Amsterdam: Windmills & Canal Boat Rides

After the wooden shoes and cheese factory, we stopped to look at windmills! This windmill in the photo below is actually a home for a small family. It was so beautiful. It would be weird to wake up and have lots of strange travelers taking pictures in your front yard. The tour guide said that they are used to it and love it.

There isn't anything quite like seeing your little girl in such a beautiful place. I love this picture...so so much.

 Later that afternoon, we took a boat ride through the canals of Amsterdam. It was so so pretty. I can't imagine living in this garden home (below).

 My two favorite people in the world!

 Callie took about a million pictures during the ride. I loved this one because you can see 8-9 canals down the river.

Amsterdam- Holland Countryside- Cheese and Wooden Shoes Factory

So, I am continuing my series from our trip to Europe this summer. On Day 2, we traveled to the Holland countryside to learn how traditional wooden shoes and Dutch cheese are made. This cheese was delicious!!! In Holland, they still wear wooden shoes for gardening. Holland is built on water. They explained this really complicated process of how they did it and I semi-forgot everything except for the fact that the buildings' foundations crack because of the water and that the ground is always muddy. Hence, the reason they wear wooden shoes! The wood protects their feet from moisture and back in the olden days:) they protected the gardeners feet from cows that might step on them..true story! The guy that owned the shop was hilarious. He actually carved a pair of shoes for us and explained the different types. Here we are in front of all the carving equipment.

 

 Dutch Cheese...I will never forgot how good this tasted. Even Callie loved it! They make it fresh in their shop everyday.

 Here are some different types of wooden shoes. They have shoes for gardening, weddings, church, and special occasions.

 Callie wanted her wooden shoes to have her name on them (I loved that idea). The owner was able to burn them into her shoes. We bought the size she wears now so we could remember how old she was when we went to Amsterdam.

 This photo is blurry but I loved her trying on the children's shoes. My cutie pie is a sport! My mom made her this dress with vintage linens. I was born in Holland, so this trip was very special to me. I was able to show Callie part of where we lived while I was small.

 Callie was part of the presentation on how they make cheese. She loved getting to help out the demonstration.

 

 



Travel Post- Amsterdam

Let me just start by saying that I am the worst blogger ever! I am working 2 full time jobs but still..I am awful at posting frequently. I am going to get better! I wanted to document our 2 week in Europe this summer. I have so many photos that it is hard to choose which pics to share. Matt and I (Matt does most of the work) lead groups each summer on international travel tours. We are usually gone about 2 weeks or less and find so much joy in showing others the world. As parents, its a crucial part of Callie's life to see how wonderful our world really is and how many different cultures there are to experience. I could go on and on about that in itself! She has experienced 4 countries so far and by next summer will have been to 9. It's such a great time and we enjoy these experiences as a family. So- here was our first stop this summer: Amsterdam. When you think Amsterdam, a few things come to mind. For some, those things are canals, the city built on water, The Anne Frank House, and tall skinny buildings. For others, it's legalized marajuana, legalized prostitution, and a wild night life. All are true..except the night life part..I'm not sure because I am so tired by the end of the day that I usually fall asleep before it's even dark outside. (It gets dark in Europe around 10:30-11:00 pm!)

 This is the iconic I amsterdam sign. People climb all over this thing to get a great shot! Below is my Callie resting in the "A."

 It was really hot this day. This was also our first day after a 12 hour plane right. When we landed, it was early in the day so we stayed up to get ourselves adjusted to the time change (6 hours) but we were exhausted!! At this photo below, we had been awake close to 40ish hours.

This shot shows us in front of a canal. Amsterdam is known for their beautiful canals and they were amazing. I have also never seen so many bicycles in my whole life. Matt and I love to rent bikes in Europe and ride around the town...not in Amsterdam. You will get killed...seriously..thousands of bikers all the time...jumping curbs and darting in front of traffic.

 This is our whole group minus Matt. We had an awesome group this trip. They made fast friends and the bond they share from this trip continues. This fountain is right in front of the i amsterdam sign. We cooled our feet in the water and rested. This is also right outside The VanGogh Museum. If you ever get the chance to see a VanGogh original..take it! Pictures of that to come.

 



This was at dinner on our first day. We were tired. Callie is an expert traveler. She has always been the easiest kid to travel with since we started traveling when she was young. She can get through security, passports, and customs like a pro. We are proud! We tried to eat authentic Dutch food here but we are both very picky. Shortly after this picture, we walked a block or two and found a pizza stand and a neat art stand. Pizza=happy americans. Art for our house= happy Matt.

More Amsterdam soon! Oh yeah..I wanted this bike. How cute is that?! Our tour guide told us the Amsterdam locals have 2 bikes. A nice bike and an ugly bike. The ugly bike is spraypainted and is well, ugly. They use this bike most of the time. On special occasions, like date night, they use their nice bike. This one would def be a nice bike.