Giethoorn: Good Recommendation Rick!

September 6, 2013

                         

Giethoorn, Netherlands is a little village created around 1200AD. The area is known to the locals as peat land. It is good land for farming. In the 16^th century the residents had a creative thought to dig a system of canals by hand in the peat. They dug an entire community of canals, eventually a lake area was born. That is what visitors see today when visiting Giethoorn.

Giethoorn , Netherlands

Rick Steves recommended seeing a community without roads and cars. We took his advice because I am interested in unique styles of living. We drove as far as we could before reaching a community car park. There were lots of bike and boat rental shop along the canal. It was 86 degrees outside so we followed our impulse to sight see by canal. We packed a light lunch and threw on our bathing suit. For 15 euro per hour we rented a whisper boat to explore the community and nature area. There was no deposit they just asked to hold our drivers license. The whisper boat is about the size of a canoe with a electric engine.

                                             

The canals are only about 15 feet at the widest point. There were a few hundred boats moving along the 1 or 2 miles of waterways. Conveniently every 30 feet there was a arched bridge connecting both sides of the canal. Some of the bridges were to private homes some led to restaurants. The houses are merely separated from the water by a 5 foot tall bulkhead.

There was a large canoe of kids who looked to be struggling with their paddles, so Ross reached out and we pulled them along for a while.  They were very thankful for the break.

Dutch Boat

We were told we could swim but that the canals were only about waist deep and the bottom is very squishy. I opted not to swim but I did put my feet in the water.












                                        

Every yard was manicured perfectly. The canal was mainly shaded by weeping willow trees that create the perfect environment for ducks and swans.

                                






September 7, 2013

We walked the boardwalk of the canals as well. As we crisscrossed over the canal popping in gift shops and stopping to listen to the live music. Every cafe, restaurant and church had some sort of outdoor performance going on. Each of them offered a slightly different sound and costume. There was one rather large group of men and women dressed in pirate attire. Another group of men were dressed in a sailor's uniform. The afternoon was colorful to say the least.

Saturday Concert at the Church

                                      



Ross read that the Dutch have a strong connection to sea shell trading, so when we saw a sea shell museum we wanted to check it out. Inside there were glass cabinets from floor to ceiling full of jewelry, shells, and coral. It was the largest collection of sea shells we had ever seen. Shiny, spiney, shells of all colors.

So far the Netherlands really won us over. The Dutch are kind, slender, health conscience, eco friendly, and multilingual. They are relaxed yet not lazy with progressive views. There is an aspect to their culture that runs on the honor system. One example is not locking up their bicycles, especially in the less urban areas. Public restrooms cost .50 cents, there is no lock box just a uncovered plate. If you use you pay. Remarkably no one steals the change

Cruising Amsterdam

September 4, 2013

Bright Eyed & Bushy Tailed!
Walking to get the Mac Bikes

                                      

Okay maybe we bit off more than we could comfortably chew. We just wanted to do like the Dutch, take in the sights like a local. Travel through the streets of Amsterdam via bicycle, breathing in the fresh air and feeling the wind on our faces. After 9 hours and covering a distance of 30 miles I officially earned the title “Trooper.” I'll be lucky if I can walk tomorrow.

Navigating the roads of Amsterdam on a bicycle with road signs in a foreign language makes getting where you are trying to go more challenging. Lucky for me my husband is a navigational wizard and we had plenty of time because we rented the Mac Bikes for 24 hours for the grand total of 25 euros. The city is crowded; more than 85% of the cities population own a bicycle and state that they ride it at least one day a week. The Dutch prefer the purr of the city without bustling cars everywhere and breathing clean air.

Although they are not bothered by the pungent scent of marijuana. As we made our way through the narrow pedestrian corridors the smell intensified. 'Brown coffee shops' are located throughout the city but people smoke everywhere with no concerns. If you are interested in the history of cannabis use in Holland the following link below is rather insightful.

http://www.kindgreenbuds.com/marijuana-articles/a-history-of-cannabis-in-holland/

The canals in Amsterdam are the cleanest waterway system we have seen on this journey. In addition to their beauty the canals provide another form of transportation for the Dutch as well as an alternative to living in a traditional house or apartment. There are 2,500 houseboats registered in the city limits of Amsterdam; each illustrating their own unique style. Living on an houseboat has always been a dream of mine so admiring each row of floating homes was one of my favorite thing about the city.

                                

After frequenting a few gift shops, eating ice cream cones, and sharing a Dutch cheese platter and glass of wine at the Van Gogh Cafe, we decided to climb aboard an evening canal cruise. The one hour cruise was very relaxing, we were able to kick off our shoes and rest while listening to our guide as she shared her historical and cultural insight.

At 10 pm we began our trek back to Gaasper Camping, the campsite we have been staying in just outside the city. Home sweet home... we arrived back at the Kangoo by 12:15 am exhausted and ready for a good nights rest.

 

Nordic Beach

August 29, 2013

White sand soft tickled my feet as we walked into the dunes on our way out to the beach. As I took each step and listened to the saw grass sway I was reminded how lucky we are to spend a warm sunny day relaxing on the beach in Holland.

The landscape is flat like a pancake, add that to the oceans breeze and you have the perfect combination for wind activities such as wind carting and wind surfing.

                                     

Cart- Surfing

There was a section of the beach flagged off in a square shape. Inside the flags were tricycles with seats low to the ground going around the flags forming a track. These were no ordinary tricycles because they had a sail attached to in allowing wind to provide the power.

