Northbound from Amsterdam

This morning, and one day ahead of our planned schedule, we decided to leave a very touristy Amsterdam and head North. After 30 minutes using diesel power we could set sail and make full use of a strong wind from the East to cover 28 NM (at 7-8 knots) across the big inland sea of Marketmeer to reach a marina in the cosy little town of Enkhuizen.

In order to welcome our new crew member Terry I prepared a typical Swedish Midsummer Meal of herring, sour cream, red onion (instead of onion grass), Swedish rye bread and cheese. As for drinks we had snaps (Polish vodka) and beer (Dutch) which I had bought in Amsterdam just before departure. All the food disappeared in 27 minutes and the drinks shortly after. A couple of Swedish drinking songs helped us all to get in a good mood and our new friend seemed to enjoy my efforts just like the rest of the crew. Terry suddenly became very talkative and I could find out that he is a wilderness kayaker like me!

Tomorrow, at noon, we plan to cross the next big inland sea, the IJsselmeer, and enter the Streamkanal in Northern Holland.

Amsterdam - the City of Bicycles

Bicycling seems to be the favourite mode of transport among the people living in Amsterdam. I have never seen so many bicycles on the road before, not in Bejing nor in Copenhagen.

The parking of all these bicycles in the downtown area must be a nightmare for the city authorities. But the practical Dutch have found a good solution. On the water! By using floating docks and barges they can offer parking space for thousands of bicycles close to public transportation. For the bicycle owner,  however,  I guess it can be tricky to remember exactly where you have parked your two-wheeler. Perhaps there's a smartphone app for that?

Amsterdam - the Canal City of the World

As far as I can remember from my first visit to Amsterdam in 1959 there was at that time only one or two companies offering canal tours here. Today's visitors have to choose between some 30+ tours depending on taste and/or purse.

Here are a few examples on what's being on offer today:

- Historic Boat Tour

- Open Electric Boat Tour

- Winter Feast Cruise

- Fine Wine Cruise

- Burger Cruise 

- Live Music Cruise

- Cheese and Wine Cruise

- BBQ Cruise

and if you wish to act as a captain 

on your own cruise you can combine

the canal tour with a good workout

by renting a pedal operated boat...

In all the major cities in Europe you can ride on an Hop On - Hop Off Bus, in Amsterdam the name of the game is a Hop On - Hop Off Boat!

Crew change in Amsterdam

Good bye Christian, Lars and Jack! Thank you for a great time together at sea and land.

Welcome Terry from USA! 

Terry will be sailing with us all the way to Stockholm.

Private sailing lessons by Tore

Onboard Jennifer I am the number one novice sailor! All my fellow crew mates have long experience of sailing and boating. Luckily for me I am having Tore as my watch partner and he is happy to teach me the basics of sailing. Every three hours of active duty together with him is lika a learning lesson for me!

Tore has been on and around sailing boats all his life. He has been sailing with friends and family in both the Mediterranean and in the Caribbean in rented boats in various sizes; Beneteau, Bavaria and Elan.

Starting from the Swedish West coast he has made several trips in a small Monark 540 owned by a friend of his, often to Denmark. In 1983 Tore made one of his favourite trips, when he sailed from Sweden to the Orkney Islands together with three friends from the Swedish police force. The type of boat used for this trip was a Swedish designed and built Laurin 32, LOA: 32,18 ft/9.81 m.

Tore is, with all his sailing experience, a perfect teacher for Staffan, the green sailor in yellow!