Blogs from Netherlands, Europe - page 2

We started the day with breakfast at the Bakery down the street, and we asked them for watered down coffee for Steve, and the waitress assured us that their coffee was very weak Dutch coffee and so Steve said ok! When the coffee came it looked identical to all the other Dutch coffees he's had, and it was just as strong, so from hereon in it's Starbucks only, Yes, there are Starbucks here!!! We took the train to Leiden, or so we thought, taking the right train can be tricky, the announcement board tells you which track to be on (1, 2, 2a,,etc..) then you can still end up taking the wrong train apparently, so we were on the train on track 2@ and this elderly lady with her little granddaughter was telling us they were ... read more

This morning we took the tram to the Prinsengracht to see the Anne Frank House, for weeks I had been trying to get tickets online but they were all sold out, we had no choice, either stand in line or don't see it. We stood in line...for 1 hour, we figured if we stand in line for anything, this would be it. (photo) It was powerful to see the video of Otto Frank and hear him talk of his daughter, and how even though he had a great relationship with his daughter, he realized, after reading her diary, that he had not really known her in that she had such deep thoughts and emotions and he concluded that a parent never really knows a child. It was also really touching to see the photograph of Otto ... read more

After a long flight over... well two long flights over (one with 7 hours of no entertainment system) I Finally made it to Amsterdam. Was great to see a familiar face on the other side of the arrivals terminal, which was just as great to not have to find my way to into town and look for a hostel at 6am. Given the long flight it was natural that I should have a snooze, so it was said we would sleep for a few hours until 1... so while in bed I woke up, had a look at my clock and it was only 11, so off I went into another deep sleep only to be woken up again not long after... at 3pm. Apparently when I looked at the time on my phone it was ... read more

This afternoon we walked to the Vondelpark, it was very beautiful with all it's big trees..(see photo) ..on the way there however, Steve needed to find a bathroom, well, we couldn't find one, or so I thought, but apparently he did...(see photo) We were not able to get to Dam square in time for the Remembrance Ceremony, so we went to the Ceremony at the Weteringsplantsoen, at the spot where 30 resistance fighters were fusilated in March 1945 in front of hundreds of Amsterdammer witnesses. It was very moving, and a good speech by Karel Eykman. (see photo)... read more

This was my third time visiting Amsterdam, here is a little info of my trip and Queen’s Day. Background Queen's Day (Koninginnedag in Dutch) in Amsterdam is a unique night and day carnival-like event at the end of April each year. The event includes a huge party (all people wear orange) across the whole city and is combined with the market throughout the streets. This year was the last Queen’s Day as the Dutch know it, this is because at the end of January 2013, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, the longest reigning Dutch monarch, announced her abdication after 33 years on the throne. 75 years old Beatrix said she would abdicate on 30th of April and her oldest son Willem-Alexander will become the King of the Netherlands. From now on the King’s Day will be ... read more