Even though it wasn't Spring, the summer is beautiful with the fields of Dahlia's, Petunia's, Lavendar and all the colors of field greens. Amazing! Anyway, we flew all night and arrived at 9:30 a.m. Grabbed our luggage and hopped a cab to our hotel, the Canal Crown Hotel in Amsterdam. The cab ride was one of the scariest we have ever experienced. I think he drove like that to scare us from even thinking about any other mode of transportation besides our feet. The hotel is situated on the canal. Beautiful view and centrally located to all attractions. We visited the Van Gogh and Rembrandt Museums. Took a canal ride, of course. The weather was in the mid to upper 70's during the day and very cool in the evening. Glad we brought our coats. Every 10 years, there is a horticulture exhibit in Holland called the Floriade. We were fortunate to have picked the right year and time of year for our trip so that we could experience this place. The exhibit is HUGE. Very, very beautiful! We were so glad we went. After 4 days in Amsterdam, we braved it enought to rent a car and drove to what the internet has called, "The Golden Circle". It starts in a little village named Markem. Each little town has its own special characteristics. This town reminded me of what you might imagine Holland to look like. Immaculately groomed yards with absolutely beautiful flowers, quaint little houses and windmills. Grabbed a beer at the local pub and watched boats and people for awhile. Then onto Edam, where they make cheese. Very old town with cobblestone streets. Of course, bought some cheese, a bagette and wine. Good to go for the remainder of the day. Found a hotel/restaurant combo in Hoorn. A much larger city than I had expected. Still very historical. The architecture is very interesting because of all the different styles from the different periods in history. Unbelievable that buildings can still stand when built in the 1600's. Even more unbelievable is that some of the buildings/homes are leaning and appear that some day they will fall flat into the water. Our next stop was over the newly built dyke and onto Ellsmere. We just loved the fishing villages we stopped in during the tour. It is really cool to look out over the flat fields which are abounding and see sailboat masts. Because it's so flat and the fields so large, one can't see the boat itself - only the masts cruising along. What a hoot!!! And yes!!! We have tried every beer in every town we visited and then some!! Now it's time for the next leg of our journey - return the car, buy train tickets and head to Brugge, Belgium. Brugge is about 3 hours by train from Amsterdam with one stop in Antwerp to change trains. It's so easy to get around by train. We just need to rethink the luggage part the next time. We each had one bag, but they were fat and we couldn't get them in the overhead. Live and learn! In Brugge, we stayed at the Hotel Acacia. Once again, the hotel was centrally located. We loved Brugge. It's a very romantic city. Not nearly as busy as Amsterdam. No trams going through the center of town or trains. Just a few cars and lots of bikes. I loved walking out of the hotel in the morning. It smelled of chocolate. It was wonderful. Brought back lots of Belgium chocolate to give out as gifts. Right now, our friends and family are hard pressed to get our gifts. We can't stop eating the chocolate!! The beer in Belgium is positively the best I have ever had. I'm not a beer drinker here in the states. But over there, it's a different story. Climbed 633 steps to the top of the Belfort. Got to the top at 12 noon - just in time for the carollans to begin chiming. Very cool to be able to watch the mechanics of this piece which is centuries old. From the top, there was a 360 degree view of Brugge. Spectacular! Of course, had to go on another canal ride. It was much nicer than the one in Amsterdam. It lasted about 2 hours and we learned so much. I think it's wonderful that the guides speak so many languages. I'm jealous! Our last day in Brugge, we rented bicycles. We rode to Zeebrugge which is the sea, as they call it. The ride was of course, flat, and all along the canals. Very scenic. The beach is wonderful and it was a really hot day. Mid 80's. We walked along the beach and in the water. Even though people were swimming, the water was cold. After all, it's the North Sea. The windsurfers and peole on cats all wore wetsuits. Had a wonderful lunch overlooking the sea and lots of Leffe beers. What a great day! Back to Amsterdam by train and enjoy one last night in Holland. Our hotel was located near the airport, called the Dorint Hotel. Very nice accomodations. They had a shuttle that took us to the airport which was convenient. Checked in with US Airways and they upgraded us to first class because they oversold the plane. What a treat to fly back on an 8 hour flight in luxury. <br><br>Hope you enjoy the trip report. This was a really fun vacation and we were so glad we decided on these two countries. Would go back in a minute. Next trip....our 5th visit to Virgin Gorda, BVI November 16, 2002!!!! Can't wait!