Hello from Amsterdam! Mitch & I had a great flight from Dulles on Sunday evening (well, the movies were great, not necessarily the food ha) and arrived in Amsterdam early Monday morning. After standing in the wrong customs line & being confused about the train schedule at the airport, we FINALLY found our friend Paul at Amsterdam Central. He was such a good sight to see! He brought us to his beautiful home and, after freshening up, out for cappucino & apple pie. Mitch & I explored the city a little & took a short nap in Vondelpark. We joined Paul, Kitty & Laurien for dinner along one of the nearby canals. I don't know how we did it but we managed to stay up for 35 hours straight!
Tuesday we ate at Laurien's cafe for breakfast & decided to venture to the Heinken factory. There, we met a couple from Austria who joined us in the park after the tour. We are hitting Amsterdam during some of their hottest days but the weather is still phenominal! For dinner, the five of us drove to the beach where Laurien's boyfriend serves. The restaurant was designed for surfers with couches & tables right off the beach. I think we may have been the only non-dutch visitors there! The food was great & the water wasn't too cold ;) It was nice to watch the sun set and see horses running along the shoreline. Paul & Kitty have been so good to us while we have been here; they are like our family away from home! It has been a blessing to stay with them. After dinner, Laurien showed us the ways of the Red Light District. WEEHEEWW! (that was for you, MOM :) Mitch & I had fun mixing in with the crowds (due to our jet lag, the wee hours of the morning don't feel too late ;) Oh Amsterdam!
Wednesday: we decided to explore more city streets. We passed Ann Frank's house & went to the Van Gogh musuem. It was a nice audio tour & it wasn't terribly crowded inside. We also have been admiring the various canal boat tours so we just finished a relaxing one around the city :) For later, we hope to grab dinner either at the Hard Rock Cafe or, if we are lucky, gather a nice picnic for the park! We only have another day & night in the city before heading to Belgium so we plan on getting as much as we can accomplished (as not to leave too much sightseeing for the end of our trip!).
Love it! The city is beautiful and it sounds like you are taking advantage of the sights. You walked "past" Anne Frank's house? Really... Horses running along the coast.. Are you both living in a postcard? I love you bunches! Mom
ReplyDeleteYea we walked by because the line was around the block but today we got up early and were first in line! Paul's house is so close you wake up to the same church bells as described in the diary.
ReplyDeleteNice blog - love the descriptions of what you are doing and note that you are having lots of fun. Give the Hassings our love and gratitude for taking you kids in. Enjoy Belgium. I will send Ludo & Collette a note in case they are home for the summer. Love ya.
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