Amsterdam - Day 6

 Day 6 - Ghent, Belgium to Amsterdam, Netherlands - April 3, 2018

Today we explored Ghent before heading back to The Netherlands. 

Our hotel was right on the water. 

We found a small cafe for breakfast. Lyla was helping me out with some chapstick while we waited. 

Parfait, smoothie, 

muffin, parfait and muffin. 

There are three large churches right next to each other (one is a cathedral).  The next photos are of the churches and we went inside a couple of them. 

Climbing to the top. 

This was really cool. Some belfries have multiple bells in order to play a tune with the bells.  This is like a large music box, where each of the rows around the drum is for s different bell.  The pegs cause the bell to ring as the drum turns. It's been in use for hundreds of years. 

Views of Ghent from the tower. 

I was surprised by how many churches there were in Ghent. 

I like to light a candle when we visit Catholic churches. 

Maybe whale bones?

The meat market. They claim to have the best ham in the world. We didn't try it. 

Our next stop was the Gravensteen.  This is a castle from the 10th century with a moat, right in the middle of town. 

The toilets.  Watch out below. 

You can see the clock tower in the distance. 

More views of the city. 

I think Lyla is practicing shooting her bow and arrow from the porthole. 

The guillotine.  Comes with a handy bag to catch the head.

A throne specially made for Lyla. 

That's the outside part of the toilets. 

Walking around the walls. 

It is mandatory to take a photo on every toilet. 

One last view before we pick up our car to head back to The Netherlands. 

Our next stop was the village of Kinderdijk with lots of iconic 18th-century windmills. 

We took a boat ride along the canals to admire the windmills.  Most of these are still functioning and pumping water out. 

Our captain was actually wearing hand-painted wooden shoes, just as they did hundreds of years ago. 

After the boat ride, we walked along the canals to get a closer view.  As most of these windmills are still functioning, people are still living inside and maintaining them.  They receive an annual stipend from the government to keep everything in working order. 

Big shoes. Workers would wear these during the floods so they wouldn't sink. 

Ok, I made that up about the big shoes.  They're just a tourist prop...

Next stop was the temple in The Hague. 

Fancy dinner at a rest stop on our way to Amsterdam. 

Snuggles after a long day!

Tomorrow, we start to explore Amsterdam, starting with the science museum!