Trash, a Tulip Trip and some Windmills

There's still a lot of trash in the city left over from Queen's Day. Unfortunately, a lot of it makes it's way into the canals, which is sad.

In fact, we found a duck on one of our walks who decided "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" and made a nest for her clutch of eggs.

But it turns out that they use small barges to clean the canals on a regular basis, but I guess with a city-wide event like Queen's Day, it just takes a while to get to everything.

Of course we had to make a quick "coffee shop" stop, this time at The Blue Dolphin - Bull Dog is just too mainstream for us now. :) Then it was off to our "Coffee Company" store for some real coffee. (Side note for anyone reading this who was involved with the production of All About Eve at Theatre Rhino -- as I sit and type this, they've been repeating the song "Leibestrom," and I can picture is Matthew Martin as Margo at the piano, drunk and angry. Ah, good times. I asked one of the folks at the counter if they knew the title of the song, and he said "I really don't want to." To him it's just really bad elevator music, but I'm sentimental.)

We continued our walk towards the bus pick up, and found this cute little comic book shop. Lots of interesting books and comics, and a few toys, too.

They had a big kitty out front that was really cute. I miss my kitty, too. Besty, you'd better be taking care of her!

We found a small gallery for Marc Chagall, too, but it was closed. Thank goodness there was all that art scattered around the front of it (even it we couldn't touch it). This is also where we found that duck with the clutch of eggs that was pictured above.
We decided that unlike the other day that we would be sure to eat a meal BEFORE we did a big excursion. So we continued to wander around until we found a likely place. I think this one was called "Rookies" or something like that.

The most successful tourist businesses, it seems to me, are the ones that focus on the triple offering - a coffee shop, a cafe/bar and a souvenir shop. You know, smoke out at the coffee shop, then go next door, have a beer then eat everything in sight, then go buy a trinket or three before your buzz wears off. These "triple threat" places must do very well.

We had a ham and cheese and egg sandwich (the egg isn't fried or anything, it's just a couple of thin slices of hard-boiled egg, a nice surprise. The sandwich was really good, and so far, I have yet to find a place in Amsterdam that makes bad fries - they are always golden and delicious. David B. says it's because they are twice-cooked - first to pre-cook, then next when the order is made. So they never sit under a heat lamp and get dry or stale. Nice.

Naturally, after a nice meal and a big beer, I needed an ice cream on such a beautiful, warm day. Need being a questionable word, of course. :)
We then headed to the bus pick up location, but first had to seach for a toilet. Again, because most every business that has a toilet requires at least .30 payment, the one we found was huge and luxurious, and of course, very, very clean. I just love that. And always an attendant on duty.

Being the tourists that we are, naturally David B. made me get into the shoe for a photo. Then it was on to the bus to our destination of Keukenhof.

Keukenhof is a popular Dutch attraction, located a short walk from the small town of Lisse. Visitors can enjoy walking in the 32-hectare park, in which seven million bulbs are planted.

In the early 15th century the site was used as the hunting estate and as a herb garden for a castle, owned by duchess called Jacoba van Beieren. The name Keukenhof means "herb garden". The layout of the park was designed in the mid 19th century by the same landscape architect who created the Vondelpark in Amsterdam, in the style of an English landscape garden. In 1949 a group of bulb growers came up with the idea of putting on a spring flower exhibition here. This proved to be a successful showcase for the Dutch bulb trade, and it became an annual event.

There are several pavilions containing seasonal flower exhibitions: displays may include tulips, chrysanthemums, roses, orchids, begonias, lilies and other plants. Displays are created by different growers, and are judged as part of a competition.

Works of art are spread out throughout the gardens, including bronze statues by various artists represented by Smelik & Stokking Galleries.

There are also children's attractions such as an animal enclosure and a play area. It was so fun to be able to pet them, too - I forgot how much I love baby goats! The chickens were a trip, too - very long, bushie feathers. One little goat kept following us around, begging to be scratched and fed. Very cute.

There's also a labyrinth made from hedges at the park. But we're smart, we just took the side door exit. :)

Our tour guide was wonderful. It was really interesting to hear her give explanations to everyone on the bus during the ride to and from the park because she would say everything three times -- once in English, once in Spanish and once in German. Occasionally she would speak Japanese, but would apologize because she wasn't as good at it. Personally, I think she has a career in voice-over. She had the most beautiful, soothing voice and spoke in each language so beautifully. As a media producer, it was interesting to note that she did all this live -- no prerecordings or anything. I wonder what they do when she gets sick!

Several of the buildings in the park had flower exhibits and places to eat and drink (and toilets with an attendent!)

We also found several food carts, but I'm still not trying a herring sandwich. Bleah.

