Mr. Toads Wild Ride!

We woke to a beautiful sunrise this Sunday morning and Bill was able to take this photo from our French Balcony. We were up early and have not quite recovered from our jet lag. Hopefully this nice sunny day will help us recover.

We enjoyed a hearty breakfast this morning and then the six of us prepared to take our first excursion. Since we are docked in Enkhuizen, we boarded some very nice buses for our trip into Amsterdam at 9am. On the way, we got our first view of the colorful tulip fields along the highway from the windows of our bus. It was exciting to see them and we hope they are just a taste of the tulip beauty we will see the rest of the week.  

In Amsterdam, we walked as a group to the canal boats from our bus and started our journey through the three major canals that comprise the downtown area of Amsterdam. We know you are aware of the amazing architecture of the downtown buildings as they stand side by side like soldiers in a line along the canals. In addition, it was fun to see the great variety of houseboats moored along the canals. Each one was very unique in its own way. Our guide filled us in on the history as we cruised along the canals. 

PS. Today was a beautiful day with lovely blue skies but it is still very cold – about 50 degrees and a little wind chill.

At the end of our canal cruise, we were taken to a diamond factory for a tour.  We were given a lesson on how diamonds are shaped and polished and a lecture on the qualities of diamonds, the cuts, color and much more. It was fun to see the beautiful diamonds up close and we could have bought anything we wanted, but we all restrained ourselves and came away empty handed. 

 

After the diamond tour the Talanians left us and went out on their own to tour the Rembrandt Museum. Paul called Uber and in 2-minutes off they went. 

They had lunch at the museum and really enjoyed strolling around outside and through the artwork inside. 

There were plenty of Rembrandt paintings and several other artists represented including Van Gogh and Monet. The cruise arranged a taxi to pick them up at the museum and drive them back to the ship – about a 40-minute drive. When Paul called the taxi company to come pick them up, he talked to someone who was confused and didn’t know what they were doing. He decided to call again and got someone who he could have an intelligent conversation with – yay! Even then it was still difficult to get them to come and pick them up at the designated spot, but finally they got connected and were on their way back to the ship after waiting around nearly an hour. The only problem was that the driver was a scary driver – Paul was using the brake pedal in the back seat often! He felt like they were on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. They finally made it back in one piece (Praise God!) and were very tired with a story to tell!

While still in Amsterdam, we should mention the many bicycles which are considered a cultural treasure by people here, as well as a very practical mode of transportation. The city’s flat terrain makes it ideal for getting around on two wheels. Bikes were first used in the city during the late 19^th century, and they were promoted by members of the anti-establishment Provo movement to reduce air pollution created by cars. As bicycles increased, cycle lanes were soon added to the streets and now the city is home to hundreds of thousands of bikes. And many parking structures for bikes!

After the diamond tour, our buses brought the Kellys and Greens back to our ship and to a great lunch. After lunch, Bill and Karen took a walk into Enkhuizen to enjoy views of the brick buildings and the many boats in the harbor. Here are a few town pictures for your viewing pleasure.

 

Since it was Sunday, the coffee shops were open but not much else, but Karen found one store open and was able to purchase some very beautiful cards at a reasonable price. We might walk around town tomorrow after lunch.

Once again we had a wonderful dinner and look forward to tomorrow when we'll visit a tulip farm and windmill..