Amsterdam - Charm of Holland

We took a bus tour to the countryside. The sun came out for a perfect sunrise (it was 8:30am)

Our first stop was a wooden shoemaker shop.

He had so many shoes. The hanging ones he said are for decoration.

These machines are 80 years old. The first one carves the shoe via a mold. The second one hallows out a spot to put your foot.

The almost finished shoe now needs to sit and dry for about. He uses poplar wood which at this stage is still soft and wet. After it dries he will lawyer and paint it.

They were quite comfortable I almost bought a pair! But not very practical in Ohio.

Next a short boat trip to a cheese making shop!

Lots of cows around.

And cheese!

They taught us all about how they make their cheese. It was a fun demonstration.

We ate Dutch pancakes.

then took a walking tour around Edam.

This use to be a big cheese market square

Still a beautiful town.

Lastly, the windmills in Zananse Schans. They are so beautiful. This area use to have tons of windmills but due to modernization they started to fall into disrepair. They are trying to save the few remaining by raising money repair them. Some are now even working again!

It was a great day trip! I got to see all the touristy things in Holland. Though no tulips left of course.