After the reception at the well -known rooms of AB at the Gronausche Street Enschede, the couple set off for their honeymoon to Germany.
Farewelled from the station platform in Arnhem by Antoon’s brother Cees and niece Annie, they arrived in Dusseldorf where the rain came down in buckets full. Pluvius kept them company all the way to Cologne. However that didn’t stop the bride picking up a few details on the way, such as the price tag of 1000 Marks for a fur coat, the mud on her light coloured shoes and stockings, the dislike for the open confession boxes, and Antoon calling his wife Mary instead of Marie. The honeymooners saw the curtain rising on a sensual and passionate Salome, craned their necks to follow the Graf Zeppelin over the twin towers of the cathedral in Cologne, strolled arm in arm on long romantic walks along the river Rhine, gazed at an empty bottle of Ahrweiler wine and looked into each other’s eyes at regular intervals. Marie getting some solid advice from new acquired friends, being told to use the ‘wittebrood weken’ the honeymoon weeks well, as a new husband is soft and pliable, another bottle of red was ordered for Dm.2.50, more laughter, more songs and urgent telegrams to home for another stack of Dutch Guilders.
They walked on damp mossy paths in dark forests, went down near bubbling creeks to ease thirst and blisters, boarded a boat for a trip to Königswinter, climbed the Drachenfells and when the heat became too much they took off their hats (!). The train trip to Remagen ended all the way in Bonn as they missed their station, went to bed with pears and biscuits (never mind the crumbs),
left Germany with glowing words about boarding house of A. Unkel at 4 Bismarck Strasze, and left hubby Antoon flabbergasted about Marie’s big appetite: ‘Ze is niet te verzadigen’, she is so hard to satiate.
It all came to an end after an 10 ½ hour home bound train for 25.40 Deutche Marks and a local tram ride in more rain, to arrive at 79 Oranje Street Arnhem, to be warmly greeted by mother Anna, sisters Jo and Truus. Some hours later, the tired couple turned up at nephew Jan Bosmans marriage to Cornelia (Cor) Zeewuster.
Six days later, 24th October 1929, became known as Black Thursday, when the stock prices collapsed.
It was the start of a world depression