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  • Day 40

    First Ride Nord

    June 15, 2018 in the Netherlands ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Our first ride north. Everyone kept telling us to ride north from Amsterdam to quickly get to the agrarian settings, canals, and little villages. Boy were they steering us right. One kilometer north of our place we took a ferry to cross the main canal which separates Amsterdam from Amsterdam Nord. Within 15 minutes we were riding in the countryside along another canal.

    We stopped a few times long our route. In Ilpendam we stopped for coffee and tea and met a friendly couple who are also a couple of years into retirement. They have been driving all over Europe cycling and camping out of a converted step van. We also sighted a cycling postal carrier who brings his dog along to work.

    Along the way we noted an instance of a location specific phenomenon Birgitt described by saying 'In Holland there are rules, but there are no rules'. We even shot a photo of a Dutch couple as proof positive.

    The route today swung through several small towns and villages. Monnickendam was especially picturesque. We stopped for a bite there and took a shot of a beautiful sailing rig. We'll be returning with our guests this summer for fish and chips. There's also a Bach concert this Sunday, so we'll probably head up for that too.

    Most of the route followed the dikes along the coastline.

    Lovely.
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