Amsterdam

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After three days in Dusseldorf, Kristin, the kids and I drove to Amsterdam. The drive was pretty uneventful except to say there are too many McDonald’s drive thrus and that both Kristin and Kasey are officially German drivers. Man, do they drive fast, but totally in control (or so it seemed as the American passenger). Kristin was a little irritated as we entered the Netherlands and people were only driving 100.

I can imagine Amsterdam would be a very different experience depending on what stage in your life you visit. There’s a whole lot of crazy stuff there, but it is all very organized and civilized.

Our first afternoon, we headed to the Anne Frank house (with a little bit of shopping along the way). Just like the Prague Jewish Museum, this was amazing. To imagine that she and eight others lived in that space for two years without every going outside . . . unbelievable. And, at only thirteen, to capture the experience so profoundly in writing.

Other highlights were the floating flower market, some more shops around that area, a boat cruise throughout the city, the van Gogh Museum, and some more shops around that area (yes, we did some shopping). It was great to go to the van Gogh Museum after being in Paris and Provence.

Kristin and the kids left the second day in the afternoon, and I went out that night with my friend Jeroen, a local from Amsterdam. Back in May in Istanbul (my first week on this trip), I met Jeroen on a tour of one of the palaces. The next day we toured another site in Istanbul and he gave me some information on Amsterdam if I ended up going there. Flash forward 3 ½ months later, and here we are, my private tour guide for a night on the town in Amsterdam. We hit a couple local pubs and then I twisted his arm to walk me through the famous Red Light District (I wasn’t about to go by myself but it was definitely a must see, right?!) It was fun to catch him up on everything that has happened since I last saw him (he thought my blog was spam so he’s been deleting it) and to reflect on how much I really have seen and experienced in three months.

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Photos

The Canals of Amsterdam
Really pretty.

Floating Flower Market
Good thing I don't live here, I would buy all of these bulbs!

The "Coffee Houses"
Still not sure why they're called coffee houses.

House Boats
People live along the canals.

Shopping in Amsterdam
Cameron and Chloe are great shoppers!

My Tour Guide Jeroen
At the local pub where the owner loves Frank Sinatra.

Comments

[Nichol]

Enjoy
Foley - I have lived through you on this journey! Thank you for sharing.

[Jeroen]

The Tour Guide
Hi Christy, nice pictures of Amsterdam, as you know, I'm gonne miss it too. I will move this week to London. It was very nice to guide throw Amsterdam (I miss one part!!!). See you in London and enjoy the rest of your trip.