Amsterdam with Family

We disembarked from the Viking Freya in the morning after 9 days of sailing on various rivers.  A nice ride from a charming Dutch man took us in private Mercedes over to our hotel, the Amsterdam Pulitzer.  It is an interesting amalgm of canal houses, 4 or 5, that were gradually purchased by the Pulitzer magnate over time and joined together into a hotel.  Its origins are obviously quite old but it is a lovely five-star hotel so we are enjoying the amenities while we stay here until Wednesday morning when we head to Schiphol Airport for our return home.


The morning consisted of a 90-minute walk around Amsterdam with a very knowledgeable guide who pointed out the differences in the architecture - again, most buildings along the canals date to the 16th. or 17th. century - in this city of 800,000 who see 8 M visitors a year.  There are more than 1.2 M bikes in Amsterdam and they are the bane of a walker's existence.  You have to be constantly on the lookout because, whether by law or speed, they own the road.  I almost got run over at least once so we're trying to be careful.

Our hotel is within a couple of blocks of the Anne Frank House where we had tickets for last evening to visit.  I don't remember reading her Diary as a child, but I know it was standard fare for many American schoolchildren and for good reason. When I was here in 1989 it was just the house and the accompanying tour - very stark. Now, it is enveloped  around the facade on its side by a well-done museum.  Some of the starkness is gone but the message remains the same, i.e., the querulous question of how could people do this to each other?

The afternoon saw the reuniting with Jenny, Dave, Ava G., and Niamh (Gigi), first at our hotel and then walking around Amsterdam.  Cheryl came packed with gifts for them and they were thrilled to get them and were most affectionate in return.  We eventually found a gelato place where they charmed the owners with their little British accents, and then on to dinner at an Argentinian restaurant where I enjoyed a nice filet and delicious baked potato.

It was great having this time with them, and more is on slate for Tuesday.  We plan on visiting the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh museum, as well as doing an early evening canal boat ride.  We're hoping, too, to squeeze in the World Flower Market as well as this important Dutch business will undoubtedly showcase the best of the best.

I may not get to describe these things until we get back in Columbus, depending on how late we're out tonight, Our airport shuttle picks us up at 6 a.m. tomorrow (Wednesday, May 3), but faithful readers should be assured that I'll soon describe our day 2 with Jenny and the kids as well as the return home.  Stay tuned.

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