Sunday through Tuesday, May 14-16, 2017
Our final sailing, from Rotterdam to Amsterdam. A day on land, then through the air and back home.
As I open the file to write about the last two-and-a-half days of our vacation, almost two months have passed since we returned home. And in that time, I traveled to Gloucester, MA, with my new maternal half-sister for her to meet her new paternal half-sister and for me to meet my sister’s son and his wife. Then I worked at the university for a week accompanying the 20th Annual Dana Vocal Performance Clinic. And I had a birthday. And I traveled to New Mexico to spend a couple of days in Santa Fe and a week sewing in Taos. And I drove my grandchildren to northern Michigan to attend Interlochen Arts Camp. And I spent a weekend at Lake Erie with the Jazzman to celebrate his birthday.
So my memory of the two days in Amsterdam is dim. But I do remember there were good friends, good food, a memorable museum, and a lot of fun.
We disembarked the Avalon Luminary for the final time around 10:00 a.m. on Sunday morning. Right away we were taken to canal boats, which we boarded for a scenic cruise through the canals that surround and intersect Amsterdam. The architecture we saw from the boat was new and old, and all beautiful. The museum I wanted to visit that I saw from the boat was the Museum of Bags and Purses. (If you’re not a regular reader of my blog, you may not know that I sew a lot of bags, and love getting new ideas.) Alas, that museum will have to wait until my next Amsterdam visit.
We cruised for almost an hour and a half, then walked around a neighborhood for half an hour before boarding coaches to be driven to our hotel, the DoubleTree by Hilton Amsterdam Centraal Station. After checking in, we went right up to the rooftop bar to admire the view. In short order, we were joined by our friends Maggie (cousin of the Jazzman) and Diane, who had been traveling in London. We had drinks and flirted with the cute Italian waiter, then got serious about finding a place for dinner.
The hotel was ideally located for either walking to shops and restaurants or hopping onto a streetcar to get around town. After peeking into several restaurant windows, we decided on Sham Syrian Restaurant. The wait staff, fluent in English, of course, was absolutely delightful. And the food—delicious! We frequently eat at our local Middle Eastern restaurant, so this was a familiar treat. If you enjoy Middle Eastern food, I recommend you schedule a dinner here on your next trip to Amsterdam, and TripAdvisor readers agree.
I had suffered a migraine aura as soon as we walked into the restaurant, so after dinner I excused myself and walked back to the hotel. My companions continued walking to check out the Red Light District and the coffee houses.
And then it was Monday, our last full day of this Euopean adventure. We had a delicious breakfast in the hotel and took the streetcar to meet Maggie and Diane at the Rijksmuseum. What an international treasure this museum is!
In my photos below, you’ll see lots of stained glass and lots of marble carved to look like fabric. Those are my favorites, of course. But there is a lot of beauty in this museum for any art lover. (Over 36,000 reviews on TripAdvisor and 66% of them give it the top rating. Must see!) If you visit, definitely download their app to your smart phone.
After several hours in the museum, our tummies were telling us to stop for food. We found a little cafe a block away at prices far lower than we would have paid in the museum. After lunch, we wandered around the neighborhood. Remembering our visit to the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin several years earlier, Jas and I thought maybe a visit to the Heineken Experience might be enjoyable. Alas, when we saw it was around $15.00 per person and had a very long wait time, we said “thank you very much” and left.
After the six of us agreed to meet at 5:30 for an early dinner, we headed back to our respective hotels for a rest-filled afternoon, then got on the streetcar again to head to one of the Seafood Bar’s three Amsterdam locations. I have some photos below, but you must also see the photos on their website. Oh, my gastronomy! This place is an absolute must-eat-at experience.
And all too soon it was time to say goodbye to Maggie and Diane, and to head back to our hotel to finish packing.
Tuesday morning, another delicious breakfast at the hotel (including delight-my-eye views of musicians cycling to the nearby Conservatory of Amsterdam, instrument cases strapped to their bikes), then a driver to take us to the airport. A last wave to Maggie and Diane as we saw them in the airport, an easy wait, easy long flight, then many hours sitting, frustrated with the wait, in Detroit waiting for our late flight to Pittsburgh. (There’s got to be a better way to help passengers be comfortable with a long layover. Detroit hasn’t solved that yet!) We arrived at our Pittsburgh hotel around 1:00, then drove home in the morning.
We were filled with great memories and already talking about our next vacation. As always!
Amsterdam Photo Gallery
