Maastricht

Maastricht is billed as the "crowned jewel of the south" and as far away from canals, windmills, and wooden shoes as you can get but still be in the Netherlands. Maastricht is where Dutch, German, and Belgian cultures intersect. We headed out there to complete a three countries bike ride, but as you will read about later the weather was bad and the hills were worse.
After checking into our botel, anchored on the Mass River, we headed to the Take One beer cafe. The bartenders were very friendly and happy to suggest local beers based on taste and preferences. Matt enjoyed a Budels, while I enjoyed the beer of the month: Artevelde Grand Cru. While sipping our beers, we munched on peanuts and played Scrabble. It was quite interesting to play with the Dutch assortment of letters; we determine the letter 'ij' = 'y' and 'q' automatically became 'qu'. Matt finished the evening with the Budels Parel and I tried the St. Louis Kriek.