NETHERLANDS 

 Amsterdam

  12-1-2003

  Amsterdam, the capitol of the Netherlands, is a vibrant city.

We visited a high end diamond district factory.

We mainly went in there to get out of the rain.

But they were very welcoming and even gave us a cup of hot chocolate.

The canal is beautiful.

Great for walking....

 or riding a bike.

Vending Machine Lunch

 

We also got to see the red-light district.... twice: because we took a wrong turn.

There were lots of cannabis coffee shops and naked ladies. 

 We visited the Rijksmuseum in 2003.

April 13, 2013 it had just reopened after a mammoth 10-year, 489 million US dollar renovation project.

We cannot stress how beautiful all the paintings were.

Anne Frank Huis

We loved the canal.

We were amazed at how close the cars can park in tiny spaces.

Lots of bicycles everywhere

I did mention that we liked the canal.

 

 *****************

Haarlem

  We stayed in Haarlem because it was cheaper than Amsterdam.

 We found a tiny Hotel near this church.

We had to walk up a narrow spiral staircase.

But our luggage went up a dumb-waiter-type elevator one piece at a time. 

Christmas decorations

 The church was stunning at night. 

A great photo-op near our hotel  

 

 *****************

 

Den Haag

 

The Hague is the third  largest city of the Netherlands.

It is a working-class city,

and it is the headquarters of the Dutch government and Parliament. 

 We did not think that traditional Indonesian food would be so big in Holland.

 

We actually opted to eat lunch at the church on the corner.

Nuns took our order and brought us beer to drink.

Kevin thought it was great.

 

 I'm not sure what the Sting was, but it had pretty columns.

 Why are those people up on top of the building?

 

We visited the Royal Picture Gallery Mauritshuis.

So many priceless treasures:

We loved The Girl with a Pearl Earring by Johannes Vermeer.  

The restrooms were sparkling.  The fly in the toilet above is actually art. 

Kevin brought me into the men's room to take a picture of the urinal.

What a romantic guy.

 

 *****************

 

Delft

 

Delft is an historic town known for the painter Vermeer.....

 and also the blue pottery called Delftware.

 

 

 Holland has lovely canals everywhere.

  

We truly felt like we were in a Vermeer painting, as we strolled through the city.

 

 One final note: April 30, 2013 was Queensday in Holland.

It was very special this year because Queen Beatrix abdicated

and King Willem Alexander was inaugurated.

Next year it will be celebrated as Kingday.