Bike Trip to Muiden

This weekend we decided to stretch our cycling muscles (in honour of Le Tour de France!) and venture outside Amsterdam for our first 1/2 day bike trip. The weather was scheduled to cooperate on Saturday so we picked a small village to visit a few hours east of the city called Muiden, where endless views of Dutch countryside and a visit to a small castle were promised.

It amazed us how, in less than 15 minutes, our surroundings changed from densely-populated streets to deserted bike paths and green farmland. Our 2-hour journey to Muiden included riding on well-marked bike paths while passing sheep, cows, horses, houseboats and yes, a big box shopping complex. Figures...just as we start to get used to the tiny shops found in the city centre, we are tempted by our North American mentality that "bigger is better". As we learned on our way home, stopping at a suburban shopping mecca has its advantages - we left with a good set of reasonably priced computer speakers and a new accessory for Charlotte's bike - a rear saddle bag to transport all her market finds!

Right...back to the purpose of our trip...

Muiden turned out to be a lovely place, filled with typical village cafes and small cobblestone streets. After riding through the village and taking a look at the castle from its surrounding grounds, we waited under a large tree for the daily rainfall to end before finding a nice picnic spot overlooking the green countryside. The sun came out, fresh air filled our lungs, and we were reminded how new adventures and places to visit like this one were the reason we moved to Europe in the first place.

When we returned home that night, an already perfect day was topped off with a glass of Rose and a dinner made from fresh market ingredients - baked salmon, wild rice, sauteed mushrooms and asparagus. Who knew exercising could be this rewarding?!?!?!

For more images from our bike trip, feel free to view the slide show at the bottom of this page or double-click on the photos to view them in full-size.