Dutch Treat - Part II

Welkom bij Utrecht! 

An evening walk on a
country canal.

Welcome back to the land of windmills, tulips, and canals, ... oh, and of course where the colour "orange" takes centre stage.

With Tineke (at the seashore0

Our cousin Tineke, drove us all the way to Utrecht, to our cousin Karen's, for the next stage of our trip. 

We had just enough time to unpack, 

...and have a bite to eat

....before we were off  

...to see beautiful tulips and coastal villages. 

We simply had a wonderful day together!

About Utrecht

Situated in the heart of Holland, the city was 
founded over 1200 years ago by the Romans.

The "Dom" tower in Utrech

With almost 316,000 people, Utrecht is the fourth biggest city in the Netherlands, and the lively, beating heart of Holland

... all built around the Dom tower, the city's tallest building, yet it has managed to preserve its local character.

Karen, our cousin.

Karen and Charles

Karen is a wonderful hostess, a

proud citizen of Utrecht, 

and great story teller about its history. 

Her enthusiasm was contagious.

Marion, Linda, Ad, and Charles

Meet-Up

We were overjoyed to have had a chance to meet up with Marion and Ad de Cort, two travellers we had the pleasure of meeting in New Zealand.

We all had a wonderful time drinking, eating, talking, and laughing.

Basic facts about Amsterdam

A parking garage for thousands of bicycles

Who’s Riding All of These Bikes?

Many statistics regarding Amsterdam simply make you wonder. For example, there are over one million bikes within the city limits, yet there are only about 700,000 people in Amsterdam. This leads us to the top 10 weird facts about Amsterdam.




Amsterdam May Soon Disappear

The majority of Amsterdam is below sea level. At its lowest point, it is 6.7 metres below sea level. If climate change causes even a small increase in global sea levels, Amsterdam may go the way of Atlantis.

Note the slant of the house.

Amsterdam Was Built on Stilts

The entire city of Amsterdam was built on piles of massive stakes driven into the ground. These piles laid the foundation for every building in the city. Over 6,000 piles are used to hold up Central Station. Regular maintenance keeps these piles in load-bearing condition.

The Rijks museum has just re-opened.

Amsterdam Has the Most Museums in the World

When measured by museums per square metre, Amsterdam has more museums than any other city in the world.

Despite the "Dam" rain, Amsterdam
was a beautiful experience!

Amsterdam Has More Canals Than Venice

Venice is the most famous canalled city in the world, but Amsterdam with its 165 canals, is often called the “Venice of the North” .



What a visit!  A huge word of thanks to Karen for her incredible hospitality. We had a fantastic time.

Hartelijk dank, Karen.

And tomorrow we're off to London.

Until then!