Enkhuizen and beyond

Well we are now in Enkhuizen. This will be the start of our 6 day guided tour through Friesland. We took the 0930 train from Amsterdam, this time walking the 10 mins from our hotel to the train, very straightforward. The train left on time and in a short hour we were at our destination. We met our guides and everyone was on time arriving at the train station almost simultaneously.

The few days in Amsterdam were very interesting and perhaps not long enough. I did continually reflect on risk management as multiple intersections have a conglomeration of cars, bikes, pedestrians,and trams. The photo below I think tells the story. So what exactly are the risks?

I did not get official data rather interpretation of official data. it is estimated that 6 people per year die in Amsterdam from cycling. This is a very small number considering the population of 750,00, and the fact everyone has a bike and uses it! By the way pedestrian deaths are about the same so walking is just as dangerous.

Lets put this into some perspective. The US has 5.6 murders per 100,000. You have more chance of being murdered in the US than dying as a pedestrian or a biker in Amsterdam !

What about helmets. The Dutch do not use them, they are probably right. What I did notice is that bikers are vigilant, they look everywhere before a turn. To bring in Don Cherry, do we bike more bravely because we are wearing them ?

We went to the Albert Crypt market, it is 7 blocks of outdoor wares. Some great deals, especially womens' shoes. At the market I saw familiar face and collared Norm Reverin. We played hockey together at Arbutus. A rugged and passionate defenceman. I nicknamed him the "biomechanical man", he had a back brace, a ne brace an elbow brace but never an excuse. Very generous with the puck and always passing to the open man. He had just mentioned to his partner Beth, " Hey I saw a guy over there who looked just like Hugh Tildesley." He was right.

The canal pass was a good idea, we used the boats as taxis however the weekends are busy and there can be long waits as boats manouever under the bridges.

The Old

But where was I, oh yes, we are in Enkhuizen.It is the end of the line for this train run. The first thing you notice is the wind, really unrelenting and hence wind power is represented in the following photos.

The New

So more to follow as we report on our trip to Medemblik and beyond

The Donovan update

He and Catherine safe and sound in Udine,Italy. Two a day practises as he prepares for the games. No word on how the knee is after a long flight.                                                                                              

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