gollygoshgumgoonz: Canals, thatched roof houses and heat

It is unseasonably hot apparently, as the locals have informed us. Today was another scorcher, though as it was mostly a kind of hazy whitish sky, it felt more like a sauna.
We have been learning a bit more about the interesting history of Kampen, Zwolle, and some of the townships we passed yesterday.
Back in the 14th and 15th centuries, the merchants and traders of Northern Europe formed a kind of collective known as the 'Hanseatic league' and the towns that grew out of this, mostly towns along waterways where commerce and trade flourished, were known as 'Hansa towns'. There are a great many events and tourist activities going on around the Hansa towns. Yesterday's bike ride was part of a cycling tour that leaves from, and ends with Amsterdam.

Given a fair bit of money and a few months of work, I'd love to do this so maybe we will return one day. In the meantime, the funny tall and narrow houses with their narrow streets and impressively large Gothic churches, old noblemen's houses, city gates and bridges, give plenty of glimpses into the past, and make for fascinating photo opportunities.
We headed a bit further afield today to a place that has no roads and instead has canals and cycle paths. From Google:
"Giethoorn is a mostly car-free village in the northeastern Dutch province of Overijssel. It’s known for its boat-filled waterways, footpaths, bicycle trails and centuries-old thatched-roof houses. It borders a section of the Weerribben-Wieden National Park, a marshy area once popular for peat and reed harvesting."
Just beautiful. The photos don't do it justice (cliche but true) and don't show how steamy hot it was either for that matter! It was just lovely.