Holland

 Holland is a very cute country I think with too many bridges and canals and wonderful buildings to count. I loved it. Now, in the last three months there are couple of dream spots I would have liked to visit but had to give up seeing like Aushwitz and Neuschwanstein castle. Some things were just too complicated to get to and with all the planning that was already needed to be done I didn't feel like stretching my brain any further. I'd rather enjoy what was infront of me and stay sane at the same time. Holland on the otherhand is a little easier to navigate around since it is a small country and therefore, if you remember my top ten sights to see, I was able to visit the Corrie Ten Boom house, the Anne Frank house and rent a bike! I was very pleased. It all began in Amsterdam where I stayed with the sister of a girl who was a student with me at Capernwray. I took a short train ride to Haarlem from there and visited the Ten Boom house. This was definately a highlight of my trip so far. It was the first time visiting a place that didn't feel like a dream. I walked down the street thinking "I'm going to Corrie's house!". I was quite excited. I got there just in time for the english tour and lucky me, I was the only one there. It was just me and the tour guide. Not bad. Everything was set up as it may have been back then although none of the furniture was original because it had all been taken after the family was shipped to concentration camps. When I walked into Corrie's room my favourite part of the book, "The Hiding Place" came to my mind when she is in the dining area in the night with her sister, Betsie having tea because the bombing is keeping her up. She later goes back to her room to find a piece of shrapnel that has flown through her window and landed right on her pillow which would have landed on her head if she hadn't been with Betsie. It was so neat to look at the window in her room and be reminded of God's miraculous protection. One day my friend's sister, Stefanie took me into Amsterdam by bike which was quite a thrill for a Canadian girl who rarely rides a bike and when she does she is riding on streets not so busy and is either wearing a helmut or feeling like she should have worn a helmut because death could be right at her doorstep. It was so fun, though! Riding through the busy streets with hundreds of other bikers and having mopeds wipping by your side and trams running up and down the streets. Whew!

While there I visited the Anne Frank which was really great, although it wasn't quite the same personal experience as the Ten Boom house. There was no guide and a ton of more people were there and it was not furnished at all on request of Anne Frank's father so it was a little more difficult to imagine what it was like but that is okay, not complaining, just a different experience.

I then headed to Den Haag where my friend (and the sister of Stefanie), Rebecca and her husband, Martin live. This is the big political hub for Holland. I mostly relaxed here, went into the city one day and also walked to the beauitful beach! I of course got lost getting there and was super frustrated but once I got there, it's beauty made me forget about my distress. It was an open sandy beach with fences around the grassy type sand dune thingys for lack of a better description. I loved it. On my last day all three of us went to a place called Madurodam which is a place where they have built mini replicas of famous and popular buildings all over Holland. Very impressive! I visited all of Holland in only two hours.

Corrie Ten Boom House





Corrie's room, the wall where they hid the Jews behind and the window where the shrapnel flew in.











Haarlem











Anne Frank's room





Amsterdam



At the Beach in Den Haag





The beautiful beach!

Riding a bike in Amsterdam!

Sorry, the photos are a little scatter brained today but anyway...great time in Holland! After eight days there I headed back to England once again. She seems to keep letting me in which is nice although this time the customs lady asked, "Have you been working while in Europe? You know you can't work here with out a working Visa." I said, "Yes, I know, I haven't been working." She replies, "Are you sure? because your face went red when you said that." Hmm...no one has ever called me on blushing before, I thought to myself. That caught me off guard more than anything. Then I realized I did feel a little warm but I was just nervous. England is beautiful and where I most feel at home so far but man, her border makes me nervous. Anyway, she obviously let me through and the parents of my friend, Esther who I worked with at Capernwray were waiting for me on the other side. I am just outside of Bristol right now and have soaked up a bit of history at a brief stop at Stonehenge and a beautiful day in Bath where I visited the Roman Baths. And a lot of relaxing of course. My first post that was written on European soil was titled, "I think I'm in love with England" and I can say that is still true. It is funny, I think it was the country I was least interested in seeing for the sights because I find I hear most about England on TV, magazines, etc. and see it alot in movies that in a way I just thought, 'been there, done that' but I've been proved wrong. It really is a stunning country, cozy and somewhat romantic, just how I imagined it. I think the climate, the fact that it is pretty green, the language and  having family that live here, makes me feel most at home. Unfortunately, I don't have any photos uploaded of my time here but trust me, they're good ones!

Well, believe it or not I am half way through my trip and Savannah arrives in two days! That is so crazy. I can't believe it's been that long already. It has all been so great but it can be tiring too so I am ready for a second wind and a travel buddy! Things will become a bit more busy now I think and we aren't staying with as many people as I have these last three months so I am not sure how often I will get to a computer with a big chunk of time to blog and put pictures up but I will try. Thanks again for reading!