And of course, lots and lots and lots of gorgeous flowers. We're planning on posting a longer slideshow of photos of flowers on YouTube later. First things first. :)
Then it was a bus ride back to the city. Of course, the camera battery crapped out again - it's all that turning off and on I think because it activates the lense motor each time. Gonna try just leaving it on and see what happens.

On the way back, we saw one of the last remaining tulip crops. Did you know that tulip farmers cut the head off the tulips in the Spring, leaving just the plant in the soil until July or so? It because if you don't, the bulb won't reproduce and you've just thrown away the bulb's breeding potential.

But if you do it correctly, the bulb generally yields several baby bulbs. It was said today that at the height of Holland's tulip bulb trade, that some people would trade a house for a single bulb. One person paid as much as the equivalent of 94,000 euro for a single bulb. Amazing stuff.

We got off the bus at Central Station at the trip (around 7pm) and took a tram back to the hotel for a quick respite, then off to the "Little Lion" for a beer or three and a visit with our favorite pub owner, then back to the hotel for some much-earned rest. Being a tourist can really take it out of ya!

Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Anne Frank

Yesterday was another day of walking and gawking, what better way to spend a vacation. One thing that's been delicious about this trip is that we've been sleeping in until about 11:00 or so every day, which for us is a big deal. It's nice to kind of just go where the wind blows us. We started yesterday having breakfast, a traditional Dutch ham and koos pannenkoeken and a coffee. So here's what the pannenkoeken looked like:


And here's the coffee, so you can see why I might be feeling like I'm not getting my daily dose:


BTW, here's the coffee mini-chain that we found that solved my "problem." Unfortunately we ran across one at like 6:00 last night and just couldn't resist a stop, meaning we were both up later than we anticipated. But it was worth it! Large Americano with an extra espresso shot, mmm...."Four shots of espresso," said the counter man?


The Rijkmuseum was amazing...Vermeer's The Kitchen Maid was the highlight for me there, but there were many, many amazing Rembrandts and other paintings, sculptures, furniture and other things from the 17th century. Really wonderful. Outside was a little sculpture garden that was just delicious on the warm sunny day.


Too bad none of the little placards included an English option.


Afterward we stopped at Bulldog, our fave coffeeshop, for a little "breather." Many coffeeshops here serve fresh squeezed orange juice, and they squeeze it to order. As good as that was, we decided a little Haagen Daz was in order. I had Marsala ice cream with figs and fig swirl.


Of course people watching has been our favorite sport, and Amsterdam has not disappointed. Some of the most interesting, beautiful people, from all over the world. The Dutch in particular are tall, hearty stock, very good looking. There are very few cars here, which I LOVE...everyone bicycles everywhere. And bikes rule the road, pedestrians have to be very aware, as bikes will ring their little bell to warn you they're coming, but they really don't slow down at all and I've seen (and thankfully not been involved in) a number of near-misses. Anyway, all the biking and walking work to keep folks in shape, it would seem.

One other thing I love here is that when you order a beer or "bier," which just about everyone seems to drink all the time, that's all you order when you go up to the bar. There may be a couple other options, but really, everyone just says "one bier" or "two bier." None of that what kind do you want, can you list all of the options, etc.? Something comforts me there. Also I have to say many folks in bars/cafes have started talking to me in Dutch, not assuming I'm an American. I win!

After the Rijksmuseum we stopped back at ye olde hotel and had, well, "two bier," and sat at the bar and wrote out postcards. We only sent out a few, as hand cramps ensued.



So the Anne Frank House...Wow, overwhelming, to be sure. Totally got me at the end, seeing the actual original diary, the bookcase, the stifling heat of the house that they were hiding in. And what insight into humanity (and inhumanity) she had. Incredibly moving.

Our last stop was dinner, and I was determined to have Indonesian food, as I had read that was the best ethnic food here. It was AWESOME! We ordered ristafel, which is a HUGE assortment of just a bunch of meats, vegetables, soup, rice, noodles, etc. Totally great. At first we didn't know if we'd make it through everything, but we were all right. Of course I had really hoped to have a fresh herring sandwich, but we've yet to find an open stand on our visit.


OK, time to rally for the day. We're off to Central Station to see a man about a day trip or something. :)

It's Wednesday

Another beautiful day in Amsterdam. Everyone's saying how lucky we've been with the unseasonably warm weather. Can't argue with that, it's been gorgeous.

DB here, by the way, with my first official post. Last night we went to dinner at Getto, on the recommendation of both our new bartender pal and the official Rick Steves guide. It was really good -- had yet another variation on the croquette (chicken this time), and we both had specials. David M. had the chicken sate and I had a catfish that was totally great. Getto's in the Red Light District, which is basically like an R-Rated Fisherman's Wharf. Totally geared toward tourists, and you can tell it's the first place a lot of people go.



