Entering Belgium

A quick post about entering Belgium - again, the ride was great, on small country roads along canals and farms. And entering Belgium was a breeze. No border, no customs, nothing. If not for the smell of waffles in the air, we may not even have known we were in Belgium!

We are now in Brugges, which is a very beautiful but very touristy city. It is famous for its canal-lined inner-city and its historic church at the very center.

After Amsterdam

Leaving Amsterdam was a bit hairy, and extremely time consuming. By the time we got ahold of the right maps and figured out the best way to exit the city, it was already pretty late, so constant doubling back and weaving from side street to side street was not very enjoyable. The experience navigating out of Amsterdam and past Utrecht was enought of a hassle to convince both of us that avoiding cycling into cities should be a priority for the rest of the trip. However, once we were into quieter areas the cycling was lovely - we spent a good part of the day biking past farms and along canals.


We stopped for lunch (left-over homemade greek salad) at a great little town whose name I can't recall - we were looking for a bathroom but were impressed enough to linger for quite a while.

The last part of the day was a bit stressful since we had to make up a lot of distance at the end of the day. Once arriving in Gouda we were lucky to get directions to a great campsite from a passerby, and spent the evening enjoying a beer and watching football in the campsite pub.



Our second day of riding from Amsterdam brought us to a small town called Willemstad, just south of Rotterdam. We spent the morning at the Gouda market hoping to get some authentic Gouda cheese, but David miscalculated and bought Parmesan (tasty in small doses but 2 kg is a bit much). After the market we went south from Gouda and shared a ferry with a cycling club from Utrecht who were quite curious about us and asked many good natured questions about our trip.


We continued along the river Len to a town called Kinderdijk where we ate lunch while admiring about 13 windmills dating back to the 12th century. We then continued the ride onto Noord Brabant and the town of Willemstad. The lovely people and the possibility of spending a day on the beach were too much to overcome, and so we spent two nights in this lovely town. The picture at left shows the small lake in the campground during sunset (not the permanent trailers surrounding the lake, which is typical for all of the campsites we visited).


After our day off, we continued on into Zeeland. We crossed a number of immense bridges (3-5 kilometers each) and ended up on the island of North Beveland, where we spent a good amount of time cycling from one rural road to another looking for bike signs before finally arriving in our destination of Kamperland. The next day started off with a side trip to visit and impressive dam just north of Kamperland. This dam spans about three islands and is essential in keeping Holland dry despite its negative altitude. There is a picture of it to the left. We then cycled south through Middelburg and took a ferry to Breskens. Our destination for the day was Brugges, but poor weather and our morning side trip conspired against us and we ended up staying the night at a campsite in a town called Cadzan-Bad, just off the coast. This was apparently off the normal tourist track, as we were apparently one of about 3 groups of english-speaking tourists the campsite hosted per year, and the first Canadians ever!

A few final thoughts about the Netherlands. Riding in Holland was a dream from start to finish - I would take a busy street in Amsterdam over riding on Jasper or Whyte Avenue any day, and a large part of this is due to the care and consideration of the motorists and the commitment that has been made to making the country so cycling friendly. Also, the Dutch were unfailingly friendly and helpful, which made for a lovely trip. We were saved a few times by strangers who would stop and offer assistance when we were stopped at the side of the road and staring blankly at our maps. A final tidbit of interest - we stand out as tourists not because of our bermuda shorts, sun hats, numerous maps and camera bags or our mangled Dutch, but because we wear helmets! While I would much prefer protecting my melon to fitting in, it does make us stand out a bit. As we pulled into one campsite in Harlem, a fellow camper actually shouted "Touristiches!!"

Amsterdam

Amsterdam was a bit of a shock after the smaller towns we had been in. In fact, I felt very uncomfortable for the first couple of hours because of the sheer number of people everywhere! I can't imagine what it is like in peak tourist season. Our campsite was a bit of a shock too - barbed wire fences, TV cameras, black lights in the bathroom (to discourage heroin use...) This all seemed unneccessary though, as our camping companions were all very friendly (even if most of the time all they talked about was how great ice-cream tastes, how all the world's problems could be solved with a bit of time, love, and tenderness, and how Rubber Soul (and not Sergeant Pepper) was the Beatles' peak).

Anyway, we spent about three days exploring Amsterdam. Some of the sights we saw were the Anne Frank house, the Van Gogh museum, and many interesting variations of canals.


We've just realized that we don't have many of our Amsterdam photos with us right now. We'll post some more late on.

