From Amsterdam to Antwerp to Brussels

Hi all,

Lucky you, a new blog!

Stir-crazy from working too many weekends lately, Gabriela proclaimed our vacation break officially over. So this past weekend we went nuts, visiting Amsterdam (Netherlands), Antwerp (Belgium) and Brussels (Belgium). As much as there is to see and do in all these towns, we only had a span of two and a half days. Asked to comment, Gabriela replied, "crazy, yet possible". Exactly!

We begin in the REAL sin-city, Amsterdam. Home to a world famous red light district, and "coffee shops" that will sell you ANYTHING you'd like to smoke, Gabriela and I couldn't wait to start participating in the activity that we really came for. LOOKING AT FLOWERS! Yep, we flew to Amsterdam for the express purpose of looking at flowers. Turns out Amsterdam is also the land of tulips.

We spent half of our one day in Amsterdam at the largest outdoor flower garden in the world - the Keukenhof Garden. While even the old women at the office made fun of me for going to Amsterdam for flowers, the trip was actually really fun. The gardens are only open to the public for about 2 months of the year and there are around 7 million flower bulbs grown. Even for a dude who walked past the Red Light District on the way to the flower bus, seeing 7 million blooming flowers at once was really impressive. I'm sure the pictures will help you understand. And for the rest of you, the ZERO pictures of Amsterdam's other activities will likely force you to quit reading after this sentence.

For those of you that did keep reading, I'll try and make it worth your time. You see, after our first day in Amsterdam, I began to wonder, "will my marriage last Amsterdam?"

The fun began when we arrived at what we thought was going to be our hotel, just outside of Amsterdam. We had read really good reviews during our research of this place online. When we arrived, we were really a bit surprised. Rather than a hotel, our weekend home was more of a campground. And rather than a hotel room, we actually stayed in a pop-up camper. You know, the kind pulled behind pickup trucks on the highway. The entire "hotel" was a circle of pop-up campers. The camper was small but had a counter and a double-bed. It was unique, but was kind of cute in a fun way. Except for, of course, the ABSOLUTELY NO HEAT in the room. Outside, the temperatures were below freezing. Inside, about the same. My California-raised wife went to sleep wearing every piece of clothing she brought, plus her fully zipped coat, and gloves. She SLEPT IN GLOVES. I got "The Eye" most of the evenings. But in all fairness, in the summer, our "hotel" would have been great. Gabriela decided to continue our marriage, but my hotel selection privileges have been put on probation.

Other than our adventurous lodging activities, our trips will be remembered as much for the food as anything else. While at the gardens, Gabriela convinced me to stop off for a Waffle. As with her requests for chocolate, she instructed me that she had to try a Netherland waffle FOR COMPARISON. She picked out a nice little EIGHT DOLLAR piece with powdered sugar, fresh strawberries, and whipped cream. Sadly, Gabriela was limited to one, but it will always be referred to as the very best waffle place on the planet! YES, BEST IN THE ENTIRE WORLD! Strangely enough, the best waffle wasn't found in Belgium, but in Amsterdam's flower gardens.

Well, tearing Gabriela away from the waffle was a difficult task. Bribed with the promise of the many chocolates to be found in Brussels (and yes, MANY chocolates were found in Brussels) we moved forward to our next food find. In Belgium, store after store of chocolates were found, and sadly, purchased. From Godiva to Neuhause to Leoniades, all were delicious and none made it back home. Gabriela faced many difficult decisions, chocolate dipped strawberry or chocolate covered cherry, macaroon or pave, prepackaged sampler, or personal selection. Too often however, decisions just weren't made. Why not get both the chocolate covered strawberry and cherry! It was a costly burn in the end, but a delicious one. Now her official comparison can be made. And her decision...SWITZERLAND still has the best chocolate on the planet.

Speaking of more food, Belgium and specifically Antwerp had great french fries! Of course, the entire country would correct you if you referred to them as "french fries". They're "Belgian Fries" or 'frites" more precisely. We didn't really expect that either, but they're more famous for them than the French. In fact, we've never even seen french fries in France! In Belgium, they serve you freshly made fries in a paper cone with a delicious white sauce that's almost like a cheese mayo combo. It's quite good, and isn't treated as a side dish at all. It's a main course baby. All fries, all the time. They're a must try!

It was a very happy food fest weekend, but we also did enjoy the sites and sounds of our host cities. Amsterdam, despite being famous for it's sinful activities is actually a very beautiful and quiet town. Canals run through the entire city and the old world streets contrasted the modern "spring-break" atmosphere. Belgium had a beautiful ancient architecture that we hadn't seen anywhere else. The city of Brussels also has a very strange monument that they pretty much worship as the symbol of their beloved town. The precious monument is about 20 inches tall and is a statue of a little boy peeing. Called Manneken Pis, it looks like a tacky gag-gift you'd buy at Wal-Mart. But they love the thing, dressing it up in different costumes (Santa Claus, Elvis, etc.) depending on the time of year. I guess they take themselves a bit less serious in Europe than back home.

Anyway, we enjoyed our three-day weekend and are in the midst of preparing for next weekend's trip to southern spain. As proclaimed, it's Vacation Season once again. Get ready.

Until next time.

Gabriela and Tony

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