Beach Day!

Sadly, this is our last week here in beautiful Amsterdam. 
Over our morning coffee, Wendy and I discussed that there are still so many places we still want to visit and experience!  So after much debate, we decided today we wanted to see the North Sea (and also get out of the city on a warm sunny day!)  After a quick bike ride to Central Station, we bought 2 round trip tickets to the coastal town of Zandvoort.

Central Station Amsterdam

Love the trains! We arrived in Zandvoort after a peaceful and scenic 30 minute ride- no stress or traffic!

Gorgeous sunny skies over the North Sea

Had to get our toes in the sand! (oops misspelled Zandvoort!) Ha!!

The beaches in Holland are quiet and calm. The sand is smooth, cool and soft to walk on. Alot like the gulf coast, just not as white.

No airplanes flying overhead with banners advertising early bird specials. The Dutch just bring the food to you!

 

The water was bit too cold to swim, but still great to walk in along the shore.

Our feet in the North Sea!

Enjoying another fabulous Sunday in the Netherlands!

Weekend road trip Part 3: Brugge, Belgium

 

Saturday afternoon we left The Abbey of Sint Sixtus in Westvleteren and headed to Brugge. We traveled 40km and arrived about 7:00 PM and checked into the Bourgoensch hof hotel. Great location situated on one of the many picturesque canals!

the entire town looks like a postcard..so amazing!

The Bourgoensch hof  was great! Thanks Trip Advisor!

Sint-Salvatorskathedraal

                                

Nap Time overlooking the canal.

What a life, watching all the tourists pass by in the canal boats!

Sugar waffle with strawberrys and creme, our new favorite desert!

 

The belfry of Bruges. Have you seen the move "In Bruges"?

I recreated a scene from the movie.We gave a British couple "quite a fright" when they came around the corner and saw me laying on the ground with Wendy taking my picture! Then THEY started taking pictures and we all had a good laugh!

Statue in Brugge city center. Great place to sit and listen the the bells from the tower.

View from our hotel room.

We leave tomorrow to go back to Amsterdam... I have to go back to work.

What a great four day weekend!

Weekend road trip Part 2: Sint Sixtus- Westvleteren, West- Vlaanderen,Belgium

On Saturday morning we headed back towards Belgium- next stop: The Abbey of Sint Sixtus in Westvleteren.  We have heard the Trappists Monks here brew the world's best beer, so we decided to find out for ourselves. 

The Abbey is out in the middle of a rural area surrounded by farms and fields. Thanks to the GPS we found it with no problems.  It was actually a very peaceful drive with beautiful views of the Belgian countryside.   

Sint Sixtus Abdij

We were unable to tour the Abbey itself, however, across the street is a restaurant called In de Vrede. Here you can have lunch or just sit and enjoy a glass(or two) of the famous beer.

Outdoor patio at In de Vrede- rain rain go away!

Well- do we have a verdict? Yep! Pretty good beer! Actually, it was excellent!  (Even Wendy not being much of a beer drinker, was impressed with the smoothness, however she will stick to her Pinot Noir).

Weekend road trip Part 1: Le Tour de France, Metz, France

After years of watching Le Tour de France on TV we finally had an opportunity to see it in person!

Friday morning, we parked the bikes, rented a car and hit the road.  Stage 6 (Epernay to Metz) was scheduled to arrive in Metz, France sometime in the late afternoon.

Honda "Jazz" hybrid -fun car!

Pitstop (American style)

After a long drive (approx 371 km or 231 miles) we arrived in the beautful town of Metz.

border of Luxembourg entering France

Novotel at City Centre- Metz, France

 The Tour arrival venue was within walking distance from our hotel. We walked over and found a spot on a hill with a great view of the entry - right in front of where the team cars exit the route to allow the cyclist to enter the town.

As the racers come into view you can hear the crowd cheering and begin beating on the boards that border the route! It is amazing how FAST they are traveling...it was hard to get a good photo that wasn't a blur!

Go USA!!

  

All around the venue were cyclist, team buses, and escort cars. 

 

Bucket list: Go to the Tour de France - CHECK!

After a busy day of traveling and seeing the tour, we had a great dinner at a local cafe and took one last look out the window of our room. Good night Metz- we look forward to visiting you again!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy July 4th! In keeping with the American Spirit of our Independence Day- Scott took off work early and we enjoyed a leisurely bike ride through Amsterdam's Vondelpark. With temps in the mid 70's and and clear sunny sky, it was a perfect afternoon. 

After our bike ride- we decided to have a traditional 4th of July cookout of our own ...Scott "grilled" burgers and we had a nice bottle of Cava (with a little cranberry juice) to celebrate.