Rio Travelers: AMSTERDAM

So, this is finally the last installment of our Rhine river cruise. The first set of pictures were taken in Cologne, Germany along the river front and at the cathedral. The cathedral was started in 1248 but not completed until 1880. It was actually built to house the relics of the three wise men, which are enclosed in the gold box at the altar. They were brought to Cologne by the Archbishop in the 1100's.

After Cologne, we had a stop in Kinderdijk, the Netherlands for an afternoon visit to the Windmills. Kinderdijk is a UNESCO World Heritage site with the windmills dating back to the 1700's and some are still in operation.

The boat left Kinderdijk and arrived in Amsterdam during the night. We disembarked in the morning for a 2 day post-cruise visit to this very interesting city. While there, we took a "hop on/hop-off canal boat ride with a stop to visit the Anne Frank House; we used the trolley system to visit the Van Gogh Museum and the red light district and had a wonderful visit to the Keukenhof Tulip Gardens. The tulips are usually finished blooming by early to mid May but, because Holland had a colder and wetter winter than usual, they bloomed late. Definitely worth the bus ride and not to be missed if you can plan your visit at the right time.

Amsterdam is a fun place to visit but you must have an open mind since prostitution is legal and you can smoke marijuana in the local coffee houses, as well as buy your pot plants from the corner store. Their feeling is that you might as well legalize vices and make money from the taxes. You also have to be aware of the bicycles. In an effort to curtail traffic, bikes are EVERYWHERE.

Now that our wanderings in the motorhome and our European vacation are over we are home and preparing for Ken's surgery. His first knee replacement (left) will be on June 17th. That will be followed in 3 months by the other one. If all goes according to plan, we will be planning next year's adventures before we know it.