Fantastic.

Utrecht was lovely. I arrived late and we did not get to do the canal trip as planned, however visiting with A. and her mother was lovely. Her stepfather was there for a bit and seems an interesting man. We took a short walk around Utrecht (I had wandered a bit on my way from the station to their house), bought groceries, had dinner (A. made cheese fondu with green veggies and seedful bread), and I chatted with the mother while A. went upstairs to change for her tango appointment in the city.

Utrecht is a miniature Amsterdam with more interesting canals. The city is unique in the Netherlands in that the city is higher than the water level and the canals are at basement level. The canal-side buildings have basements which open up onto the quay of the canal. The bricks are aged and slightly grey-green and the leaves being dropped by the trees are ocher and light orange. An enchanting place.

Yesterday I met with S. and her colleague C. to go shopping at the organic market. S. is a New Zealander I met through the 'swimming' group. Bought some lovely goat milk gouda and a sweet potato. Went to the natural druggist for some vitamin C and some herbal meds for my upper respiratory system. The cold that was starting Friday morning worked its way into my upper lungs and I will not let it settle there. Last night I was concerned, but this morning I woke up raring to cycle all day.

Yes, me. I looked forward to a day of exercise. And I enjoyed myself entirely (and was able to keep up). I met the same S. and four of her colleagues at Amsterdam Central station. We bought tickets for ourselves and our bikes for our half hour train journey to Castricum (a city in the province of North Holland). From that train station we cycled directly onto the path which would take us to the seaside.

In that part of the province there is a network of well maintained, bricked bike/walking trails which take you through the woods to the dunes to the sea. Along the path, we stopped at a pond. The we followed the short grass path and were met by a single swan drifting in a crystal clear pond. L. was our enthusiastic gude as she's been to this area many times; just past the swan was the spring which provides something like 60% of Amsterdam's water, maybe more, I can't remember.

The entire are is something s supremely beautiful. The foresty part from the town, the dunes on the North Sea, the pond. Brilliant sunshine all day. Good company, excellent picnic on the side of a hill overlooking the back of the dunes. Once we reached the edge of the dunes, we parked our bikes in a sea of hay and stands, walked up the wide path also covered two feet deep in hay and were met by wind off the North Sea. We played on the beach for a while - the others flew kites and I stared at the ocean and occasionally fetched and set free a fallen kite.

There were a number of people there, but it wasn't too crowded when we arrived. I'm told that summer is as crowded as one might expect. When we left, there were many more bikes parked around ours; sometimes, it is good to start early if you call 10 early, and on a Sunday, I certainly do.

We cycled back, stopped at a cafe for a drink while waiting for the train.

More than once I felt I was living a hyper-reality. It is too much of what I'd hoped my trip to be. I may not find in myself all that I am hoping to find, but I am having a wonderful visit in Amsterdam. I will be able to return to Atlanta with a refreshed spirit even I have not cleared out all the clutter in my mind.