more about the history of Leiden will find the Leiden Canon very interesting. This tells the history of Leiden on the basis of 35 important historical topics. The bike tour leads you to two beautiful windmills in the city. The first one you encounter is d\\\'Heesterboom, or De Heesterboom. This beautiful tower mill is one of the top 100 Dutch monuments. Nowadays it is fairly built into new-build homes, but the Heesterboom still proudly towers above everything. The sawmill dates from 1804 and sawed using wind power until 1924. Then progress took hold of the mill and it became electrically powered. Nowadays you can have a bite to eat at the restaurant in the former wood drying shed next to the mill. In the past, travelers approaching Leiden would see a scattering of windmills adorning the city walls. Initially these were all post mills that were built in the 17th century. During the 18th century, these wooden mills were replaced by taller, brick ones, but De Valk (museum mill) remained in its original state. The seven attics of this mill are furnished and accessible. You can admire the mill company there, and the miller's home has also been preserved. Furthermore, exhibition areas have been set up with information about the technology of the mill company and about mills in the Netherlands.