Rosie Writes!: Continuing the Dream: Holland and Belgium

I can remember when I was a senior in high school that a friend of mine was going to go to Europe for her graduation gift. The thought went through my mind, "Oh, gosh, I will never get to do that. It's too far!" I was raised in a small town in Arkansas where everyone knew everyone. I had many more "parents" watching over me than my own. :) . I grew up on, "Call when you get there." Daddy never traveled much past New Orleans and that was because he had grandchildren there. I was raised to be careful and not take risks. That was my sweet daddy. My mother was very different but that's another story. I believe that I inherited the desire for adventure from her. I only wish I could have taken her with me on a trip to Europe. Since that time I have traveled in more countries than I can name. I just got back from Holland and Belgium and will be going to Michigan, Arkansas and Ireland before the year is over. Traveling is my dream. I worked very hard for 40 plus years in order to travel and have the attitude that I want to do it while I am healthy and willing! Right now I have both of those things.

This blog is about my recent trip to Holland/Belgium. Each picture will not be labeled because I took a lot of pictures of canals and windmills, not remembering exactly where they were! I will say that one of the highlights of this river cruise was my opportunity to play a 200+year old organ in the city of Hoorn. A great story goes with this but I will want to tell you about it in person. I will try to post the short recordings here later.

The other highlight was reuniting with a former student (she was in my 6th grade) and I was around 25. Lisa Baird Harding now lives in Brussels, Belgium. She rode the train to Antwerp to spend part of the day with me. She is such a delightful young woman and we had such a fabulous time together.

Other than those two things, the beautiful river cruise, incredible small villages and, in some cases, pretty large towns, were memorable. Of course, the tulips in Amsterdam will never be forgotten. I had a wonderful traveling companion, Peggy Fuston. We laughed a lot and were great at sharing a bathroom! ha . We met some wonderful people. The two standouts were our friends, Ellen from New York and her mother, Madilyn, who lives in Kentucky. We met them the first night and became instant friends. Sometimes you meet people who you feel as if you have known forever. Those were Ellen and Madilyn. They loved to laugh and have a good time so the four of us were a perfect match. I look forward to seeing them again!

That's pretty much it in a nutshell. I could write pages and pages but, I believe, the pictures will be worth thousands of words! These are so out of order but if I start moving them around, I will go crazy.

R.