06 Sep Europe: The Netherlands

Colby and I got back from a 2 week trip to Europe last night. To say I’m exhausted is an understatement, however, I couldn’t wait to share about the first part of our trip, which was to the Netherlands. The fun part is that my dad came with us. Something that many of you probably don’t know is that I’m the first generation to be born in the United States, which yes, means that neither of my parents were born in the states. My dad grew up in Holland and the majority of his family lives there, including his 4 brothers and my cousins.

My parents were just there in June, so my mom skipped out on this trip but we had a blast with my dad. It’s nice to have your own personal guide and see all the places he grew up. I’ve been to Holland several times, but I hadn’t been in 8 years and I must say, I can appreciate it now much more than when I was a kid. It was also so good to spend time with family that I rarely get to see. And it helped that we had perfect weather the whole time, which everyone made sure to point out how rare that was.

Day 1 – Fly from Dallas to Amsterdam

Day 2- Arrive in Amsterdam + Muiderberg

We flew from Dallas to Amsterdam and when we arrived, I was so tired. I was dreading the flight and as expected didn’t sleep on the plane at all. My uncle picked us up and after having lunch at his house in Muiderberg, we went on an 18 mile bike ride. It helps so much if you can stay awake to avoid the jet lag and had we not gone on that bike ride I would have definitely been asleep on the couch. After the bike ride we walked over to a castle where my aunt works, grabbed appetizers and then headed back to my uncle and aunts house. I skipped dinner, took a shower and went to bed around 6 pm. I woke up the next day feeling like a new person. Anytime we travel with such a big time difference I feel like that first day is such a blur, but I’m glad we got to make the most of it.

Day 3 – Gouda + Kinderdijk + Rotterdam

Another uncle picked my dad, Colby and myself up and we did a lot of the touristy things around the country. We drove to Gouda, which was a big cheese market and was so much fun. After we went to a windmill farm called Kinderdijk. Then we drove around where my dad grew up, including seeing the house he grew up in over 50 years ago. Amazing, right? It’s the house below with all the beautiful greenery. That night we stayed in Rotterdam and walked around town a little there, where we grabbed dinner.

Day 4 – Zeeland

We drove through the country, called Zeeland, meaning land around the sea. Holland is so green and is surrounded by water everywhere, so driving through the country gives you such beautiful scenery to look at. We made a couple stops in some towns including Zierikzee, before driving to my Uncle and Aunts house in Stellendam. We ate lunch at a cute little place on the sea and then walked around their town where we climbed up a tower in Ouddorp. We had dinner in their backyard, which was so beautiful. Seriously, all the houses and flowers in Holland are just the best!

Day 5 – Amsterdam Boat Tour

This was such a fun day! We went to yet another uncle and aunts to have lunch and then went on a boat tour with 18 of my family members (or soon-to-be family members). It was a 3 hour ride through Amsterdam, which is the best way to see the city. After doing so much driving it was nice to be on a boat. When the boat tour was over, we had a family dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 6 – Amsterdam to Venice

Part 2 of our trip to Europe is coming soon!

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I didn’t start sharing our traveling adventures on the blog until the end of 2013, but you can see some of our vacations below as well as how to travel on a budget here.

Pacific Northwest
Western Caribbean Cruise
Arizona
Hilton Head
South America: Argentina
South America: Torres Del Paine
South America: Lake Region
South America: Santiago + Coast
Colorado
Costa Rica: Manuel Antonio
Costa Rica: Santa Teresa
Costa Rica: La Fortuna
Michigan
Las Vegas
Caribbean Cruise – Grand Turk + Dominican Republic
Caribbean Cruise – Aruba + Curacao
Colorado Ski Date #2
North Carolina
Maui
Kauai
Oahu
Palm Springs
Colorado #3
Anniversary Staycation
Florida

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