Amsterdam

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I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be. - Douglas Adams

July 24, 2009, Friday, Gaasper CG to Amsterdam and back.

We met some nice folks from Colorado; they have been visiting Europe/camping for 19 years! We are just novices; they have a camper in Europe and one in Colorado.

So today we will see “Amsterdam according to Judy and Jeremy”. The weather this morning started with a downpour, but this is Amsterdam. So with raincoats, and umbrellas we are off to the Metro. Kalverstraat, a pedestrian/shopping street, was where we started. Along the way we stopped at The Nieuwekerk, dating from the 14th century. First destroyed by fire then stripped of its treasures when Calvinists took civil power.
Lunch was at a very different type “The Place”, there are many choices, all self-serve. We got our bowls and picked veggies ‘til it was piled high, then turned it over to a cook to stir-fry it with our choice of turkey or shrimp. It was “yummy” and the experience so different.
On we go to the Begijnhof, which was built in 1346 as a sanctuary for lay a catholic sisterhood who lived like nuns but took no vows. They educated the poor and looked after the sick. We visited the English Church, at the altar is a large painting of the Pilgrim fathers leaving for the New World (America). Directly opposite is the Begijnhof Chapel where the sisterhood worshipped in secret.
We were introduced to a different type of ice cream, it is ice cream mixed with whipped cream!! Only vanilla and it is decadent!
After passing the Amsterdam Historic Museum, we decide to put that on our list for tomorrow. Onto the Amsterdam Public Library, it is huge structure on the canal and has lots and lots of computers…available for free.
From here we walked toward the Nieuwmarket and into the Red Light District. After dark this place actually does glow RED and the main street is full of people gawking at lingerie-clad prostitutes in windows. This business is government controlled, but the degradation of the women is sad.
The rain has stopped and it is time to go “home”. Thank you Judy and Jeremy!

July 25, 2009, Saturday, Gaasper CG to Amsterdam and “home”.
Biking is our chosen mode of transportation today, “When in Rome..” and all that stuff. The ride into Amsterdam is about 7 kms, so off we go. Stopping at a bakery, the “boss” insisted on making Bob fresh coffee, part of Amsterdam hospitality, and we enjoyed a wonderful almond cookie.
We continued on to the centrum; this is Saturday and everything is crowded, crowded, and there is a “party” atmosphere. Biking is a serious business, we watched two bikes collide in the busy Nieuwmarket. Both guys got up and started yelling at each other, but eventually biked away.
After a light lunch we worked our way through crowds to the Amsterdam Historic Museum. A very interesting place, it begins with a graphic showing an empty swampland, uninhabited. Then it follows the growth and construction of dams, and the growing number of inhabitants right up to today. It was very well done. This museum has lots and lots of Dutch Fathers paintings.
The next episode involves the Metro Police! Having observed many folks bringing bikes on the Metro, we decided to use this system to get “home”. At about the 3rd stop Four Policemen got on and came directly towards us talking in Dutch… they were not happy. I finally managed “I’m sorry Sir, I don’t understand you.” This seemed to deflate the situation. The explanation, now in English, was, we were on the wrong car with our bikes and there was a fine of $60 Euros each!! Since we are dumb Americans… it was waved and they helped us locate the proper train car and spot for bikes…Whew!
After the police left, other commuters found the whole situation amusing, and began chatting with us.

July 26, 2009, Sunday, Gaasper CG into Amsterdam to the Library and back “home”.

Today is just an organizing day. They have a good laundry here so we took advantage. Then we got the Metro back to Amsterdam to visit the library. It is a magnificent seven story structure. It has free internet and WIFI, so we spent several hours here catching up on “stuff”.

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Photos

Ice Cream!!
This is the best!