Hello From The Netherlands!

Hello there and greeting from the Netherlands!

After I got my Royal Yachting Association credential to drive a boat in the inland waterways, we decided it was time to take a trip and do just that! We are about a week in on the HUMDINGER and will be boating for bit, here and there! Each day is a completely different adventure and I have fallen in love with being on the water.

We started in Elberg - which is a fabulous little town created somewhere around 796 AD and it has a moat! The architecture is charming and it is a beautiful little town.

Then we headed to Huizen and Volendam.

(The Herring served with onions and pickles is delicious! )

And to Marker Wadden and Hoorn.

The Marker Wadden is an artificial archipelago that was created in the Markermeer lake. It is absolutely stunning! Home to all kinds of birds, one can come and park their boat and take hikes, observe the wildlife from the E.T. looking tower, sit by the beach and enjoy the stillness. It is a man made marvel. Here is a little more information:

Marker Wadden, an artifical archipelago

Lake Markermeer (700 km2) was split off from Lake IJsselmeer in 1976, when a dam was built between Enkhuizen and Lelystad. Disconnected from the sea and rivers, the lake became a stagnant system. The lake has barely any natural shores, and its waters are often extremely turbid as wind and waves churn up the accumulated sediments from the relatively shallow lake floor (2-4 m deep). As a result, fish and bird populations have declined dramatically. The construction of this archipelago, these new islands give nature a major boost with newly created habitats for water plants, shellfish, birds and fish. Islands with natural shores and spawning areas will be built with sand, clay and silt dredged from the lake. This way a robust, clear-watered nature area arises in the heart of the Netherlands: a natural jewel where migrating birds, fish and other animals will th

Hoorn is a beautiful city rich in history that started in 1357 and was home to the Dutch East India Company. I absolutely loved it! The people, the food, the gorgeous old buildings were all amazing!

Now we are off to Amsterdam! More coming soon!