Harleem

We continued up the coast to a medium sized city called Harleem (not to be confused with Harlem, New York, although both boast cobblestone streets, many churches, windmills, and wooden shoes).

The scenery on this day was great, with much of the ride along canals and the coast.


The city was also very beautiful. It was small enough that there wasn't a huge tourist presence, but large enought that there were some interesting sights to see. We decided to eat out this night at (I'm a bit ashamed to admit) a Mexican restaurant. At least we drank some Dutch beer!

Camping in Katwijk

The next day we spend cycling to a town called Katwijk. The ride was very pretty - right along the coast with great views of the ocean. We were helped along by strong north winds too.

Other parts of the ride were a few hundred feet off the coast, in among the sand dunes.

Brugges, Belgium

Hello everyone,

We are in Brugges, Belgium today, where we have good access to internet. We'll try to catch up on our blogging.



In general, the cycling in the Netherlands is very nice. An extensive network of trails covers the entire country, and cyclists are treated very well everywhere. The signage is amazing. It is probably possible to cross the entire country without a map just using the special signs for cyclists. However, this makes bike traffic jams a very real problem. In fact, just the other day we spent three hours riding what usually takes us ten minutes - I think it was british cyclists riding on the wrong side that caused the problem.

Because we we arrived on a holiday, we had a bit of trouble finding a camping spot, and we had to ride around to a couple before we found a space.


This campsite was right off the beach so a beautiful sunset was only a short walk away. Less enjoyable was the campsite itself - like every campsite we have stayed at so far, it was very commercial and developped. Most of the spots were occupied by RVs and campers, and the tents were relegated to a small patch of grass near the parking lot. It seems like this is what most of camping is in Holland and Belgium. Many of the campsites have supermarkets, swimming pools, restaurants and bars attached (I guess we can't complain too much since we've been enjoying fresh croissant for breakfast almost every day).

The next day, we headed north along the coast towards Den Haag (the Hague) where we found no monument to international human rights but instead a huge boardwalk along the beach with amusement parks, fast food restaurants, and kitchy beach wear kiosks. I guess even crimes-against-humanity prosecutors have to relax somehow.

Which reminds me - one of the first things we came across in Holland was a cemetary with a number of graves from the world war, including Canadians. We couldn't help but pause for a moment to think about the very different conditions under which Canadians had visited this part of the world during the world wars.

Arrival in Holland

David:
We happened to arrive in Holland on a national holiday, meaning our plans to make our way first to the tourist information were dashed (it was closed). Not easily discouraged, we decided to sit down at a cafe (which happened to be open) and enjoy our first European coffee. I was hoping to dash in, grab it to go, and get on our way... but I guess it doesn't work that way in Europe. Jodie says it is the 'slower pace of life'... I can't help but wonder if that is a great line dreamt up to allow the owners to understaff. Everyone was very friendly, but slow! (I'm still getting used to the coffee in Europe -- I walked into one of the famous coffeeshops in Amsterdam, asked for a double-double with a few timbits... Let's just say it is a good thing I didn't accept what they offered).

Out of time here. More to come!

Star Trek ferry?

Here is the glowing panel I mentioned in the previous post but forgot to upload. Also a picture of the dining area.

Ferry ride to Holland

David:
The easiest way to Holland is via a ferry from Harwich, and we decided to take the overnight ferry, which departs at 11:30, giving us about six hours to kill. The sea was angry that night, and we had to contend with driving rain and squalls off the North Sea. Unfortunately we had left our oilskins and sou'westers at home (and we came SO close to bringing them, but we just couldn't find the space). Thankfully, we met two very pleasant cyclists who were also just beginning a tour of Holland and parts of Europe. We spent most of the time waiting inside with them, and we picked up some very good tips about where the best cycling is.
The ferry was very late loading, because it had just been lengthened by 50 m and it was the maiden voyage of the new improved version. This led to a lot of nervous references to the Titanic and I think we all secretly hoped that we'd be in the old section (in case the new section dropped out somewhere between Harwich and Holland). As it turned out, the new section was the place to be as the rooms were bright, modern and felt spacious even though they were tiny (see picture above). They kind of reminded us of Star Trek, actually, and the strange coloured panels that glowed throughout the ferry enhanced the effect.

The ferry company gave everyone two free buffet meals (supper and breakfast) although one of our cycling companions said this was standard on every trip. I guess marketing is the same in every language. Nonetheless, the food was pretty good (lots of herring) and we made the best of it by smuggling some extra food out in our pockets for lunch. I hope all of the churches we've been visiting counter-acts this!