The Dutch seem to be respectful of the land because the dunes were well preserved with no litter. As we made our way down we began picking up sea shells that decorated the sand in all shades of orange, blue, and and yellow. Stopping to look up after walking for 5 minutes or so looking at the ground for shells we began to notice we were the only people on the beach that were wearing clothes. We had unknowingly made our way onto the nudest section of the beach. There were tan naked men sitting like hidden soldiers in the dunes. Every now and then one would stand up exposing himself more fully to us. I wondered why there were no women? We were told that women do not come alone as often; usually they would be with a boyfriend or husband otherwise they may be hassled.

After walking quite a ways down the beach we decided to sit on the sand and soak up some vitamin D. We played tic tac toe in the sand and watched seagulls float.

High, Amsterdam!

August 28, 2013

Amsterdam, Netherlands

                                     

The city of Amsterdam is a maze of canals and bicycle paths. I fell in love right away! You experience the beauty of the buildings and flowers twice because everything is reflected in the canals. Ringing of bicycle bells and a violinist playing in the park filled our ears as we walked through the streets.

A  mother with 2 infants in the box on the front

We were impressed by people of all ages riding bicycles, mostly beach cruisers to be exact. The locals act as if a bicycle is a mini van. They ride 3 or 4 people to one bike. We saw mothers with their infant in the front seat and a toddler on the back and no one was wearing a helmet. There were even bikes with sidecars. Someone spent a lot of time planning this well organized city because boats, bikes, scooters, buses, cars, and pedestrians all move with fluidity.

                                        




When in Rome.....Right? Well Amsterdam actually but the rule applies here also. The counter culture expressed here is known worldwide. People come from all over to "eat chocolate" in a brown coffee shop and/or to take their sexuality to a new level.

Leaving the prostitution alone we headed for a coffee shop. We visited a few and the experience was the same every time. It went something like this.....We were given some recommendations.....then Skiddly Diddly Doo........... :*) I know some of you are more interested in the details of our Cheech & Chong adventure than others so Ill save theses stories for when we are home!

Where they make the cheese

                                     


We roamed the streets of Amsterdam after our cultural experience. The Amsterdam's Kaashuis is a traditional Dutch cheese store.  The huge yellow wheels of cheese caught my eyes as we walked by luring us inside to take a peek.











The store was 3 rooms with samples of every product they make laid out for customers to try. There were cheese matrons walking around refilling each sample station.

Stroopwafel

 As if this experience could get it any better, we turned the corner and walked into the chocolate and candy room. They had fudge, white chocolate, stroopwafels (These things are dangerously delicious), and hard candy.  My taste buds were dancing on my tongue.  

“She was fine when she left here.”

August 15, 2013

Belfast City Hall

                              

A Cultural Event at City Hall

As a tourist in Belfast it would be easy to miss the segmentation of the city if you were not looking hard enough but locals know better than to march in unwarranted territory. From 1970 through 1997, Belfast was the headquarters for the Irish Troubles. During this period of time there was brutal conflict between the Catholic republican community, who want Ireland to succeed from the United Kingdom and the Ulster Protestants, who are loyal to the crown.

Although there has been great progress since the end of the troubles; the city of Belfast is still very divided based on how one identifies their nationality and religious beliefs. Ross and I took the sightseeing tour bus and learned all about each section of the city. During our two hour bus tour we were painted a vivid picture of the sever impact the troubles had on the city.

Their version of Parliament 

Making our way through the loyalist areas the light post are heavily decorated with British flags. There are numerous murals illustrating the Ulster Volunteer Force ( UVF), some of them memorials others blunt images of power and gorilla warfare.

Peace Wall..its the green one in the back.

 As we transitioned to the areas of the city that identify with the republic of Ireland Ross and I saw the Peace Walls. These partitions divide the city up preventing contact between the rivaling communities. The Peace Walls are roughly 40 feet tall and are up to 3 miles long. They look like maximum security prison walls, minus the razor wire. 

The always changing murals on the peace walls represent a lingering desire to just live in peace with one another. The passages from one neighborhood to another when crossing the peace walls are called peace entrances. Most of them stay open all the time, as a sign of good faith but others in areas with historically higher levels of hostility, like Murder Road, keep hours like a business, only open Monday through Friday 8am til 5pm.

Peace Entrance 

                                         

During our visit with Kevin and Trish we got a even better understanding of how the troubles effected those living through it. They both were raised Catholic so as children they remember not vacationing in certain areas of Ireland because even holiday locations were split based on differing views. Trish remembers signs in shop windows that said, “ Hiring, Catholics need not apply.” Even in the smaller towns of Northern Ireland had roads you knew better than to walk on. Kevin was a cabby for a few years of the troubles; he explained how stressful this job was at the time, always fearful of random acts of violence in the streets or being asked to drive through a questionable area.

Another fact the tour guide told us was that a hotel in Belfast held the record for many years for being the #1 most bombed hotel in the world. The Europa Hotel in center city now holds second place to a hotel in Baghdad and since has undergone a name change.

Queens College, Belfast

                                      

The narrowest house in Belfast

The South side of Belfast has become known as more progressive considering it is made up of a younger demographic who seem to careless about how one classifies themselves. In this area of Belfast a growing trend is mixed religion schools so that hatred is not breed into the younger generations but throughout the majority of the city Catholic and Protestant schools still exist.

The Titanic Museum 

Everyone in Belfast is proud of is the fact that the Titanic was built here. The tour guide spoke a good bit about the building process when traveling through the historic ship yard before approaching the new Titanic museum; the newest tourist attraction in the city. The saying about the Titanic goes, “She was fine when she left here.” Even though the story of the Titanic was tragic the locals take great pride in the final product before the ice burg got a hold of it.    

View from Belfast Shopping Center