Our Amsterdam Adventure

You may recall that, at the end of the previous entry, I thought I was going to bed, after returning from Enkhuizen.

But Erlinda had other plans. She wanted to take me to Aalsmeer, a nearby village. We'd seen a windmill from a distance and we'd been told it was in Aaslmeer.

So we set out again, this time on foot.

As you know, I have this thing about taking elevator pictures.

I just couldn't resist shooting Erlinda primping in the elevator's mirror as we got going.

As we walked along a canal (did I mention that there are canals everywhere?) we came upon this neat little patio in front of someone's door.

By now it was quite dark (much darker than it seems in the photo) and Erlinda challenged me to get a good shot.

Came out pretty well, I think.

A little farther on, we found this old-fashioned restaurant.

I loved the contrast of the antique building and the sleek, modern car in front.

By now it was really dark, so I braced myself and the camera against a utility pole on the other side of the street, and took a long-ish exposure to produce this shot.

You may just be able to make it out in this photo, but the roof is made of thatch.

Nostalgia, anyone?

This gorgeous house was at the junction of two branches of the canal. Erlinda loved its design.

There was a duck swimming right in the center of the picture, but by the time I got set, he swam away.

Rats!

This shot gives you an idea of how dark it really was.

We were now in the village of Aalsmeer, and we came upon this gentleman washing down the sidewalk outside his store.

When he saw me raise the camera, he politely stepped back into the alley behind him so as not to interrupt what he thought was a shot of Erlinda.

I had to signal to him that, no, he was the one I wanted to photograph. He then kindly resumed what he was doing.

Then, we rounded a corner, and there it was!

Huge, larger than life, close-up--a real Dutch windmill.

We'd been seeing pictures of them all our lives. Now we were standing right next to one.

It was like a huge four-armed creature towering over us. Goose-bumpy stuff!

This plaque at the base of the windmill says that this "de Leeuw" windmill was built in the 18th century and that it is a city monument.

I'm just kidding. To tell you the truth, I have no idea what this plaque says, because I don't know Dutch!

Can someone translate it for me, please?

It seems the town may have grown up around the windmill, because there are shops surrounding it.

I was told later that it still functions, and that it's used to grind grain, apparently on special occasions only.

Tours are offered, but we were too late for that.

If you look really closely, you may just make out a couple on the balcony of their house on the right.

As we walked back toward the hotel, this garden just in front of someone's living room window caught our attention.

But by now, Erlinda wasn't really in the mood for more pictures.

She just wanted to get off her feet and relax. We'd been walking for the better part of an hour.

Poor baby.

We were crossing the bridge that led us out of Aalsmeer and I was struck by the lights along the canal.

As I did my long exposure, a motorcycle passed in front of the house on the right, leaving a stream of light.

Finally, we're back at the Radisson (yet another elevator picture).

Doesn't Erlinda look relieved to be "home?"

Yes, we were tired, but it had been a very enjoyable day.

So that's about it for this set.

But you might want to see the next day as we took our trip home. Check out our next entry.