Yep, the coffee thing took a bit to figure out...Basically I wanted a cup of coffee like we're used to in the States, and they just don't brew a lot of coffee here, it's all espresso-style. But we found a little local chain that does an "Americano," which is espresso with extra water. Add a couple extra espresso shots and it's just what I wanted. Capuccino was too light, espresso was too little...Thank goodness it was solved. Not that this took any figuring out, but just thought I'd share...Here's what you get when you order Camel Lights here:


Every time David Mahr sees this he says "Cannilbus." Har Har. It's a tour of the city that we'll take probably on Friday.


Speaking of touring about, we've decided to scrap Brussels and go to Antwerp instead, a city in Belgium that's much closer and apparently will give us the Belgain flavor we're looking for. Then we're planning on doing a bus tour of Holland as well. But not in one of these!


So we're off, first to lunch then to the Rijksmuseum, then probably a little break, then we'll go to the Anne Frank House about 6:00 or so. Totally looking forward to both, obviously.

Van Gogh, Queen's Day Aftermath

I have finally been able to get on to the internet in our room -- turns out their server just couldn't handle the traffic of a full hotel.

David and I finally found a cafe that serves coffee "Americano" with an espresso shot, which is apparently the equivalent of a large Starbucks coffee. Oh the irony that every "coffee house" in Amsterdam doesn't actually serve coffee! Most people seem to drink espressos or cappucinos. Or fresh juices. But mostly beer.



As we walked around with our coffees, we were astounded at the amount of trash everywhere. Even now, clean up crews are just beginning to make a dent. Again, imagine ever single neighborhood in San Francisco having an all-day flea market followed by all-night partying, and you can begin to see how much trash can pile up. Plus glass! Lots of it!



We went to the Van Gogh museum today, located in the museum quarter, or "Museumplein." I can't really do it justice other than to say that it's all at once breath-taking, mind-boggling and amazingly beautiful. There was also a special exhibit on Max Beckhamm, a local artist with an amazing talent. Naturally right before we got there my camera ran out of juice. Oops.

After a bout of tourist leg, we found a really nice cafe and had a traditional dutch lunch of beef croquettes with fries and of course, a beer. Eating in Amsterdam is such a treat because you can take your time. Servers to not ever offer to bring the check, making it always the responsibility of the patron to settle the bill when they're ready.



I also love that yesterday, no matter where we were, if there was a toilet, there was always a toilet attendent to whom you paid a toll of .50. TANSTAAFL (pronounced TAN-STAHFULL) - There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch. Something for something. Or go outside and use a "pee-osk" (I liked the name pubicule better).

A Windows Hotel, Queen's Day and More

Well, I thought I'd be able to post more easily, but the hotel is using Microsoft's Internet Server, so naturally my Mac can connect to the network, but it won't let me out on the Internet. But I'll figure something out...

Meanwhile, we're having a blast! Have walked though so many places, and today is Queen's Day, so it's just nuts. Imagine San Francisco Gay Pride, Castro Street Fair, Folsom Street Fair, The Jazz Festival, etc. all at once in a tiny little city. It's a sea of people, many of whom are very mellow. Ahem. Accept for the drunken packs of sixteen-year-old-boys being loud and obnoxious. I think I'm becoming an oldster.



The canals are gorgeous, filled with boats loaded with orange-clad revelers - a sight to see for sure.

It was nice to walk around early in the day. On Queen's Day, everyone is allowed to setup shop on the street, so it was a city-wide garage sale/flea market. The red light district is neat, very narrow and filled to the brim with little shops, coffee shops, cafes - most of which served food. Lots of Indonesian, Thai, "oriental", Italian, etc. Dutch food is rare and very hard to find. But it's there.

We covered SO much ground today, too, walking all over and around the U-shaped streets and canals, finally cracking the code on how to understand which street (straat") or canal (gracht) we were on. It's very, very easy to get turned around, and finally figuring out how to find north was a good thing. That and just asking for help. :)



Our big lesson yesterday was "Why do all the houses have a hook at the very top?" Answer: To hoist furniture and other large items in through the window! And the houses are built so that the front is leaning slightly forward, ensuring that what ever is being lifted doesn't hit the front of the house.

Neat! We're gonna take off now and head over to find more food and a beer or three.



Update - later that day. And we did. Met lots of fun folks but had to navigate street after street packed with drunken, stoned revelers. An amazing sight sure, but we don't go to street parties when we're at home!



We finally made our way to the "little lion" gay bar that we liked (the owner is pictured above, between the Chicago gay and the Los Angeles gay), but had to walk through a dance area that blocked the entire alley way. When we passed through the two towers of speakers (a DJ was spinning on a metal suspension bridge above us), the music was so loud I felt like my heart was being forced to beat differently. It was LOUD. I'm not kidding. LOUD.



