Written by Dave: Our first stop in the European leg of our tour was Amsterdam. When we got there it was a bit of a shock from our desert travels. Fall was well set in and it was cold. Beautiful with the leaves turning. My mom recommended the canal boat tour, so we did that first thing. It was nice to get some overview of the city by boat before hitting it by foot.
The kids seemed to have a good time.
We had a good time ourselves.
One of the sights we saw was a bike parking lot. I can honestly say I have never seen so many bikes together in one place at one time. There had to be at least a thousand of them there.
There was a lot of charm in the old buildings. It was fun to imagine what it was like centuries ago.
There were so many canals it was easy to get turned around. There was always new beauty behind each turn.
Then we hit the streets by foot. We must have walked over 6 miles that day. Feet got sore. We all had open shoes that didn’t go so well with the rain. We were able to find Nancy a pair of shoes that were closed toe and fit her.
We were able to find Anne Franks house, and tour through it. Unfortunately they did not allow pictures. It was sobering to see where they were in hiding, and to walk through what we read about in the book Diary of Anne Frank.
Amsterdam was fun, and we will likely spend more time on our return there. Mainly at this time it was to pick up our camper and start heading south. We were tired and jet lagged, but it was a fun start to our European journeys.
Okay, let’s see your camper. How’s it riding? You all look so great!!
I would have loved to have seen Anne Frank’s hiding place. That book is sooo sad, but it is wonderful that her story endures.
It is so nice to see you guys and share your trip with you.
Thanks for all the nice comments. It is good to hear from you!
I just started reading about your journey a few days ago when my mom (Bonnie) sent me the address. I have exactly the same picture of the bicycle parking lot, it’s amazing! Great pictures, and I love reading about your adventures.
Thanks Matt! The number of cyclists and bicycles in Amsterdam is awesome! We did a lot of walking around, and had to really watch out for the cyclists. But they all look to be in great shape.