Ahhh... The Netherlands!!!

Woke up this morning and saw something I hadn't seen for some time. The sun! Geez - it is still there! Can't waste a day like this - so I jumped into my little C1 and headed for Rotterdam for breakfast. Without knowing it at the time, this has to be one of the best ideas I have had all week. Sundays are a really quiet day in Europe. Stores aren't open, businesses are closed down... remember what that was like in Ottawa? Peaceful!

So I headed out of town around 0730 and encountered no traffic, no trucks and just the open road and sunshine. I made it to Rotterdam in about an hour and drove around town stopping to take photos of the beautiful city, the canals and massive dockyards. Quite a spectacular site. After messing about in Rotterdam for a few hours, I thought that I might as well head up to The Hague so back behind the wheel and off I went. I just can't believe the beauty of these cities. Seemed like around every corner was another outstanding vista or building. I have become addicted to café from this trip. I like it when it is strong enough to disolve a pirates gold teeth and two of these will keep you going for hours. After walking around the historic areas of The Hague...and a few more cafés, I decided I would spend the afternoon in Amsterdam so, off on the road again. It sounds like going between these cities would be an huge undertaking given the distances between cities in Canada, but in reality, they are about 1/2 hour apart on the highways here. This then became my new favourite place.


The canals are really busy on Sundays in Amsterdam. Folks pack a lunch and just cruise up and down the vast network of inland waterways. The houses are so close to the water, people hang out the windows and wave and yak with the boaters as they pass by. In the background, the church bells ring on the 1/4 hour - presumably reminding the boaters that they should be doing something other than enjoying the sun on the canal. Good luck!


My brother Alister and I have notched up a lot of miles and have been to a great many cities around the globe on business travel. But when you distill it down, business travel usually involves airport to office and return - you seldom get a chance to see the real city you are visiting. I am so grateful for this opportunity to see these great cities without the pressure of meetings and air schedules. It seems like around every corner, you come across another beautiful building or sculpture like this.