Saturday, December 31, 2011

23 Hours in Amsterdam

 We had a 23 hour layover in Amsterdam on our way to Doha, Qatar. We were greeted by fresh cut flowers in the train station. We picked up a bouquet of purple tulips, light blue Dutch Hyacinths, and indigo anemones for Ann.
 The train station clock tower.


 Best fries in Amsterdam according to Matt Tuttle who was a missionary here a few years back:  Manneken Pis, named after the statue of a little boy urinating (which is in honor of finding the lost prince, and the king directing that a statue be erected where and what the boy was doing when found)
 Mound-O-Fries in the background.
 They were really good. Top with a mayo sauce. Double forked wooden pick was included. A civilized way to eat fries.


Now, this is Christmas decorating in the street, Euro-style.


 Loved the architectural detail on many of the buildings.


 Sneakin' a peak inside a house. Look at that steep stairway.

 We went to the Van Gogh museum. 200 of his original paintings, plus numerous drawings, letters, etc. Also painting by Gauguin, Bonnard, Pissaro, and others. No photography of his paintings were allowed.
 This is a mock-up of what they think Vincent's bedroom looked like.


A very cool carved mirror frame, not by Van Gogh, but by one of his contemporaries.

 New things I learned about Van Gogh: He didn't cut his ear off, just his lobe.  He painted for only 8 years. They think he had a form of epilepsy.
He shot himself in the chest and died two days later, with his brother Theo by his side.

 Sunflowers anyone?


 Katy, these three blouses are for you. (in a shop window down in the Museum District)


 We loved walking along the canals. Next time we're going to rent bikes and tour like the Dutch do.

 Really good Indonesian food at Srikandi.  We got so excited when the food arrived that we didn't take any photos. The lemon grass beef was really good.
Didn't have a Chocolade Explosie (but I did enjoy the name) for breakfast. Instead we had a chocolade croissant, a ciabatta bol and a muesli bol, plus fresh squeezed OJ.
23 hours in Amsterdam isn't sufficient.

2 comments:

Judy said...

I've always wanted to go there. Thanks for sharing.

jenn said...

Those fries are the best! We may have eaten them every day were were there last summer. :) And unfortunately, mayo has become the condiment of choice on even thick cut American fries now! :) Glad you could enjoy them, and the city!