Posts in Category: Europe
-
Alsmeer – Visiting The World’s Largest Flower Auction
The bike and barge tour through Holland with Cycletours had another great day yesterday visiting the city of Leiden, touring an organic cheese farm and playing a game of boules. Today’s highlights will include at visit to the world’s largest flower auction at Alsmeer followed by a bike ride right through the centre of Amsterdam. […]
-
Leiden – Visiting an Ancient University City and a Game of Boules
Yesterday’s first full day of our bike and barge tour of Holland with Cycletours got off to a fantastic start with a visit to the Keukenhof, one of the most famous botanical gardens in the world. However, it was a long day as we pulled into the city of Leiden where we spent the […]
-
The Keukenhof – Holland’s Incredible Botanical Gardens
In the previous post we finally got underway on our bike and barge tour of Holland with Cycletours. We boarded the Zwaan in Amsterdam and made our way to the city of Haarlem where we moored for the night. Today we are going to visit the Keukenhof gardens at the height of spring bulb season. […]
-
The Zwaan – Our Home Away from Home in Holland
In a previous post I explained how we came to decide upon Cycletours for our bike and barge tour of Holland which we are starting today. We have just finished two glorious days in Amsterdam visiting the Van Gogh and Rijksmusuem as well taking a boat cruise on the city’s famed canals. Now it was […]
-
Rijksmuseum, Rembrandt & the Five Flies Restaurant
In my previous post I described our first day in Amsterdam which included a visit to the Van Gogh Museum and a boat ride through the city’s UNESCO World Heritage Site canals. Day 2 in Amsterdam promises to be just as interesting with a tour of the world famous Rijksmuseum, a visit to Rembrandt’s house, […]
-
Amsterdam First Impressions – Blooms, Bikes and Boats
In my previous post I explained why we were coming to the Netherlands for a bike and barge tour and today it’s finally time to fly to Amsterdam. After a minor scare that we would miss the flight from Newark to Amsterdam because the Halifax/Newark flight was delayed three hours, it turned out we had […]
-
Cycletours – Preparing for a Bike and Barge Tour to the Netherlands
In my last post I wrote of being a week away from our bike and barge tour of the Netherlands and the level of expectation that was building, especially when I saw pictures of the Keukenhof gardens in spring bloom. In this post I’ll explain why I chose Cycletours as the company to lead us […]
-
The Netherlands – Visions of Keukenhof Dancing in My Head
Just like Gordon Lightfoot I’m staring at the early morning rain pouring down for what seems like the umpteenth weekend in a row, but unlike old Gordie I do have some place to go. The coffee shops of Amsterdam beckon and I am buoyed by the knowledge that a week from today Alison and I […]
-
La Seu d’Urgell – Finding Marilyn Monroe in this Ancient Spanish Town
Spain abounds with well preserved small cities and towns that, if they were located anywhere else, would draw a large number of tourists to their unique sites and atmospheres. However, with the irresistible pull of the Toledos, Segovias, Rondas and other better known places, they just get lost in the shuffle. Such a place is the […]