clairedavieswriter

For my 29th and last full day of riding, the Netherlands seemed determined to serve up a complete Dutch experience.
We had the amazing cycle paths (have I mentioned those?):

With their brilliant signage and knooppunt maps:

We had the bike shop (with a wonky church tower thrown in):

We had the canals…

The ingenious swing bridges over canals:

The convenient cycling bridges over canals:

The old windmills beside canals:

Or out in the fields:

And we had their modern successors, taking full advantage of today’s howling north wind:

We had the traditionally designed thatched houses:

And the miles of terrain so flat it felt like cycling on a treadmill, and so low-lying that much of it registered as below sea level on my GPS profile

And of course my Dutch bingo would not be complete without a retired couple riding side by side. In the interests of journalistic accuracy, I should point out that this picture was taken yesterday, but I saw plenty today too:

And before I knew it I was at the north coast, battling that northerly gale to earn a place on my self-made podium. Danke well, the Netherlands, and tot ziens for now: you can be sure I’ll be back.