Cycling about in Europe

 Here is our first update, a bit late but it has been a wee bit challenging the first week. This is a short update to let you all know we haven’t fallen off the edge of the earth just yet.
 

We left England from Hull, taking the ferry to The Europort, just outside of Rotterdam.

We cycled to Delft, about 35km away. It took us many more hours than we had anticipated due to the challenging way in which the cycle paths are laid out.

As you can see from this picture of the map we were using, the cycle paths are connected by junctions. Easy peasy to go from one to another. Or not. We found that the signs were missing at times leading us to ask WTF over and over again. 

Backtracking and going in circles adds many kilometers to the journey. Sometimes what looked like the shortest way wasn’t. So we struggled on. 

 This cycle path goes directly to the front door of IKEA, with a large bicycle parking lot in front. The Dutch don’t wear helmets here and the adults all seem taller than 6 feet. Also, the Dutch are raised to ride bikes from early childhood so they drive very fast, even through crowded streets and everyone magically doesn’t end up in a heap!

The Dutch have an extraordinary system of cycle paths here and it seems as if most people ride bikes instead of cars. Unlike the Italians who don’t follow road rules and thus require one to look left, right, backwards and forwards before crossing the street, the Dutch do follow the rules but you still have to look all ways because there are car paths, cycle paths, and pedestrian paths, and at controlled intersections, all have their own lights. And, mopeds can ride in cycle or car lanes willy nilly. A saving grace is that they drive on the right side of the road here!

Here we are in Delft, leaving soon for Gouda.

 

Damn signs!

Gouda cheese.

More Gouda cheese.

Some Dutch food.
 

Not Dutch food.

There are about a billion bikes in this country!

Anyhoo, we have both been sick this week and cycling in the wind and rain hasn’t helped. I am taking something a Dutch pharmacist recommended so I don’t get walking pneumonia. Did I mention the rain? Well one thing you can take for granted here is the wind, and the other is the chance of rain. 

More pictures from this week when I feel a bit better. 

Needless to say, we have had it with the fickle weather and took a train to Maastricht today (Monday) to a warmer locale. Soon we will be in France and all will be right in our cycle world.

Peace my friends!