What would you give your mate on your 30th wedding anniversary? Pearls or diamonds? Perhaps. However, that is not what one California couple did. They chose instead to buy a Dutch canal cruiser that changed their lives. After years of ocean sailing and trawler cruising, Paul & Linda Merschdorf considered themselves ready for the more relaxed lifestyle they imagined they would enjoy with the canal cruiser they named FLOJITA. However, they quickly discovered there were still many lessons to be learned. The cruise took them from Holland, through Belgium, and deep into France on 1360 kilometers of canals and rivers. They passed through three countries, countless towns, large and small, and 251 locks, some larger than football fields. Over the course of the trip, the 17-ton vessel was twice lifted to an altitude of nearly 1000 feet above sea level. There were some frightening moments - once they were almost capsized - but, many more exhilarating and wonderful hours, days, and weeks. - from Amzon