Day 1 - Monnickendam

The clouds begin to part as soon as we cross the border of the Netherlands, giving us peak-a-boo aerial views of the land we'll be cycling through the next four weeks. A train into Amsterdam, a tram that drops us off two blocks from the bike rental place, we're hyped and ready for our next adventure.

But the surly young men behind the counter aren't interested in our enthusiasm. Their job is to get tourists in and out of the shop as quick as possible, helmets on heads, feet on the pedals. The impudent one with unruly curls and skittery eyes doesn't have much time for two oldies on some e-bike trip; he's never done a rental for that long, he tells us, and he's not much interested in taking the time to get us set up for our journey. The bikes aren't the ones we were promised; the ones we're given have half-flat tires; he begrudgingly throws on a couple of panniers but sorry, he only has one mobile phone holder. And a bike repair kit wasn't in the deal. Finally, our patience wearing thin, we speak with the manager on the phone, who seems to understand there's value in customer service, especially when old people pay a thousand and a half Euros for a rental. He comes straight over to sort out the debacle his two upstart employees have helped to create. He gives us his private phone number and an assurance we can call him whenever we want during our trip. When we finally ride off, we're less than confident our bikes will hold out for the whole trip, but we won't let it dampen our spirits. To chill out, we head for an outdoor cafe on a scenic Amsterdam canal for lunch and a beer.

Long and languid rides through the scenic Dutch countryside eases the nerves of the bad bike shop experience and the stress of riding in Amsterdam traffic -- cars, bikes and pedestrians vying for space.

We arrive in Monnickendam, a quaint and lovely old harbor town, late afternoon. Mevrouw Out, our Vrienden op de Fiets host, gives us a terse welcome with a reminder that check-in is 5pm -- we're 45 minutes early. Her exactitude is balanced by some goofy garden art in a slightly unkempt backyard landscape, which my eyes wander over as she and Johan chat away in Dutch over coffee. We learn that Vrienden guest protocol involves an obligatory chat over afternoon tea, not exactly what I'm in the mood for after a day on the bike trails.

Mevrouw Out's house in Monnickendam

But Mevrouw Out's fussiness has its benefits: she's created a delightful upstairs setting for guests, with a private bath. We sleep well out first night on the road.