We’re taking it off the beaten South African/Scottish path this Travelling Tuesday with a few shots from an adventure to Amsterdam and a few other parts of Holland I had a couple years ago. I had the privilege of travelling to Holland for an academic conference that was held on the grounds of a very special community, similar in style to L’Arche communities.

I was profoundly challenged to reconsider my understanding of what it means to be ‘abled’ or ‘disabled’ and what responsibilities the Church has with regard to welcoming and living in community with people who we might initially consider ‘different’ or ‘other’ than what we are. A lot of these are thoughts for another post! But here are a few shots from the adventure in and around Amsterdam:

The architecture was so lovely and impressive. The number of bicycles was even more impressive.

Can you believe this is a parking deck for bicycles?

If only one of those bad larry’s would’ve fit in my hand luggage! That’s a lot of cheese.

There were absolutely B-E-A-U-tiful flowers everywhere. And lots of tulips. If only one of those bad larry’s would’ve fit in my hand luggage!

I just thought the grassy carpet in this wine shop was fantastic. How cool is that?

So that’s a slice of beautiful Amsterdam! I highly recommend a visit. But pay attention to where you’re going, and if you find yourself in an area where it seems the shops are getting a bit … raunchy … and there are women standing in the windows, it’s probably a good idea to pull out your map and head in the opposite direction. Other than that, it’s a nice trail on which to find yourself!

Happy Tuesday! I hope the trails you’re on bring you to pleasant places!