So, about Amsterdam. We left

So, about Amsterdam. We left Frankfurt Friday evening and took it easy by staying in a hotel about halfway there. We were both so exhausted by the week (he has an hour and a half drive to work - oneway) that it was about 11am before we got back on the road the next morning. Consequently, we got to Zandvoort around 2pm and checked in to our hotel. That was an adventure in itself - Bill's name got transposed in their reservation system so they had to do some hunting to find it. Finally made it to Amsterdam by 3pm.

So, the first place we went to was the Red Light District. Of course! Mostly, it's not anything special, just a whole bunch of sex shops one after the other. To a large degree, the contents of the shops aren't very special either - you can find just about everything there at your home sex shop. It's just all together, very open and in your face. Speaking of in your face - the window prostitutes ARE unique. There are these window fronts that have been converted into little sex stalls. The girls stand in their windows either looking sexy, extremely bored or an odd combination of the two. If the window curtain is closed, she's busy. :) One girl was wearing a bustier, hose, smoking a cigarette with this nasty "oh well" expression on her face and at the same time was jiggling a dildo in her crotch area as if it was her own dick. At one of the shops the clerk offered to sell us tickets to their six hour (!) sex show. The afternoon one was halfway over, but since I bought something in the store (no, I'm not telling what), we could buy one ticket and go to both the afternoon AND evening shows. For 25Euro. Each. Um, no thanks. It was actually a little tempting, but we had already bought tickets for a "Candlelight" cruise around the canals, so we wouldn't get to see much of the evening show. And 25Euro was a bit steep of a price. And what can you do for six hours?? Or rather, watch... Maybe next time. ;)

Bill & I really didn't have a plan for seeing the city and we'd left the guidebook in the car back at the hotel, so we just meandered around the city. Turns out we meandered around a lot of the high points, we just kind of went the backways around. Which I think was good of actually seeing the city. We found an Italian restaurant in Rembrandtplein and ate dinner there. Very tasty. :)

Rembrandtplein is like the center of the touristy area. Planet Hollywood is there (along with this hideously tacky neon sign that sticks out like a sore thumb against the skyline) along with Subway & McDonalds. It's also the beginnings of the gay quarter. A good mix of things, but very touristy.

After dinner we walked around a bit more and then went to catch our "Candlelight" cruise. I keep putting candlelight in quotes because there were no candles. Just little Tiffany-esque lamps above our heads turned down. But it was very romantic. It's also a good way to get a good overview of the city and learn little touristy facts about the city. Oh, and to get mooned by people on houseboats. Three male residents of one houseboat did that - it was funny. Even funnier was listening to other Americans on the boat explain to non-Americans what mooning is. :) And in the red light district, three drunk guys waved a blow-up sex doll at the boat. Oh, and I brought my little stuffed duck [Ducky!] with us and have a great picture now of him hanging on to the wine bottle. It looks like he's a bit of a lush! Too cute!

At this juncture, I have to break-in with a small rant. If you are speaking English to somebody who is not a native English speaker, TALKING LOUDER DOES NOT HELP COMPREHENSION!!! Really. Another American couple on the boat SPOKE LOUDER to their seatmates everytime they WANTED TO ENGAGE THEM IN CONVERSATION. I think the entire boat heard their side of the conversation. I made a sarcastic comment to Bill about how speaking louder helps with understanding and the Japanese wife of the couple across from us asked me if I really thought so (while having a vaguely unbelieving look on her face). I said no and explained that I thought speaking clearly and slower does help and how when Germans speak louder to me (or I see them do this to others) I get REALLY ANNOYED. I was deliberately not quiet with my explanation. However, I don't think the other couple heard because they CONTINUED THE PRACTICE. Arggh. It did earn me a dirty look from another wife at a different table though. LOL. :)

Anyway, the next day Bill & I made a better plan for seeing the city. We actually went into Rembrandt's house/museum and found the Pancake Bakery the guide book recommended. The Pancake Bakery was all the way on the other side of the city center from Rembrandt's house and we ended up walking most the way. That's okay because the canals & streets going that way get progressively prettier and more residential. And the sun was shining, it was warm, & Bill was with me. Ah - heaven. :) (I know, I know - enough of the sappy stuff.)

The pancakes are actually more like crepes & you can have them with about 70 different toppings. Everything from sweet to pizza-like. And they are big! The crepe/pancake covers a sizeable dinner plate. I had banana's & whipped cream & chocolate sauce on mine. Deelish! Bill had one with cheese, peppers, ham/salami & various spices. His tasted a bit like a good pizza.

After this, we had to head back home. It was actually about 7pm when we left the city. We made it back to my place around midnight. Oh, I was so tired that night! My feet hurt from the sandles I wore on Saturday (nearly brand-new - big mistake - but I looked cool!) and I was tired from walking around & then sitting in the car for five hours. Somehow, Bill managed to remain awake until we got home. We both slept very well that night. :)

So, in conclusion, we didn't see all there was to see in Amsterdam. But we had a great time just walking around the city, being together, holding hands, and seeing what we did. :) I'll definitely be going back!

Thanks for a great weekend Bill! :) Posted by Jinglelady at May 7, 2003 12:11 AM | Previous Blog | TrackBack