After a very pleasant afternoon of beers and more beers (it got better once David showed the new bartender what a bottle of whisky looks like), we decided sagely that it would be better to walk around the revelers to get home. Mistake. Got turned around and ended up far south-west of our hotel. But again, we just had to ask (several times) and we landed a block from the hotel - just approached it wrong was all. Surrrrrreeee we did. We then had a great meal at a cafe (got there just in time, the kitchen was just closing!), soup, salad, bread, croquettes and of course, beer.

And I do believe we slept well. :)

Arriving in Amsterdam

After breakfast it was back to the house to finish packing, read a few comics, say goodbye to Pixel and wait for the Super Shuttle to whisk us off to the airport. I think David agrees that the driver was a bit surly -- not to mention the high-speed, almost-like-Mr.-Toad’s-Wild-Ride experience up and down Twin Peaks and through West Portal on our way to the airport.

The check in process was pretty darned easy - there were two queues to the our flight, and for some lemming-like reason, everyone seemed to gravitate towards the queue on the right. David and I had already checked in online and had our print-outs and passports ready, so we opted the line without 3 people in it. Naturally 1 of those three had some sort of issue that require three separate employees to figure out.



But eventually, and after a lot of heavy sighs from David B later, we checked our one large bag and headed for security, where it was off with the shoes, metal and any sort of attitude. I was a little nervous sending my beloved new Macintosh through the X-Ray machine, but all went well.

After David B washed off the mistake he made by putting his hand on the people mover railing (it was filthy), it was off to a Firewood restaurant we found in the airport for a nice Ketel One Greyhound (or two).


The plane is huge. Loading passengers went more smoothly than any flight I’ve been on; I’m now completely curious about flying business class instead of coach - seems nicer.

We’re now sailing through the air over the continental U.S., only a short way through our journey. Now it’s about wrestling with iPods, cables and my Mac -- oh my! But it’s sure nice to connect the iPod to the Mac and watch my movies on a 17 inch monitor - bliss. Meanwhile David B. is really enjoying his neck pillow.


Or he was. We never did get any sleep, it was too hard. The airline served lots of snacks, a meal, more snacks, etc., which was a nice touch. We also met a really nice woman on the plane who gave us lots of advice.


The Amsterdam airport and train stations were huge and amazing, full of noise and hustle and bustle in every language you can imaging. of course the public transit is really incredible and easy to use. And neat looking, too.

As I write this, I’m sitting in our hotel lounge waiting for our room to be made up. The walk here, even schlepping all of our luggage, was still really neat - it really is a beautiful city and there are SO MANY PEOPLE! So clearly keyword is neat. Neat, neat, neat.

Now it’s time for a trip to a coffee shop, then back to the hotel to check in. No sleep for us - go rally through until dark and hope that our bodies adjust.


Later that day...


And boy did we.

We walked all around the neighborhood that surround our hotel - three times I think! But we did eventually wear out enough to brave a short nap. I think it lasted about two hours. And then we rallied again and made our way towards the “Castro” of Amsterdam.


Finding our way wasn’t that easy, only because we took the longest route possible inadvertently. But we ended up finding it, and had the BEST time! We hit a couple of bars - one called April we hit twice.

We met these guys from Washington DC and LA who were hanging out with a third guy (a local). They were, of course, well on their way to being smashed. But they were hilarious.


We also met the nicest bar owner, Nils, who had just opened his bar called "Cafe 't Leeuwtje" or "the little lion" about five months ago. And he gave us an updated guide and was nice enough to notate his favorite few restaurants on it. Norbert, the local guy who was taking pictures of everyone, made us all drink shots of BOLS, which might explain why I don’t remember eating at McDonald’s last night on our way home.

After some much needed sleep and a cappucino later, we’re ready to start the day - which is the day before Queen’s Day, sort of like Pink Saturday before Gay Pride in San Francisco. What day is it? Time is weird right now, when you skip a day. Anyways, based on the crowds we've seen already, it’s gonna be big. And I'm sure, NEAT!

Breakfast in the Castro

davidmahr
After another round of City of Heroes this morning (Power.Lad rules!) and some last minute packing changes, we headed down to the Castro for a late breakfast at one of our favorite local experiences -- Welcome Home. Surley, forgetful service with a smile, and really good food. I had my favorite comfort food meal - chicken fried steak with grits instead of potatoes and toast instead of a biscuit. MMMMMMM.



David B. had his favorite, too - a fried egg and ham sandwich with fries instead of house potatoes. He was hoping for some grapefruit juice, too, but strangely, all they offered is tomato, apple or cranberry -- no citrus!



Then a mad dash to Walgreen's to get some kitty litter before our meter ran out, then back home to impatiently await the Super Shuttle. Can't wait!