Amsterdam

After a cold night spent in a cow pasture north of Amsterdam, Chris and I ventured down into the city.  One of the first sights for us was a canal with boats.

No boat parking.

Super old school drum brakes on a bicycle.

These barricades were sprinkled all over the downtown area.

The outskirts of the Red Light district.  We thought it best to not take pictures in the district as there were many signs and large men indicating that this would not be a permissible activity.

Driving through Amsterdam trying to find our way back to the highway to head south toward Karlsruhe.  We only stopped in for lunch and to check out the downtown before we had to get moving.  Tina was due in Germany in just a day or two!

North of Amsterdam

After a long drive through the night, we arrived in a cow paddock north of Amsterdam.  At the time it seemed the logical thing to do to sleep in our car rather than try to find a hostel.  We also were thinking about the money we saved to recoup our losses from the Antwerp parking garage.  In this photo, Chris was preparing the rear of the car for us to go to sleep.  There was a rather uncomfortable metal bar that ran across the folded-down back seats that made our night a little irritating but we managed.

Lights of Den Helder up the peninsula.

The next morning.  We slept in all the clothes we had to stay warm during the night.

We woke up to a flock of sheep and herd of cows munching in the field that we had parked next to.

Our trusty vehicle.  On the other side of the country lane there was a dike with a canal and canal boats.

Luckily the farmer didn’t come to shoo us off of his land.

Yes, that’s an old-fashioned windmill.  And further in the distance, more modern windmills.

Chris was happy to be back on the road.

As it was a Sunday, the only place we could find to get food in Den Helder was a Mc Donald’s.  Not the most ideal of dining options in this part of the world, but when that’s all that there is, that’s what you eat.

Looking out toward the sea.

A storm was blowing in and made it rather difficult to remain vertical on this part of the coastal defenses.

A windmill attached to a house on the way to Amsterdam.

On the Road in Belgium

Chris driving through the countryside.

A Belgian traffic jam.  Everyone got out of their cars at one point and started chatting.

A crossing for animals over the highway.  The deer in the photo is actually a metal cutout.  And those are real live trees on top of the overpass.

Another wildlife overpass.