The boys were eager to get going early in the morning on their boat adventure. They packed a lunch and left. The rest of us took the morning slow. When the boys returned they were excited to tell us how far in both directions they went. They passed a windmill in one direction, and in the other direction they went so far that they met up with the bike path. In one spot they helped a lady recover a flower pot that had dropped in the water. They ate peanut but...

We started the day by driving 10 minutes away into the artsy town of Bergen; a quaint area with both small well kept homes, and large impressive abodes - especially for European standards. The backyards were the size urban Canadian's are acustomed to, much larger than the average Dutch yard. We were told that the bike rental shop in Alkmaar would be closed on a Sunday, but that Bergen's would be open. We found it in a residential area, a block away from the b...

We drove away from the cozy town of Enkirch, happy to have had the chance to spend the week there. The final part of our trip was on the horizon - we were really looking forward to the familiar faces of Marieke and Jetta, and getting to know their families. Even though we were entering the last three weeks of our trip, we had a lot to see, and tried to stay present, savoring each experience, and not thinking too much ahead. Our drive was smooth, the route to...