Amsterdam!

 8/8: Early start with a Bolt to the Lisbon airport, then our flight from Lisbon to London Luton. We were a bit concerned about the connection in London, as we would have to go through border control, collect our bags, recheck them to Amsterdam, and go through security. Fortunately, the flight wasn’t too delayed, and the process in London went smoothly. It was a 45 minute flight to Amsterdam, and then we took the train to the Central Station. It had been a long travel day, and we all were definitely ready to be at our place. We thought about getting in an Uber to finish the travel, but it wasn’t easy to see where to go for that, and the City bus was right in front of us which should be an 8 minute ride. With our big bags we squeezed into the crowded bus and Bob tried to figure out how to buy tickets (as I was thinking about our bus experience in Oslo where we almost got fined for not having our tickets upon entering the tram). Thankfully the 8 minute ride passed quickly, and we didn’t get busted for not having tickets! 😅Whoosh! A short walk to our Airbnb, and Bob and I walked to local grocery to pick up dinner and breakfast items. Simone’s request was chicken/pasta/veggies and Quinn’s was grilled cheese. It was getting late, but we made it all happen and we’re happy to settle in for 8 nights!

Our first glimpse of windmills off the coast of the Netherlands!🇳🇱 

Wow! That’s a LOT of bikes!

Just outside our Airbnb

8/9:  The current fad for breakfast is plain yogurt (after seeing Paulo and kids eating it) with Cheerios - although Amsterdam doesn’t seem to have cheerios (like France! Why is this?) We bought the knock off Honing Ringen and hoped the kids would like it! They did…probably because it has more sugar than Cheerios…but it’s tough to read the label! We walked to rent bikes, then rode around the local park (Vondelpark). It was so fun to be able to explore so many miles so easily on bikes! Biked to a local museum (Grachtenmuseum) explaining the history of Amsterdam, the canals, and the trees lining them. This was a great starting point to learn about the city! We learned that the trees were planted in a specific pattern and at exact distances apart for best aesthetics. Most (all?) are elms, and many were subject to Dutch Elm disease. Today these trees are meticulously maintained.

Our last stop of the day was at the Red Light District (about 6pm - Bob and I decided we’d like to be done with our ‘tour’ by dark). This stop provided some great conversation for the four of us!

Mewing pic

Yikes

Love the faces

Home to make dinner - this was delicious! Why can’t we find this in the States?

8/10: Journeyed to the local Saturday market with fresh fruit/veggies, treats, and clothing. The kids found some artwork they loved, I bought a tank top and Simone and I each found some earrings. Bob found the local bakery with focaccia bread and chocolate croissants :-) Yum!

Streetside urinals are fairly common here. Super ewww.

Next we toured the Resistance Museum detailing the events of the Dutch during WWII. A very interesting, powerful experience. 

We found our way to Our House, a museum about the evolution of House Music. It was fun for us to see the evolution of electronic music through the last decades! We wished cousin Gus could enjoy it with us!

It’s Marshmallow!

The last stop of the day was at Foodhallen, a recommendation from cousin Steph, who said she had the best gin and tonic there :-)

They WERE awesome! Our family decided the chicken nuggets were the best ever. 

The bike parking was phenomenal! It was like parking your car but with your bike! This city is amazing - it is so quiet because SO many people bike and there are SO few cars! We LOVE it!

We feel just like the locals! Except for the bright red rental bikes and our helmets. Ha! (NO ONE wears a helmet!)