Nice background, don't you think? After all, we are in The Netherlands and aren't wooden shoes Dutch? Of course I could have used tulips or windmills or even cows, so I picked 'klompen' ( Dutch for wooden shoes ) I wore them as a child. As a matter of fact I am still wearing them now when doing yard work or washing the car. Well, let's not get sidetracked. This is about some of my trips to The Netherlands. To get there from the USA one normally flies, it is a big swim across the Atlantic. Did somebody say The QEII? OK splurge if you want. I fly. And once there how does one get around, besides walking ( on 'klompen'! )?

Try a bike Holland is a flat country , except in the soutern part of the province of Limburg, where one finds some modest hills. Almost all highways have seperate bike lanes running alongside them. The only obstacle may be the wind, which always seems to be a headwind!

The bus One can get just about everywhere by bus. A uniform ticket system allows travel on different lines, using so called ' strippen kaarten' (strip tickets) sold in differnt lengths depending on the number of strips. These tickets can be bought in post offices, tourist bureaus or from the driver, who only will have the shorter lengths. The length of the journey determins the number of strips stamped.

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