May 27 – Saturday – last day with everyone
Up and out to the Diamond factory. Everyone was suitably impressed. Now we all know how to grade diamonds.
We were all afraid for Aussi, because Olga has been waiting patiently for this. She only bought 1 pair of earrings.
Then back to the Hotel. We started to rearrange our suitcases, so we bring back as little as possible, and we don’t have to check any bags.
Then out and about with Dennis and Carol. We wandered about, down around the canals, and up and down the streets. The building here,
are all leaning forward. The houses are built on wooden poles, sunk into the reclaimed marsh land. A lot of people everywhere.
We stopped at this little bistro and had a bun with cheese and something on it for lunch. Then back to the hotel to get ready to go out again.
We went to a cheese and clog place to see how cheese was made and watch a guy make wooden shoes. That was kinda neat.
Leo and Jill must of had lunch at one of those wacky tobacie places, because Leo was crazy,
everyone was taking photos of him with a dutch maid’s cap on. He even sat in the big wooden shoe out front.
On the road again, this time to the fishin village of Volendam. With a stop along the way to see a working windmill. Now that was
fascinating. You can move the top from one side of the thing to the other, depending on which way the wind is blowing. He said it takes
him 1/2 an hour to move it, it only weighs 14 tons, and it rest on a lot of big wooden dowels. The sails can reach speeds of up to 90 mph.
They were spinning pretty good when we were there.
It started to rain in Volendam, dam. But we wandered about grumbling the whole time.
Then back on the coach and on to a smaller fishing village called Markerof.
We got to see a old dutch house. 30 of us barely fit into the house. There were no bedrooms, the beds were little cupboards
in the wall of the living room. Very claustrophobic. And then away we go again, this time on a boat across the Zider Zee back to Volendam.
We wandered down the street back to a little resturant to have our final supper together. Fish…… I had a steak, but the fish was good.
Then it all fell apart, everyone was snapping photos and talking and carrying on. A group of the aussi ladys got up to sing a song, they mentioned
the maple leaf, so it was a good song. Then Sonjia read a poem she created along the way, it was great, The poem captured the trip to a tee,
even down to the new Canadian saying of….. “HOLY CRAP”
The handball team of Voledam won the Dutch championship, so they had a parade while we were there, and we helped them celebrate.
Then all good things must come to an end, we piled back onto the coach for the trip back into Amsterdam and the hotel.
We said goodbye to David & Natasha, and Marie & Kate, they are leaving us tomorrow.
This will be the last update, until we are home, as we will be travelling most of tomorrow to get to London late in the day.
Then we fly out Monday morning to be home Monday evening.