Leaving London via Harwich

David:
We haven't been able to post much lately, because we left London (where we had easy access to a computer) and now have only intermittent access at Internet Cafes.
I'll start by recapping the last few days.
We left London about a week ago now. After one last night at the local pub with Jodie's friend Sara (who generously let us stay at her place), we took the train out to Harwich, on the coast. Taking the train is a bit of a hassle, because we have to stuff our bikes where-ever they'll fit on a regular commuter train, and with four bags and a sleeping bag on each one, they take up quite a bit of space. But we made it to Harwich with plenty of time to spare before the ferry left for Hoek van Holland, on the coast of the Netherlands.

Since Harwich was where my grandmother was born, we spent a bit of time riding around the town and exploring. It is an interesting little port town, with some nicely restored historical light-houses and forts. Pictured at left is a very old lighthouse which I think dates back to the time of the Mayflower (which was docked at Harwich for some time) Grandma - care to add any details or corrections in the comments? There is also a nice boardwalk along the water where we sat and watched the locals fishing for a while. A couple of young kids on BMX bikes were very impressed by our bikes and the amount of gear we had. In turn, we were impressed by their wheelies and tricks.

There was also a very pretty church, which you can see pictured at left.


And finally, a very nice old bookstore.

After exploring the town we moved on to the ferry terminal.

Holland!

Jodie: We are going to skip around in time a bit, and David will be posting about our ferry/Harwich adventures shortly, but in the meantime I will write about our experiences so far in Holland.

First of all, I must say, I love the Netherlands and the Dutch in general. What warm, fun, friendly people! So helpful! So welcoming! We have had many great experiences since getting here. Secondly, the biking is amazing. We have spent the past few days cycling through the sand dunes of the North Sea, nature reserves, fields and pastures, and beautiful ancient cities, and about 22% of this cycling has been done on roads that are used by cars. Bikes here have their own lanes, maps, traffic signs and traffic lights. It is unbelievable, and I don't know how we will go on after becoming so completely spoiled in Holland!

Our path since arriving in Hoek van Holland has included stays in Monster (not as scary as it sounds), Katwijk, Harlem and now Amsterdam. The camping has been so-so (we are outnumbered by RVs and holiday trailers by about 100-1), but incredibly affordable. We are spending about 30-40 Euro between us a day without breaking a sweat. And, the towns have been amazing. The first few days were spent in small beach towns, and yesterday and today in very beautiful cities. I think we will be ready to return to the smaller towns in a few days though, and we are both looking forward to the ride south to Belgium.

That's all for now - sorry that there are no pictures, we are still strategizing about how to upload from our camera while we are on the go. Please keep the comments and emails coming!

Leaving for Holland

David:
We're on our way to Holland. You can see a general outline of where we're going to be for the next few days here:
http://tinyurl.com/yr2scm




Holland and Belgium should be great places to start cycling, as the are pretty flat, and very comfortble for cycling.

We've been staying in a very pleasant part of London called Dulwich. There is a picture at left. It is a nice place, with easy access to the Underground, and some good local shopping and restaurants.

In the past few days, we've visited the Camden Market, Westminister Abbey, the Parliament Buildings, Downing Street and most of the other tourist attractions. The effects of the terror attacks two years ago are quite evident in the number of police (and the fearsomeness of their weapons). A funny irony is that there are many symbolic guards (the beefeaters and others) scattered around; but their presence seems a little bizarre when there are a lot more guards armed with flak jackets and submachine guns.

Thankfully, access to the attractions hasn't been restricted too much. Although I was stunned to see a notice indicating that all payphone conversations were being monitored in a telephone booth off of Trafalgar Square. I guess the Brits now know that my grandmother is off to Moose Lake for a few days and that I was hoping the rain cleared up but otherwise having a good time. Maybe I should have mentioned that they all drive on the wrong side of the road.


The only problems we've run into so far is that it is very tough to take bikes on long-distance high speed trains. We will have to take shorter, regional trains from place to place - bikes are no problem on these.

Cambridge

David:
Our first morning in London, we awoke bright and early (by London time - it was midnight our time) to make a day trip out to Cambridge. Jodie has a friend there that she wanted to visit, and I was giving a short presentation to a professor who does work in my field.

Cambridge is about an hour from London on a very pleasant, leisurely train. The station for this train, though, is about half an hour away from the house we are staying at via the London Underground. The London Underground at rush hour is neither pleasant nor leisurely. Three trains passed before we were finally able to get in; even then we only made it because some kindly Brits (perhaps sensing our bewilderment at seeing more people on in one subway station than the total number of people that have ever ridden the Edmonton LRT) held the doors open and pushed us in.


