Day8, August 31, 2012 22 miles in the wind and rain! Total mileage: 193 miles

However, it has not rained everyday and here are a few pictures from sunnier times when the internet was acting up.  Along the way we would often meet up with others from the tour.  John and Maggie are from England and are seasoned tourers (which is not the same as a tourist).

 This section of Holland is known for its herring and paling-which we call eel.  Paul found a little fish market selling smoked eel.  He purchased this fellow and shared it with everyone at our table.  They were all glad that I declined since it meant more for them!

 It isn't just about fish and bakeries.  We ducked into a local pub when the skies opened up.  Always a fun way to wait out a shower.

 Now it's today (August 31).  Not only was it raining this morning, there were very strong winds and it was very chilly.  Paul and I were very happy that we had brought wool socks and our long johns....and it is still August!  This group rides no matter what and out we went.

 We all went to the Henri Willig Cheese Farm.  We learned how they make their cheese and had some samples.  Quite tasty.  Then we were off into the wind and the rain.

 Our original intention was to pedal out to Marken Island.  We were traveling on a dike which was fine as long as we were heading southeast.  Unfortunately that wasn't very often.  As we continued, the wind was so strong that we decided to move inland because we felt that pedaling over the causeway would be order dangerous.  It continued to rain and be windy, but we were dry and warm in our rain gear.

 At last we found coffee and an awning.  We were all set for our morning break and the baked goods were sweet!

 The rain lessened but you can tell by this tree that the wind continued with a vengeance.  Those homes on the other side of the Noord Holland canal are all houseboats.  It is a very different lifestyle.  There was even a "road" sign in the canal indicating how far to Amsterdam by canal.

We made it back to the boat in Amsterdam.  The skies had cleared and we had time, so we decided to take a canal boat ride around the city.  We hopped on the #48 bus and went back to Central Station to take the canal boat ride.  This view of seven arched bridges over the canal was very impressive.  It was interesting to see some of the sights from water and learn the history of many of the building.  A wet start but a dry end to the day.