Amsterdam again...

Amsterdam is a city that is ruled by two wheels; if it isn't THE most bike friendly city in the world it has to be a close second to whom ever is number one. Our second day in Amsterdam we rented a couple of bikes, this proved to be one of my favorite activities of our trip thus far. Cruising down the streets of Amsterdam, golden and brown leaves blanketing the sidewalks and gutters, and the smell of Autumn in the crisp air, I was filled with the freedom and lightheartedness of being a kid riding my bike through piles of leaves on my way home from school

I loved our bike riding along the canals and narrow streets so much that upon returning to Seattle I am going to buy a Dutch style bike and make my main source of transportation bicycle. I do, however, intend to hold on to the Dutch sense of transportation instead of that of the Seattle-lite.

It was refreshing to see classy ladies in smart outfits and heels pedaling away from here to there; It seems that many Seattle-lites that travel by bike like to dress like they are competing in a road race even though they are merely riding to work or to the grocery store. I find that I look a bit like a stuffed sausage if I wear head to toe Spandex and therefore feel justified in keeping my bicycle look "European".

Besides bicycles, windmills are another icon of Dutch life. We found a windmill along our bike trail that was also a micro brewery. This discovery was a bit of a Dutch trifecta for us; It combined biking, windmills, and beer all into one supremely awesome moment of Dutchness. I think the only way it could have been more Dutch-y is if we were wearing wooden clogs and picking tulips!