Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Ok! My sister and I scurried away on the Thalys to visit marijuana-and-sex-filled Amsterdam. I did not, however, partake in any of the sins of the city. Instead, we spent the first day touring the Jordaan district. We enjoyed its calm and tranquil canal views and little boutiques:
This is the only picture my sister would let me take of her. So here she is amongst the bikes:
And here is me, in my boatneck shirt and my moneybelt neckstrap that looks like a bra. I am proud of my paranoid tourist look:
We went by the Anne Frank house, but there was a line. So we followed Rick Steve's advice and decided to come back after 18:00 where the lines were supposed to disappear. Despite going after our most DELICIOUS dinner (with FREE gassy water and bitterbalen!), there was STILL a line for the Anne Frank house. We waited nearly 45 minutes but made it inside. It was well worth it! We got to see some interviews of Otto Frank and Miep Gies. And we saw her actual diary. Considering I did my history fair project on her in 7th grade (as my sister reminded me), it was a neat tourist attraction for me.
Please, no need for snide remarks about me doing history fair. Is it really that far fetched to know I was a super nerd in high school?
Anyways, we would be waiting in lines all weekend as it was Ascension holiday weekend. On Saturday, we waited for 45 minutes to see the Van Gogh museum, which was great. And then another 45 minutes to get into the Rijksmuseum. Here is little me in front of the Rijksmuseum:
Please, no need for snide remarks about me doing history fair. Is it really that far fetched to know I was a super nerd in high school?
Anyways, we would be waiting in lines all weekend as it was Ascension holiday weekend. On Saturday, we waited for 45 minutes to see the Van Gogh museum, which was great. And then another 45 minutes to get into the Rijksmuseum. Here is little me in front of the Rijksmuseum:
And ordinarily, I would have been mad to be waiting in line...but to be quite honest...we didn't have much else to do anyways so it was just fine! After the museums, we took a canal cruise and nearly fell asleep. Then, we had an Indonesian ristoffel (rice plate with 10 accompanying dishes) for dinner.
We stayed in a little B&B in a chateau in the back. It was a bit strange, but it was fine. We didn't have any hot water the 1st night, but the owners got someone out at midnight to fix it for us and we had hot water the next morning! We had great breakfasts with made to order eggs, delicious moist scones, and yummy pastries.
We met 2 girls from Wisconsin staying there too who were super nice. They were coming to Paris after Amsterdam. And you know what? We saw them on the metro Line 1 going the opposite direction yesterday at the Tuileries stop! CRAZY! We both saw each other through the window of our trains, a light of recognition popped, and then we were both gone. What a coincidence.
We met 2 girls from Wisconsin staying there too who were super nice. They were coming to Paris after Amsterdam. And you know what? We saw them on the metro Line 1 going the opposite direction yesterday at the Tuileries stop! CRAZY! We both saw each other through the window of our trains, a light of recognition popped, and then we were both gone. What a coincidence.
On Sunday, we were really out of things to do. We visited the Bejnhof, which in the 16th century used to be a garden and housing for women who had dedicated their lives to God. Not necessarily a convent, but close. It was very beautiful.
And then, I am not going to tell you what we did after that but before the train. It was a very interesting mish mash of shopping/eating/ and wandering around.
My impressions of Amsterdam? Interesting...but not worth all the hype I had built up in my head! I felt the Rijskmuseum was a bit overpriced for what it had to offer. I mean, 11 euro? For only about 12 roooms of DUTCH art? Give me a break. The Louvre is like 9 euro. THE LOUVRE. With like it's gabillion square feet of art.
I particularly was not fond of the way the street/bike lanes/tram tracks/sidewalks all tended to intermix/mash with one another! For someone who doesn't really like to pay attention to where she is going...this poses a problem. Because I actually have to LOOK and make sure nothing/nobody on a bike is going to hit me.
BUT...I am a big fan of their bitterbalen. Not sure of the spelling. Imagine a hush puppy. And when you bite inside, you find mashed potatoes and a bit of beef. OH YUM. I enjoyed that quite a bit. One thing we did have on this trip is our share of GOOD food! And now, I can't fit ANY of my clothes. This trip, coupled with my London trip, coupled with Switzerland, and my general idea of eating whatever I want...has resulted in some dire consequences. It turns out, I CAN gain weight and I CAN get fat.
We did have a fun relaxing trip! It was a perfect length weekend getaway without the stress! And A HUGE thanks to Brian, who did an amazing job taking care of Michael on his holiday weekend! What a blessing it was to have a husband who allows me to have my break and to have a sister to take that break with!
Lots of Love,
Phuong
