We were up at 8:15, showered, and down to breakfast at 9:15. Same buffet, but still good. We got to relax a bit on our balcony while we waited for Barbara and Holger Puhl to arrive from Bremen Germany. From the balcony I saw a green parrot flying around which was a surprise. We also have a few magpies and lots of gulls and doves. When I went down to the lobby to wait for Puhls, I asked Tony about the parrot. He said in the past few years, pet parrots that had sadly been released have managed to survive and reproduce. They are now considered pests. But it was fun to see it today.
Puhls arrived early at 11:15. Their room was not ready so we had coffee and chatted in the lounge. After they got in their room, we started walking at 12:30 for the tour boat to Kinderdijk to see the windmills. It was a pleasant walk with lovely bridges, old boats, and an old lighthouse boat. Holger had knee surgery 2 months ago, so we had to stop and rest a few times. Bill definitely didn't mind that.
As we neared the boat it really started to rain. Boooo! We boarded a 2 story boat which was old but quite nice and headed up the river. The trip took an hour and poured rain the whole way. It was still raining when we reached Kinderdijk, but we all took off to walk to the windmills. The rain did let up, and we really enjoyed seeing the 19 windmills on the canal here. They were built around 1750 to regulate the water level and protect the surrounding fields on reclaimed land. Some were made of wood and others of stone. All seemed to have living quarters on the ground floor. We only had an hour and a half here, but we had time for a warming cup of coffee and for me to buy a windmill t-shirt. There were a few other boats and many buses dumping off tourists, so it was fairly crowded even in the misty weather. I did seem a few neat birds which I will have to identify when I get home.
On the trip home, the sun came out and we were able to be on the open deck to take photos. The river is a main mode of transportation of goods south, so it is mainly an industrial area with some homes mixed in. There was a huge flock of sheep in one area along the bank.
We arrived back in Rotterdam at 5:30 without rain which was good since we had the long walk back to the hotel. Holger's back was causing him a bit of pain since he had favored it while his knee was injured. We went to dinner at the Western Pavilion just down the street from the hotel where we had eaten Wednesday night. I had a wonderful bowl of cream of onion soup. I know that sounds awful, but it was great. I also had a decent burger and mainly ate the burger. The other 3 had steaks with salad and fries. We were all rather wet, cold, and tired so the stop was a good one.
Back at the hotel Bill had a scotch, Puhls had beer, and I had some coffee. Sergi, the night manager whom I had talked to last night (he just graduated college, been doing an internship for a consulting firm, and interviewed yesterday for a permanent job) found out today that he had been hired, so he was on cloud nine.
The folks here at the hotel could not be nicer or more helpful!!!! Tomorrow Holger is driving us all to Amsterdam for a day of sightseeing!
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