We chose a sushi place and found one in town that was recommended on Tripadvisor called Tomo Sushi. A short Metro ride and voila! We were there. The place was really cute with a trendy interior but it wasn't stuffy. We got a couple of sushi/sashimi samplers and they were very good.
We then took the Metro up to Dam Square and walked a bit to get to the Sky Bar/Lounge in the Doubletree hotel. The views were gorgeous! It was around 9:30 and the sun was just starting to go down. It was quite windy and cool but so nice! I'm not sure why everyone was inside and not on the huge patio deck. We got a drink and enjoyed the sunset and the view.
We were close to the Red Light District, so decided to walk through. The edge is marked by, yes, red lights, so there's no mistaking it at night. I did actually walk a part of it during the day as well and it's quite different! Tons of people and the windows where the girls are are framed in red lights as well. They try to interest the crowd and though some were attractive, quite a lot were not. We did get to see a transaction going down and it appeared that the guy was negotiating for her, ahem, services.
There's a lot of other sex shops there as well as the Cannibus and Hemp Museum.
We continued on walking towards Rembrandt Square where we intended to get the Metro. I'm not sure why we didn't, but we walked on and on and ended up just walking back to the apartment. We passed Skinny Bridge and walked down a couple of streets with really old houses that were leaning and quite skinny as well (the houses on the row are all attached.)
It was a late night and of course I'm up at the crack of dawn. :)
I'll be headed to Keukenhof today if the weather permits and I can pull myself together. Lots and lots of coffee! http://www.keukenhof.nl/en/ It's a metro ride to the train to a bus so will be quite a trip but I've heard it's beautiful and of course what the Netherlands are known for: flowers and particularly tulips!
A note on travel: while it's fun to see the world, it can be really stressful sometimes when you don't really know the culture, the language and where you're going. It can be an adventure as well and sometimes when you get lost you can stumble on the most amazing things. I do find travel stressful and don't really enjoy flying, however, I get to see amazing places that I've read about and have seen in pictures so it's worth it. I do miss home though, and I'm missing it right now. But-- an adventure awaits and I'm off!
***
I suppose I shouldn't have yet mentioned the stresses of travel. :) Today started off well enough, and I hopped on the 24 Metro to Central Station, found the Nord Amsterdam Coffeihaus Tourist Center to purchase tickets to Keukenhof. I asked for a bus ticket, however, apparently got a train ticket. I didn't know, and made my way to the Muzeumplein to catch the bus to the airport. The bus driver said he'd never seen my ticket before (hint #1) but allowed me on. It was a long ride to the airport with many stops.
I got to the airport and walked around but couldn't find where the busses picked up (the bus that I needed, anyways, there were lots of busses around!) A very nice man walked me over to where the bus was, and I got on without any issue (this time!) I had gotten a combo pass which included the express bus to/from the gardens and the garden entry.
The gardens were magnificent. It passed its peak a week or two ago but it was still really amazing. I guess it's in bloom for two months so I was lucky. You could wander this garden for hours, but alas, on little sleep and with sprinkles and a cold breeze, I walked for a couple of hours. There was a big musical instrument on the way in-- kind of like an old fashioned pipe organ that mays automatically. What was funny about it was the music: I heard Madonna and Lady Gaga, among other modern musicians!
I made my way back to the airport and waited for the bus back when I learned that I had a train ticket in my hand and not a bus ticket as I expected. Whoops! Thankfully it was easily rectified though a waste of money. I didn't feel like going into the airport to find the train when I knew where the bus was, so I purchased another ticket. I made my way back to the apartment, stopped for a quick sandwich at the wonderful bakery nearby on some amazing seeded bread and decided it would be a great thing to catch a nap, cursing myself for only bringing three sleeping pills. I thought I'd be tired out enough from walking over 8 hours yesterday, but no such luck apparently.
Tonight Michael wants to go to a yelp meetup which is gathering to discuss attending the Taste of Amsterdam in a couple of weeks. It's at a Michelin-rated restaurant called @samhound, and apparently there's a four-course tasting there that he thought sounds interesting so we'll check it out.
I've never stayed in an apartment when traveling internationally and I have to say I really like it. You miss some amenities, of course, but it's really nice to feel like a local and to be able to eat a small home-cooked something. That has consisted mostly of breakfasts, but when you eat out for over a week straight for all meals, it's nice to have the break.
I had stopped by the Market yesterday and picked up some blackberries, so I'm enjoying them as a snack. Oh, and the bakery is called Bakken met Passie in the Pijk. Yum.
*****
The yelp event was lots of fun and an all-night thing. We met for drinks and had a bevvie of lemoncello and prosecco with a mint leaf, yum! then some wine. We had decided to stay for the four-course tasting and it was quite good. A lettuce wrap with ginger, soy, oyster and some other yummy stuff, a spring roll, a tomato meatless burger which came in a little paper wrap like McD but was surprisingly good and catalina cream.. yum. Seriously. The people were very cool and we had a great time.
We hadn't planned to stay that late but we did, so we headed back. So much for plans, but all is good. Tomorrow is supposed to rain so will be a museum day. Then off to Paris!!
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