I think I should give a shoutout here to Couchsufing. Thanks to their site, I’m currently staying with a 40-year-old American software engineer who lives in a houseboat on one of the local canals. The houseboat is very much more of a house than a boat. It reminds me of the riverboat casinos which never actually sail anywhere. But it’s very nice with a little porch and great views of the water. I’ll try to post some photos later.
Also, I have a new rule for my travels: any time there is a large group of people gathered someplace, I will stop and find out what’s going on. Yesterday, I was on the bus and there was a large crowd of people gathered by one of the canals as we drove by. I thought about getting off at the next stop and going back to check it out, but I didn’t. As I discovered later, yesterday was the annual “Muzikale Botenparade” or “Musical Boat Parade” where a whole bunch of boats sail through the canals with bands on them playing music. It sounded pretty awesome and I’m sorry I missed it, hence my new rule.
Hey,
This Couch Surfing websites very cool. How did you come across it?