A lot of people think so! But of course, they’ve never been on board…
Wait, I’ll give you a tour. Then you can see for yourself. Though some places are off-limits to me. Don’t tell anybody, but I’ve been there anyway.
I’ll tell you what it’s like now. My house is called “De 4 Vaargetijden” and has been since 1999 (I have heard of it!) Before that it was called different and had many adventures. But I’ll tell you that some other time.
Often you have to walk over the gangway to get on board the wheelhouse. Usually I’ve seen you for a long time then and I warned my bosses with a loud voice before you came. If you really are a silent sneak, just ring the bell!

Wheelhouse

Come in and look around! There are a lot of seats here (only for the guests!) and through 2 low windows we can also look outside while skipper Maurits is behind the wheel. I am allowed to lie behind the seats or also with Maurits. I may never put my head between the spokes of the steering wheel!
The best thing about the wheelhouse is the door to the sun deck. We, Dief & I, have always trained the guests quickly: then they open the door for us and we can go outside. Dief thinks it’s a fun game and, after an inspection round on deck, soon sits in front of the door again…and is quickly let in by the guests!
When the weather is nice, the door is of course open and the guests want to sit outside as well. The most beautiful spot for us is right in front, with the best overview to keep an eye on everything. During the mooring I go on post in the large basket that is standing there. With that I earn a lot of sweets, although Dief gets some as well.

Sundeck

The sundeck

How big is that sun deck really?
If I take a run, I’m at the front with 3 jumps. But that’s not allowed, or what did you think? There is room for a large table with 8 chairs under the canopy. That canopy is nice when it rains, but also provides a lot of shade when it’s warm. Further on there is a whole series of bicycles. The guests are allowed to use them, but they certainly don’t always do that. In the corner is the gangway and other tools to get ashore. Of course I jump ashore in no time, but the guests don’t like it and Dief also wants to disembark comfortably and safely.

At the very front is another bench to sit in the front row. There you get very close to the anchor and all mooring lines and for us, dogs, forbidden area. When boss Olga is swinging the mooring lines there, she doesn’t want to have dog legs in the loops. Fortunately, we can keep a close eye on everything from the sun deck. This way we make sure the ship is moored properly.
Wow, what a story and we haven’t even been down below yet! Let’s save that for next time…