A beautiful morning today, as I sit here writing, by the window, of our lovely apartment in Belgium. The weather is perfect 57F at 9 am.
It’s now been almost one month since we left California. Fifteen days in New Jersey just flew by. Besides spending a lot of time with family, we also managed to get to know New York a little better. Walking the HI – Line, Central Park, and going to a boat restaurant on the water called the “Frying Pan”. A nice place to sit after a long day for a drink. The weather was the only factor pulling us down, it was hot and humid. However, we still managed to walk three miles a day. This was good practice for walking in Europe. After saying our goodbye’s to family in New Jersey, we started our true adventure.
We arrived in the Netherlands, Amsterdam our first stop. Friends and family had advised, ” be careful, there are bag snatcher and pickpocketers”. The folks that you have to worry about are the crazy cyclists. They ride old bikes with large bells and if one does not have the bell to ring they yell at you to move out of their way. Do they slow down for you as you cross the road? NO. I was told that every person in the Netherlands owns a bicycle. They transport almost everything on their bicycles like groceries, suitcases, children.
Amsterdam is a tolerant city. Except, of course, the cyclists! There are rules, but one wonder’s, when you see the “Coffee shops” selling cannabis. If you are looking for a cup of coffee, look for a coffee house, not a coffee shop! Prostitution is legal. The Redlight district is a tourist attraction. The law says you cannot take photographs. If you do you might be on the wrong side of the law. There are 1500 canals is what I was told. We crossed many and everyone was picturesque with small cafe’s everywhere.
We stayed in Amsterdam for one week. When I was looking at booking accommodation, I looked at many options on the internet, hotels, apartments, B & B and came across a room that was for rent in Jordaan. So I booked it. The room looked reasonable and the price was good. The photographs mislead me. Agreed, that we had downsized and are traveling with minimum things, and we are prepared for whatever comes our way. We were not prepared for the size of the room. Added to this there was no window that could be opened for fresh air. A lesson learned! The positive side was that we were in the best part of town and close to all services like grocery stores etc. We would pull out the two small chairs from our room on the road outside and sit there in the evening like the locals drinking wine and chatting with the neighbours. We made most of the seven days, by visiting every possible corner of Amsterdam on foot. Walking 4 miles or more daily, taking in all the sights of the city.
We bought a 24-hour pass on the last day and also visited Edam cheese market, Volendam, Marken and Broeke in Waterland.