E-bicycles & Cameras

In morning Paul had paperwork to sort out and then he took his mum for a chair fitting.  Betty has to keep her feet up and the chair that she currently has doesn't really work or suit her needs very well.   While Paul was out I ended up having a bit of a nap and when he got back we took a drive to bark and bath to go and have a look at electric folding bicycles at a shop in Bunschoten.

Unfortunately the journey should have taken us about an hour but it took nearly two hours because traffic was very bad.  We were surprised because it was just after 2pm and traffic isn't usually bad at that time.  Anyway we got there in the end.  After a test ride and a few small tweaks to the folding bicycles we had another test ride and decided to buy two.

We could use our own bicycles but it is quite fiddly to put them on top of the VW Touareg because the car sits quite high and Paul has to use a small step ladder to reach the roof properly to be able to tie the bicycles onto the bicycle roof rack.  

The shop owner had to assemble the new bicycles because they were brand new and also Paul we wanted different handlebars (curved) as opposed to the straight ones that were on the the models that we tried out.  Locks had to be fitted as well.  

While we were waiting for our new bicycles to be put together Paul and I went into the local village where we had an ice cream beside the canal and looked at some beautiful wooden sailing boats that don't have keels, called "Botters".  There are various other names for them as well - depending on the region in the Netherlands.

After finishing our delicious ice creams we took a short drive along the coast and then headed back to the shop to go and collect the bicycles.  Just as well because on the way back the gentleman phoned to say that the bicycles were ready.

Before heading home we decided to go into Hilversum to get some accessories for our bicycles - seat covers and imitation flowers to wind around on the handlebars.  We also made a stop in Breda to buy a new camera to replace the current camera which is starting to die.  The old camera's flash short-circuited on me while I was on a tour, and the focus isn't as good as what it used to be.   After a lot of umming and ahing we eventually decided on a camera that hopefully will suit our needs.  It isn't a compact one like the old one so its larger size does concern Paul somewhat - being more cumbersome to carry around.  I tend to take a lot of photographs when I go on tours so the camera will be put to good use.   Sod's Law - the camera that we wanted/decided upon, finally, was not in stock so we had to make do with a second choice.  If it doesn't live up to our expectations over the next coming week or so - we will return it but hopefully it won't be necessary.

We eventually got home at around 10:30pm, having to to pick up dinner on the way because by then it was very late and Betty had already eaten.  After a quick bite we put a few things in the caravan, preparing for our trip to England and Ireland.

It is very hot and stuffy tonight and I don't think we are going to sleep much.  I also seem to have a bit of a dicky tum hopefully that is not going to keep me awake.