From tots to grannies, there is an intense level of bike love in Amsterdam. Like Hanoi, it is not unusual to see a women with two children-maybe even three, on a single bike. We were told that Dutch kids think it’s weird to be driven to school. It was also mentioned to us that the Mayor of Amsterdam, who lives in the lovely Jordan section of Amsterdam, routinely rides his bike to work, donned in a suit & tie, waving to all he sees. There are two free ferries in back of the central train station that transport people (with their bikes) over to the north side of Amsterdam. In less than an hour of easy pedaling you can be freewheeling beside pristine farm land. Just north of Amsterdam is an area know as the Waterlands. These wetlands between the fields are protected nature reserves. It is a large section of land that was recovered from the sea over the years. It now is filled with farming, nine, small historical villages and a golf course. The course is located in an area that, in the event of flooding, would definitely be under water. As expected, all of the parks and other recreational properties are located in such areas.
We decided to take a four-hour bike ride to explore the area. In Holland, bikes are everywhere as are the hundreds of miles of well-signed bicycle paths throughout the countryside. You simply cannot get too lost. We passed by one of the few remaining windmills (7 in the area) that either would grind the grain or pump water out of the area and send it back to the sea. Today, that job is performed by 80 powerful, but not large, electric pumping stations. This picture-postcard scenery has cows and sheep placidly munching the green fields, ducks on canals, resident white swans, thousands of geese, little white bridges, church towers poking up out of distance villages and flat bike paths everywhere. The farms look so prosperous, they couldn’t possibly be real farms. Could they be country retreats owned by wealthy city folk? Or, are the subsidies so generous that a farmer with ten cows can afford six horses? It is so stunningly pretty here. Idyllic.
We cycled to Ransdorp, a small village that once competed in the 1600’s with Amsterdam for the shipping trade. Amsterdam won! The unique landmark is a church with a tower about 75% complete. It is missing a story and magnificent roof so often found on such structures. They ran out of money when it was being built. It was never completed because it because a unique landmark. We were informed that Rembrandt often visited Ransdorp as one of his mistresses lived in the village. He wrote and spoke of this unfinished tower giving it great notoriety.
it was an absolutely delightful sunny Wednesday afternoon and seeing these traditional Dutch farming communities was fun. To return our rental bikes back in Amsterdam was hectic. The streets are filled with walking lanes, car lanes, tram tracks and bicycle lanes. Absolute chaos. You have to always look both ways as you glide into another lane. The short ride in the city center was more harrowing than the 3+ hours on the country bike lanes.
Depending upon the weather, we will be back on bikes a couple of times over the next several days. We probably have explored the city on foot enough.
We decided to take a four-hour bike ride to explore the area. In Holland, bikes are everywhere as are the hundreds of miles of well-signed bicycle paths throughout the countryside. You simply cannot get too lost. We passed by one of the few remaining windmills (7 in the area) that either would grind the grain or pump water out of the area and send it back to the sea. Today, that job is performed by 80 powerful, but not large, electric pumping stations. This picture-postcard scenery has cows and sheep placidly munching the green fields, ducks on canals, resident white swans, thousands of geese, little white bridges, church towers poking up out of distance villages and flat bike paths everywhere. The farms look so prosperous, they couldn’t possibly be real farms. Could they be country retreats owned by wealthy city folk? Or, are the subsidies so generous that a farmer with ten cows can afford six horses? It is so stunningly pretty here. Idyllic.
We cycled to Ransdorp, a small village that once competed in the 1600’s with Amsterdam for the shipping trade. Amsterdam won! The unique landmark is a church with a tower about 75% complete. It is missing a story and magnificent roof so often found on such structures. They ran out of money when it was being built. It was never completed because it because a unique landmark. We were informed that Rembrandt often visited Ransdorp as one of his mistresses lived in the village. He wrote and spoke of this unfinished tower giving it great notoriety.
it was an absolutely delightful sunny Wednesday afternoon and seeing these traditional Dutch farming communities was fun. To return our rental bikes back in Amsterdam was hectic. The streets are filled with walking lanes, car lanes, tram tracks and bicycle lanes. Absolute chaos. You have to always look both ways as you glide into another lane. The short ride in the city center was more harrowing than the 3+ hours on the country bike lanes.
Depending upon the weather, we will be back on bikes a couple of times over the next several days. We probably have explored the city on foot enough.
