Amster...dam, Part III...The End!

Looking back at that Europe trip, it seemed as if Amsterdam was the place we spent the most time in, and even then, it wasn't enough.  I'm hoping to go back to Europe in the summer of 2016 and when I do, I'm definitely going to spend much more time there...

After leaving Volendam, we headed back into the city of Amsterdam for one last visit.  The plan was to visit the Anne Frank House, one of Amsterdam's most popular attractions, and have some free time to explore the city a little on our own, but there was one last unplanned stop at another site for which this country below sea level is famous for...windmills.  

There it was, right alongside of the road back to Amsterdam, one last bastion of old Dutch life. Without even investigating it any further, I would imagine that the Dutch use much more modern forms of energy harnessing, and so this surely is a relic of times gone by.  Cool!

After a few snapshots by the old mill, we headed back into the city of Amsterdam for one last time. The line at the Anne Frank line was enormous...at least a two-hour wait to get in.  We were all given the option to either wait, or get three-plus hours of free time.  Since I am one of the very few people who never read The Diary of Anne Frank, I wasn't too keen on waiting that long, so I opted for the free time.  Besides, if I hadn't, that would have pretty much been it for Amsterdam, and I so wanted to explore!

My fellow chaperone and music teacher Audrey and I then embarked our own, long exploration of the city...and we had a blast!  We ate at a rooftop restaurant with beautiful views of the city, we walked around, interacting with several Dutch people, all of whom were very nice, and we shopped. I even got a cool new sweater out of the deal!  It was a wonderful way to end our first leg of the trip.

All in all, visiting Amsterdam was a great experience!  The next morning we were off to Paris, but I have definitely put this place on a future travel to-do list...there's so much more to experience!  Here are some final pictures from Amsterdam.  I hope you've enjoyed all that I've shared about the place and perhaps dream of visiting there yourself.  Check out my past posts on Amsterdam below the photos and stay tuned for Paris...

Look what I found at the flower market!

This pancake looks like a pizza, no?

Me n my pal Joanne!

Check out:

Amster...dam, Part I

Gouda Cheese and Clogs

  

Amster...dam, Part II: Gouda Cheese and Clogs

To discover some of the more traditional Dutch things to be found in the Netherlands, we had to traverse outside of Amsterdam, which is how we began our second day. This day felt less rushed and a bit more relaxed than the first, as we headed by bus towards Volendam, a small, quaint historic seaside town in northern Holland, about a half hour's drive from the city. Before setting off to explore the harbor town, though, we took a quick stop to learn about two tried and true Dutch staples: Gouda cheese and clogs...

Yes, they still make clogs in Holland, and for some strange reason, they make cheese in the same places, too! Somewhere on the road between Amsterdam and Volendam, there was a ruralish area that was home to at least a couple of these cheese/clog shops, and we made a stop at the first one we came upon, I believe it was called Irene's.

A quick check inside by Steve, our tour guide, and Ivan, the tour leader, we were ushered off the bus to watch and learn how both world-famous Gouda cheese and clogs are made.  I have to say, it wasn't as boring as I thought it would be.  The cheese-making demonstration was interesting enough, but the clog maker, I think, missed his calling.  In between shavings and cuts of smallish pieces of wood that would eventually become traditional Dutch shoes, he had the kids laughing with a slick sense of humor and some humorous clog-making demonstrations.

 

After the demonstrations, it was off to the gift shop to browse and purchase, what else...cheese and clogs.  I tell ya, even though this place was in a rural area, they sure knew how to market their goods. Delectable samples of about twenty varieties of Gouda and other cheeses were there for the tasting and the clogs, oh the clogs...even I was tempted.  In the end, though, I was sensible and only purchased several logs of cheese, some of which I gave as gifts and other that I just finished enjoying only yesterday.

Volendam

After the fun and educational stop at the cheese and clog factory, it was off to Volendam, a place my friend Lori had been to on a past trip and highly recommended as one of her favorite spots.  I was excited!  

Volendam was as charming as it was beautiful.  With one main promenade along the waterfront, alongside a marina, dozens of quaint little shops and eateries abound.  For two hours or so, my fellow travelers and I explored all it had to offer, and I think we all enjoyed every minute.  This place is definitely worth a half-day's visit if you ever find yourself in Amsterdam.  Check out the pictures and you'll surely be intrigued by this beautiful place...

I didn't buy clogs, but I tried some on...

Well, that's about it for this turn at a post.  We ended up spending about a half a day exploring the more traditional side of Holland and that morning sticks in my head as one of the highlights of the trip.  Check out my first post on my European adventure below and stay tuned for more...

Amster...dam! Part I

Amster...dam! Part I

The trip to Europe was a great a way for me to preview places I've never been before that perhaps I'd like to visit again on my own someday, and our first stop, Amsterdam, was definitely one of them. This particular destination is legendary, but not for its churches, monuments, museums, or even its famous canals.  No, it's the legalized marijuana and the notorious Red Light district that brings many people to this progressive European city...but that's a decidedly adult reason to visit Amsterdam. Since mine was a school trip with 41 tenth graders, there wasn't going to be any of that.  Still, Amsterdam was hella cool and a place I definitely would like to visit again.

      

As would be with all of the places we visited in Europe, our jaunt into Amsterdam in the Netherlands was fast and furious, and since we arrived from an overnight flight around 10 in the morning, we were off and running straight away.  Rather than recap the action of the two days we spent in and around the city, I'd like to share some observations I made of this cool place...

Amsterdam, the City and the Sights, Part 1

Immediately upon arriving in Amsterdam, you know you are in Europe.  With trolley cars speeding down the center of the streets, people on bikes everywhere, the shops, the bakeries and other tempting eateries, and of course the architecture, you just know you're not in America anymore.  I loved it!

Amsterdam Centraal

The first cool place we saw, which was surely the heart of the city, was the Amsterdam Centraal Train Station.  Built in 1889, this Neo-Renaissance building is as stunning as it is busy.  The main hub of the city serves over a quarter of a million passengers each day and is the final destination for many bus lines and trolleys.  

cityscouter

Rijksmuseum

Up the road a bit from the train station was our first destination and the central location for most of the sights we'd be visiting that first day, the Rijksmuseum, which is the national museum of the Netherlands.  The building houses over 8,000 works of art in a gorgeously architectured structure set amongst a huge reflecting pool (another week or so it would've been full of blooming tulips!) and at the center of several museums and the famous Iamsterdam sign (check out the picture above).  We spent most of the day in this beautiful area and it's surely somewhere I'd like to see again.  

Well I hope you've enjoyed this first little tidbit on my trip to Europe.  Stay tuned for some more on Amsterdam and the rest of the places and things I experienced in the Old Country...