The Western European Blitz: Day 13. Amsterdam Rain on Me
Day 13- 10.03.19
Amsterdam
We woke up to the sound of pour raining beating against the roof top. By the time we are up-and At’hem it has stopped. This will be the way the rest of the day. Rain, sprinkles, sun, even a rainbow or two.
We take advantage of the break in the clouds and make our way towards Vondelpark. Before we must find cafe americano, because we must. We find a cute place called Coffee Concepts. It’s the best cafe americano to date and they had oat milk And healthy snacks- Woohoo! It could be the new city jitters but we are ready to attack!
We stroll through Vondelpark seeing dogs, bikes, walkers, runners, sculptures, creeks, trees, birds, life is wonderful. Ingrid wants to say hi to all the dogs, missing Miles in a big way!
We make a step to cross out of the park, WOOSH! Our first brush with a biker. He nearly misses. “The bike owns this town.” Our Uber driver later tonight would warn us.
Our first taste of a canal comes a couple block later. Ah, this is Amsterdam. A small fishing boat is tied to the pier. There is a rot iron walking bridge not far down. The row houses along the water all vary in shape and size but hold true to the Hanzel and Gretel architecture. And of course the bikes line the street.
The Rijksmuesum entrance is in a through way tunnel that runs the length of the building, and you guessed it, bikes flying by. This morning there is a 5 piece orchestral group playing the opening theme to Game of Thrones. I force myself to forget the ending and focus on Sean Bean losing his head. Fond memories of season 1.
We get there early- no lines! Get our audio guide and hit the classic highlights. Wow, this place is full of gems. Waterloo, Rembrandt’s Night Watch, Van Gough, many famous Dutch artists with unpronounceable names, full scale model of a 17th century ship that was constructed in the actual 17th century! The pacing of the building and the different style of exhibits displayed together is what we enjoy most. Also the building is beautiful with giant natural light combined with the Great Hall built by Dutch architects displaying an enormous stain glass window. We leave certainly feeling satisfied.
I need one of these.
The Drinking Horn from the Amsterdam Company of Arquebusiers.
We set off to get our steps in when the rain starts to come down. We dive in a cute and cozy little pub named Hanzel and Gretal. Time to wait out the storm with a pint and Frites. Not fries. The older Dutch women sitting next to us shot me a glance when I said fries. I quickly corrected myself. They were fun to talk to about the whole ordeal. They carried on their own debate of Frites vs fries far after they were done with us.
Sunshine! Lets boogie.
Walking into Dam square the weather is grimy. The gray pigeons flock against the gray sky and dark gothic tower that is the Grand palace. It makes for quite a scene. More gothic style buildings throughout the square some with banner advertisements on them. It takes away from the ambiance a bit.
Surrounding the square are all the tourist shopping streets. We grab one of them heading to Central station. It’s not the scene we want to be in. We are looking to check some scenery boxes. There is a break in the crowd to the left. It’s an alley with some shops. We slip in. At the end is a distinct odor and some black light action. We’ve stumbled upon our first coffee shop. Although it’s less of a coffee shop more of a weed 711. We’re talked into some cookies. Why not. (This is not Massachusetts medical grade marijuana. But it’s a box. Check)
Our pace in Amsterdam is a deliberate crawl. We’ll follow a street then hang a left at the next canal and double back somewhere along the way.
Around lunch we bump into a corner café and decide to fuel up on home made chicken noodle soup, grilled cheese and tomato, caprese salad, mint tea, and a pint. The warm soup and bread conflicting the chill in the air and sun on our fave, sitting on the edge of a canal is about a perfect a moment we have garnished this whole trip.
A horse and carriage pass over the bridge next to us. The horse trotting on the cobble stones is another pleasant sensory addition.
Just as we are capping the moment, two men row by in a gondola (that’s how I’ll remember it, anyway.) They are dressed in blue sailors uniforms wearing captain hats singing some classic French song.
Tomorrow is supposed to rain so we’re gunna hop on a boat tour this afternoon.
It’s impromptu so naturally we are at the end of the line. Good seats will be tough to come by so we b-line it to the very back looking for a cozy nook. Where most of the boat is fully covered, this back section has a canvas over it too with plastic windows and the sides are open. Perfect.
Seated around us are a group of ten or so mid aged men. (much older than Ingrid) They are a group of “senior” football players from Germany. This group is a jolly juvenile bunch in their 50’s. We share some small talk with the best English speakers. Most of the time they are messing with each other’s headphones or snapping picks of the 4 member sleeping crew and having a laugh. At one point the goalie of the club sits in a bit of water. Hilarity ensues. What a riot! The goalie then gets his revenge when he sits on the lap of the nearest joker. I like them. They remind me of someone.
The highlights are narrated through a recording in our headphones. Per usual the history intrigues us, but house boat row really gets the blood flowing. Passing under the bridges and navigating boat traffic in the canal, you can picture what it was like in the 17th century just a lot busier!
Proeflokaal is a beer hall known for 50+ taps of local brews. It’s a narrow little alley with exposed lighting and a chalk board full of options. A proper pub. It takes a beat to score a little shelf of a table against the wall. I make a couple selections for us to sip on while we breathe it all in. At one point the bar tender yells, “hey who’s dog!” A scruffy looking fellah claims him with a mute apology. They are dog friendly here just not behind the bar I suppose. It’s the bustling pub atmosphere we’re looking for.
Seventeen minutes or 37 minutes it was a slight blur of funky buildings and rainbows, but we walked back to the AirBnb. There is enough time to reset and grab an Uber to the Djip area for dinner.
We were recommended, the Paardje B.V. for traditional dutch food. We ask the waiter what the “traditional Dutch meatball” is that’s on the menu under “snacks”. His description may be my favorite quote on this trip.
“It’s um, meat. Rolled into a ball.”
Thank you sir, we will take one. Also a round of cheese sticks. (A traditional dutch meatball is really more of what we call a loaf)
It’s not quite the dinner we are looking for so time to move on. This place turns into a disco at midnight. The waitress promises us a shot. Yea sure, we’ll be back. The plan is to bounce to a couple establishments grabbing a bite here and there. It never ends up happening. We just wonder the streets until we recognize the brasserie near our apartment, Van Dam. A night cap, Aprol Spritz and Heineken put us to bed.
Tomorrow we’re in search of Cozy settings and red lights.