A Canal Ride thru Amsterdam....

The day was perfect for a ride thru Amsterdam on the extensive canals.  The boats are very low in the water since they must pass under the many bridges of Amsterdam....a city with one of the largest number of bridges in Europe.

These canals are not wide either....in most places it would be very difficult for two boats to pass...

These canals are home for many people in Amsterdam.  Houseboats line the canals and serve as a "home on water".....for example....

The residents of the houseboats such as this one....probably have a daily ritual of feeding the swans....

The beauty of this city can be seen from all the lovely homes that line its banks....

Most of the homes have a winch to use in taking furniture up to the upper levels of their home....such as a piano or oversized furnishings.....

..plus there were always the interesting accessories such as this gas lamp.....

The boat trip took us out into the Hetij....the large body of water accessing the large cruise ships and freighters.....but today there were only Large Sail Boats....

and this boat of senior rowers.....

The locks controlling the water levels in the canal date back to the 17th Century.....

I almost forgot to include a photo of some of these unique bridges in Amsterdam....

Well...time for the photo of the day.....this photo represented to me the warmth of the city....the beautiful

door and and facade of this home was very typical of the many homes I passed today walking many miles thru the streets of Amsterdam...