Zaandam, Amsterdam, and a very early morning 

Tulips!

Amsterdam canal and city tour including a small bicycle parking lot 

Enkhuizen, The Netherlands

 Enkhuizen is as far north as we go. A charming, picturesque, and pristine town, it is on what used to be the Zuider Zee, which is no longer open to the sea because of a dike. There are still many fishermen here; we met one—you’ll see him. He was repairing nets today. Notice the brickwork on the building behind him. When the Zuider Zee was blocked by the dike, much land was flooded, and the country had the foresight to save representative buildings, etc. and build a museum complex, both outdoors for buildings and indoors for other objects. It is an amazing experience! I bought candy in the candy store, watched fishermen create nets and a smithy hammer away.

After lunch we went on a home visit. I signed up for a ‘short walk’ group, which meant the home is relatively near to the boat. Joke(jo-keh ) has run a B&B in Enkhuizen for 30 years; she is an artist working in fabric—quilting and felting, mosaics, decorating, etc. (She showed me her stash of fabric!!!) Her husband is a painter who has done portraits of their six grandchildren and redoes them as the children grow and mature.

Weather was cold again this morning, with a brisk wind, but warmed up this afternoon.