so about that trip
its still crazy at the office
we're down to the last day in times square
i come home so tired
i dont feel like writing
but
its wednesday evening
as i write this
toonman plays cards on wednesday
the cats are all napping
harry and annie on opposite ends of the bed
jack in the recycle basket
its quiet and i feel like sharing
i went through my amsterdam photos
pulled out a bunch
which
i will use to prompt my memory
ok
here we go
my friend and the best travel companion in the world
mary
flew in from cincinnati
we left jfk at around 8 pm on tuesday evening
we fly standby
if there's a seat in biz or first
we get upgraded
score!
we both got sleeper seats
and
slept across the atlantic
arriving in amsterdam
wednesday morning around 10 am
we took the train from the airport to amsterdam central
from there
we hopped a tram
if you go to amsterdam
you should buy the 72 hour unlimited tram pass for 17.50 euros
you can hop
on and off
as many times
a day/night
as you want
which is a good thing
if you tend to get lost
after all its an adventure
we rented an apartment in a really nice area
just steps away
from vondelpark and museumplein
i think there must be no heart disease because everyone bikes
let me point out that every sidewalk is divided in half
the side nearest the street is for bikes
pedestrians must look out for bikers who take their right of way very seriously
the first day we not only wandered vondelpark
we went looking for salamander park
its adjacent to
rembrandtplein
where
a stature of rembrandt looks out over life size figures from night watch
we walked over 12 miles the first day
through intermittent sun and rain
we also got lost ending up taking the tram back to central and starting over
seriously
on thursday
my friend robin flew in from wales
to spend the rest of the week with us
we headed off to lunch
at
de kas
an amazing incredible dining experience
food looking as good as it tasted
all grown right there in their own greenhouse
after lunch
we decided to go to the famous flea market
it wasn't all we expected
but
we all got some fun photos
then we decided to go to the rijks museum
we got there too late to go inside so we wandered the outside
the
iamsterdam sculpture
is much loved much climbed upon
we'd been told to have dinner
at
kantkil & de tijger
alas it was booked solid
we wandered a bit
ending up in a very nice italian restaurant
the name of which escapes me just now
we did get to dine at kantjil on friday night
it was amazingly good
we took a long walk after dinner
since the rain stopped
i think it rained 90% of the time
friday
was the worst day
it rained non stop
we decided to go to the museum
apparently
so did the rest of the city
what do to on a rainy day in amsterdam?
you take a canal boat tour
of course
getting to see the city from a unique perspective
on saturday
robin went to meet an old friend
mary and i went to the cat museum
after we did some more wandering
i love how the canal houses are so crooked
for once the lopsided photo isn't my fault
we had an really great time
rain is no deterrent
when you are traveling
you just make sure to pack your
slicker
umbrella
good walking shoes
my fitbit let me know
we walked over 12 miles the first day
and
at least 6 or 7 each of the other days
we ate terrific food
drank good beer
shopped
talked
took photos
and
fell in love with the city
there are more photos over at 'my eyes'