Cambridge was very beautiful. We saw the Wren Library, which houses many unique and historic works, such as a lock of Isaac Newton's hair. We went to a service at the amazing King's College Chapel, where they had a special prayer for medical researchers, which I appreciated. Most exciting, we went punting.


Punting is an old English term for "spending twenty minutes bailing rainwater out of a flimsly boat, then standing on the slippery end of this boat in the rain and trying to propel yourself with a very long stick without falling into the water, because you are an hour by train from dry clothes". Thankfully, the rain cleared up and the sun came up, meaning our biggest threat was being swept off the boat by rogue overhanging trees.


Jodie was able to avoid the overhanging trees, but she fell victim to the sticky mud at the bottom of the river. Our friend Ian had wisely advised that if the punt became stuck in the mud, it was better to let it go and lose our only means of propulsion than to fall into the water trying to pull it out. Jodie, being the wise person she is, followed this advice (I'm not sure what kind of boat Captain condemns her crew to drifting aimlessly just to avoid getting a little wet, but oh well.)


In the picture to the left, you can see the punt sticking vertically out of the water a long way behind us. You may not be able to see all of the locals and tourists alike laughing, pointing and taking pictures. We eventually recovered the punt and Jodie recovered her credentials by doing an admirable job of parrallel parking us against the bank. All in all, punting was a great time and is not to be missed by anyone, as long as someone else does the punting.


Yesterday, we visited the Camden Market in the morning and the British Museum in the afternoon. Both were pretty great to see. Today, we saw the Tate Modern this morning (after seeing the urinals that had been signed and delcared the creation of the signer, I considered signing the wall of the museum and calling every piece of art within my creation); and the National Gallery this afternoon. I felt a pang of homesickness upon seeing the Canadian Embassy on Trafalgar Square - I almost went in and asked for a double-double. Tomorrow, we're going to visit the Parliament so Jodie can see what the REAL Question Period is like. It should be fun!

David: Hello everyone, and welcome to the first post of our blog.

Our flight to London was pretty uneventful, after we had gotten the bikes bagged and checked in.


We learned a few things immediately upon arriving in London. One is that it rains a lot. Another is that it is very expensive (we burned through about a week's budget just taxiing in the plane from the runway to the gate). The other is that not many people fly with bikes into London Heathrow Airport. Heathrow is surrounded by its runways, which means the only way for vehicles to leave the airport is via a single tunnel. We had read in a few places (and heard from a few people) that it was possible, although a little tricky, to ride through the tunnel. Airport officials had apparently not read the same things, and told us flat out that there was no way to get our bikes out of the airport. The concept of needing a way to get our bikes out seemed to baffle them. One spent a few minutes telling me there was no way to ride my bike to Heathrow - when I finally got him to understand I needed to ride OUT of Heathrow, he asked incredulously, "How did your bike get IN here?" Another suggested we pay for all of the tickets in a shuttle bus and load our bikes onto the seats.

We were worried we might become some of those people that get stuck in airports forever, living in obscurity until a movie starring Tom Hanks and Catherine Zeta-Jones was made about us. Finally we found a sympathetic ticket agent at one of the 781 different trains that leave Heathrow who told us her train was happy to take bikes. We were relieved but remain hopeful a movie will be made about us.

Jodie: Following a short trip by train (during which David fell asleep thrice) we ended up at Paddington Station just in time to hit rush hour, making train or tube travel with bikes impossible until at least 6:30 pm. A kindly bobby informed us that riding to London Bridge Station through Hyde Park, Green Park and St. James's Park (as well as along the Thames) was entirely possible, so out we went. Ironically, after planning carefully how to get to Sarah's house while avoiding central London, we managed to bike past almost every iconic London site on the way to catch a train to North Dulwich - Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, parliament... a very beautiful ride indeed.



We took an elevator up to cross the Millenium Bridge to the south side of the Thames, but then at the other end we discovered a critical problem with bike touring with four panniers each - getting up and down stairs. Some frantic running up and down to avoid theft of either bikes or bags was successful, if a bit emotionally taxing at the end of a long day.



David: By the time we arrived at our friend's place, it was 8 hours after we landed. We knocked happily, expecting to be eating crumpets and drinking tea within a few minutes. We knocked again, this time a little less happily and a little more anxiously. We knocked a third time, now a bit panicky. We lifted up the mail slot and shouted. No response. We walked dejectedly back outside into the pouring rain to consider our options (none). Thankfully our friend was only asleep and we were inside only minutes later, although enjoying bangers and mash and a pint at the local pub instead of tea and crumpets.