Hotel Restaurant Anno Nu Oostkapelle

... market today. We were given a tour of their facility as well as seeing a new 177' yacht under construction. They want my dad to buy this yacht, but after waiting three years for me to get out of high school, he wasn't willing to wait another year for a yacht to be completed.

After our tour, we climbed aboard the heli again for a short flight to Brugge.

So, it's the 5th of June and
we are in Belgium. The ferry was long and there was very little to
do, so we decided to sleep for 15 of the 18 hours we were at sea. We
had avoided getting diesel in the UK in order to make the most of
cheaper European prices, so refuelling was our first priority. Once
fully loaded up with fuel and crisps, we powered on through north
east France, planning to cut across Switzerland and enter Italy just
above Milan.

... of the country of the Netherlands is actually under sea level: They have more hydro engineers than anywhere in the world. Today was Queens day in the Netherlands. it's their national holiday. Everyone wears orange and sell their things in the streets. We found some time today to eat some traditional food from the Netherlands

... I haven't been able to decide which fries are better, Netherlands or Belgium. We may have some more fries today to try and break the tie. Mom and I also sampled some local beers at a few cute bars in the area. Yesterday was a more relaxing day, and for dinner we tried a bucket of mussels. Unfortunately I learned I don't care very much for mussels, but Mom really liked them so I am happy about that. We also got some ...

... then we headed out of amsterdam to drive down the coast of the netherlands on the way to brugge, belgium. the scenery of the dutch countryside reminded me of iowa.. weird... we stopped in a small village to have lunch before crossing into belgium in a town called OOstkapelle.

... terrible noise, we still go forward, I am to slow to react and to put a fender, and boum, we hit a boat in front of us. The noise and the shouting brought people around, I throw the ropes, they tear us back into our berth. My heart is beating like hell, I wonder, what is THIS now??

Frank stays calm, turns the engine off, opens the floor and goes to look at the engine. Comes back, "ok, all set, no problem, I need some new bolts, since I seem to have forgotten ...

... it started to rain.
Suddenly, while performing the bear manoeuver again, and bringing back the jib, suddenly the jib's rope gets stuck in the winch! (sorry, no idea what the correct sailing term for this rope is!) The wind is blowing, the rain is hitting my face, the jib sail is making a terrible noise, since it is still loose... Frank reacts quickly, takes the rope and turns it around a second winch, starts winching, aaarrrggghhh, it gets stuck too!! Third winch, both putting all ...

We leave! Frank and I, and also his friend Johanna, who will join us for this first trip. Fine to me, since, having no sailing experience at all, I can use all the help! I start by taking a pill against seasickness, since I have no idea if I am to be sick or not, so I prefer to anticipate!
Frank and Johanna are a good team, I let them activate themselves while I enjoy the trip. Weather is nice, not a ...

... the small canals with giant container ships and best of all ryan mastered the mussels that the area is famous for! Sailing is very popular in The Netherlands and its not hard to figure out why - most of Zeeland is actually below Sealevel so there is a maze of waterways to explore. Ryan explored them more than i did with John a week later when after we rode all the way home we drove back to go camping even further south. They sailed it ...

... about three monumental ones, that are just ridiculously huge. We have seen the famous Michelangelo's '"Madonna and Child"... well we almost did, we saw a picture of it and the Church it is in, but only worshipping/practicing Catholics are allowed inside... I felt utterly discriminated against!... But soon, I was okay about it. We also went inside the sombre Church that "houses Christ's blood"- yes, "the man" himself's blood! I just couldn't ...