Amsterdam, Holland

We made it to Amsterdam safely but of course it was raining.  It feels like it has been raining ever since Paris.  We did not expect it to be so cold in Europe either since it is summer, but we are thankful we decided to bring pants and rain jackets. They have come in very handy. The room we rented was outside the city center in a newer development but it seemed a little sketchy.  We had the upstairs room.  It was very big with a window that spanned the whole room looking out onto a river. I think the place was still being worked on because it didn't have finished walls or a proper door.  We were the only ones on the floor but it didn't feel so private with a screen as a door.  Oh well we made the most of it.  :) The bed was comfy and it included breakfast so we really couldn't complain too much.  lol We came in at night but we wouldn't have known it if we didn't have a watch. It was bright outside and didn't start getting dark until 10pm! We turned in anyway so we would have plenty of energy for the next day.

The next morning when we woke, there was breakfast waiting for us outside our door.  Included in our breakfast basket was peanut butter and jelly, so we made ourselves a lunch as well.  Sweet!  Got to love free lunch!  By the way, peanut butter isn't as popular in Europe as it is in the States (it is also more expensive).  Everyone hear eats Nutella instead of peanut butter on their toast in the morning.  I like the Nutella, but I miss peanut butter so this was a real treat. :). 

Off to the city center we went! Thankfully the sun decided to show up for most of our day out.  We wondered around the city, explored some churches and out door markets full of produce, flowers, clothes and accessories, fresh fruit juice stands, and fast food. We stopped in a cheese store along the way and found a pesto cheese that looked gross because it was green but it tasted so good! We ended up buying a chunk to snack on during our journey. (We have found it is always nice to have some fresh bread and cheese on us when we are out and about, in case we get hungry and don't want to have a sit down meal. It helps save money :) ) The architecture  here was so cute and I loved all the boats and waterways.  It was like a dream; walking under the trees along a beautiful canal full of water that sparkles in the sunlight, while holding hands with the person I love. :) Perfect. We did notice a lot of bikes.  Everyone bikes around Amsterdam and they have parking lots for their bikes.  Some of them were two stories high.  It is really funny.  I am not talking about motor bikes either, I am talking about bike cycles. It was crazy how many there were parked around the streets and in the lots. Some of the lots were 2 stories high!  lol

We also saw a lot of wooden shoes and classic windmill memorabilia everywhere.  We were so confused.  We couldn't understand why they were selling these things when we were in the Netherlands and not Holland.  To the best of our knowledge Holland was known for these things.  Eventually we asked someone why they were selling them and they just looked as us like we were strange and said said Holland was The Netherlands, they are the same place.  LOL boy did we feel stupid!  When did they change their name?  Why did they change their name?  After I found this out I was bummed we hadn't seen any classic windmills. Steve loves them so that would have been pretty cool.  Then again, why would they have that in a city anyway, they were probably out on the countryside.  Oh well, maybe some other time. We did get to see the one at the Moulin Rouge. ;-) lol ....that counts right?

Did you know weed is completely legal in Amsterdam?  Yep, they sell the plant and the buds EVERYWHERE. They even have "coffee shops" that are really smoke shops.  Also prostitution is completely legal and accessible.  For the right person, this could be the perfect place to live.  lol  For us, this was a little odd and sad, but we were able to avoid it. (We met some hitch hikers from Amsterdam in Hamberg later in our trip and they said not everyone is a pot head.  There is still the party scene where you can find a lot of this but then there are those who don't like it and don't have it as part of their lives.  It is legal but it is still a choice.  

As we were exploring the city, we came to th main square and a street performer was just starting his show. We decided to see what he was up to and we are glad we did.  He did a half our show that had us both in stitches.  He was so funny!  I know the pictures won't make him look as funny as he was but I will post some anyway.  We went and chatted with him for a little after the show.  He works a lot on cruse ships (which was why he was so entertaining) but he must have been grounded for a little bit in between gigs. He says he loves his job because he gets to make people laugh for a living.  He was really nice and he definitely made us laugh and our time there memorable. 

After we explored all the places we wanted to in the city center we headed back to our room, watched a movie and went to bed.  We had to rise very early the next morning to make our next train into Hamburg, Germany.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Train station

This is Begijnhof chapel.  This Hidden Chapel  was very sweet and charming. Behind this door lies a beautiful courtyard holding 2 small chapels and several apartments occupied only by women. Many years ago a group of women came together to live in a religious community, primarily to look after the sick. They were not nuns but they did have to be unmarried,  make a vow of chastity and to promise obedience to the parish priest.  If they decided to, they could leave and get married without being disgraced for leaving this community.  For a time in Amsterdam, it was forbidden to be Roman Catholic or to openly profess their faith.  All catholic churches were closed or the authorities took over, so they began worshiping in house churches.  Since this place of worship was in a housing community it was left alone. To this day it is still an active Catholic church and all the residents are women. 

There was a fire at one time that destroyed many of the apartments here and it was later rebuilt.  This brown building is the only original still standing.

The Chapel

The courtyard.  It was so quite and peaceful in this place.

A look around town.

Men´s fashion?  I hope not.

Old church that was converted into a movie theater. Pretty cool looking ;)

Cute building

Capital building

Here is the street performer I told you about.  He was awesome!  So funny!!!

He picked up this suitcase and ran around it like it was stuck.  It didn´t even budge!  He did a great job making it appear not to move. 

Now on to the food :)
Magnum ice cream was founded in Holland.  I just started hearing about them in the States over the last couple of years, but here it is very well known.  Because it was created here, and because Amsterdam is a tourist trap, they made it possible for everyone to create their own Magnum.  Which I must say, I think this would be a great business venture in California.  Look at how much we like to customize our frozen yogurt :)
Anyway, Steve created his own Magnum dipped in milk chocolate with dried raspberries, strawberry sugar, and nugget all drizzled with white chocolate.  It was pretty tasty and Steve was extremely happy. 

These hot food vending machines are very common here and many locals go here to pick up a snack to go.

This is a Frikadel.  We were told to get one.  It is a traditional Dutch snack.  It was like a type of sausage or hot dog with mayo, ketchup and onions.  It was ok.  Probably wouldn´t eat these often if I lived here.

Apple pie :)

A savory dutch pancake.  Traditionally served with lemon but we had one with ham and cheese.  This was phenomenal!

Bye Amsterdam!