The Adventure Begins

 Opening my journal this morning, on the first page I was struck by the quote

I added before beginning this journey.

"Live a life that is driven more strongly by curiosity than by fear."

 ~Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic.

Yes, my live-in gardener and I traveled with curiosity and no fear,

for we were there to experience a life time of experiences we only dreamed of

and will never experience again.  We were creating memories.

 The goal of the trip was also to fill our hearts with flowers,

gorgeous sights, and tea times together and with friends.

 We knew it would be hard on our bodies, as our daughter reminded us,

"you aren't college students that can just jump on a train and carry a backpack anymore"

Yes, Jim had his days with a fever and not  feeling good.

I had a lot of pain in my legs and hips from all the walking.

We guess we walked about 5-10 miles a day on all kinds of surfaces

from cobblestones, grass, concrete, and barkdust.

 But we were greeted with sunshine and flowers as we arrived in Amsterdam

on May 6th at 8:30 in the morning.

 To adjust to the time change we walked.

We visited the Rijksmuseum and enjoyed the art there.

Mostly we enjoyed the sunshine and the flowers.

 We were blessed to have some wonderful places to stay.

The Collector B&B was a delight and definitely filled with

flowers and collections of every imaginable thing.

We could hear the doves and other birds from our balcony door.

 Our room looked out on sweet gardens and we could sit on the deck

with our morning tea.

Oh yes, this was going to be a trip of a lifetime

and truly one we could delight in.

Follow along, as I have lots to share.