"Travel is very subjective. What one person loves, another loathes."- Robin Leach
Amsterdam, Holland - March 26, 2014
"Hallo!" (Hello In Dutch). Hello from the beautiful city of Amsterdam. Amsterdam is not the sunniest city in Europe. Luckily the beautiful yellow sun came out nicely when our plane landed at the airport at 9:00 a.m. We were smiling happily as we thought the California sunshine came along with us. We brought brightness to this often gloomy and rainy Holland. We were expecting rain, hailstorm, wind and snow to greet us. Surprisingly, it was an unexpected sunny welcome. Some very friendly English speaking Viking staffs were there to meet us. Then a courteous taxi driver in nice black suit took us to the waiting elegant limo.
The Remarkable VIP Or RED Carpet Welcome Trademark Of The VIKING Cruises.
FIRST DAY: "Hallo" And "Welcome Aboard" From The Viking Bragi! The New Revolutionary Viking Longships In Europe Have Received Acclaim For Their Innovative Design And State-Of-The Art Engineering. Their Red Viking Logo Was Striking Too. The Official Ship Color Is RED.
My Hubby And I Had Done About 13 Ocean Cruises So Far. We Thought Its Time For A River Cruise, W/ More Intimate Feel And Fewer Selected Passengers. This Was Our First Time To Do A River Cruise. We Booked W/ The "VIKING" Because Its One Of The Prestigious Companies In European River Cruising. Also They Catered Mostly To Americans And Canadians. Besides, Who Could Resist Their Tremendous Two-For-One Cruise Deal? Lets Go!
Inviting Lounge For Our Welcome Lunch. Viking Bragi's Interior Decors Is Simple, Modern Scandinavian Style.
Welcome To Viking Bragi's Bar! On A River Cruise, Complimentary Wine Is Served At Lunch And Dinner. For Non-Drinker Like Me, Sodas Like Diet Coke & Sprites Were Also Complimentary. Bottled Water Is Free. So Are The Gourmet Expressos And Cappucinos. You Only Get A Billing For Wines And Cocktails During Happy Hour.
A Glimpse Of Our Cozy And Simple Ocean View Stateroom.
Our Mini-European Style Bathroom W/ Glass Shower.
Inviting Bed W/ Fresh White Sheets & Pillows, Simply Accented W/ Gray Coverlet & Mini-Toss Pillows. Couldn't Resist Falling Asleep As Jet-Lagged Started To Set In. How Nice To Be Able To Lay Down On a Bed! Whoo-hoo! Had A Good Direct Flight W/ KLM. After 13 Hours Flight From LAX to Amsterdam, Who Doesn't Get Jet-Lagged? Enjoyed Only Two hours Of Sleep. Viking "Walking City Tour Of Amsterdam" Would Start Sooner In An Hour. Oh No! I Am Still Sleepy But Don't Want To Miss The Walking Tour.
TOUR 1: Amsterdam Is A Small But Beautiful City. The Best Way To Explore It Is By Walking Or Biking. When You Come To This City, The First Thing Your Eyes Notice- Trams And Overwhelming Number Of Bicycles. They Are All Over The City. It Seems That The Number Of Bikes May Exceed The Number Of Citizens Here. This is Amsterdam! Pedestrians Fear Bike-Riders. They Are The King Of The Street. So Watch Out! Be Mindful Of Them When Out In The Street!
Amsterdam Is Famous For Its Numerous Canals, Unique Architectures, Historical Monuments And Beautiful Houses. This Was Our Second Trip To This City. First trip Was During Our Grand European Tour In 1987. We Were Here For Only a Day. It Was A Fast Tour But We Covered The Highlights. Thirty Years Rolled On Since Our First Trip. How Wonderful To Be Able To Come Back W/ More Days To Explore! The "Second Time Around" W/ New Perspectives Were More Meaningful And Memorable.
With Love From The Beautiful City Of Amsterdam. Because The City Is So Small, Leisurely Walking Is Actually The Best Way To Get Around.
From Rhod W/ Love. Go Dutch By Hopping On & Off The Boat. Amsterdam Is Known As The “Venice Of The North” Because It Has So Many Canals, And A Canal Boat Tour Is A Great Way To See Some Of Them, Including The Four Main Ones – Singel, Keizersgracht, Herengracht and Prinsengracht – Which Are On The UNESCO World Heritage List.
While We Walked Around The City On Foot, We were Busy Photographing The Beautiful Gabled Row Houses Along The Canals. One Of The Many Beautiful Historic Houses.
Detailed-Oriented Architectural Beauties Among Many Row Houses Along The Canals. Staring At The Lovely Quirky Houses All Over The City, Many Of Them Are Crooked.
Remaining 16th and 17th Century Buildings. Still Standing Despite The Passing Of Centuries. The City Continues To keep Its Old Charms Intact By Not Allowing Any Big Skyscrapers In The City Center.
Strolling Along The Canals And Marvelling At The Bluish Surrealistic Picture Reflected On The Water.
A Nice View Of The The Row Houses Along The Canal. Many Of These Houses Were Build Extremely Narrow.
Rhod W/ The Perfect White Mini-Car To Drive Around The City.
Ebb At The Dazzling Dam Square Or Damrak. The Royal Palace On The Left Side
Rhod At The Dam Square W/ Royal Palace In The Background
The Royal Palace, The Most Elegant Building On The Dam Square
Grand Architecture Of The Amsterdam Central Station
Rhod In Front Of The Amsterdam Central Station. The Grand Architecture Was Quite Impressive. Our Walking Tour Ended Here. We Bade Bye-Bye ( "Doei" In Dutch) To Our Very Tall Dutch Lady Tour Guide. Then We walked Back To Our Ship Which Was Docked Nearby. River Cruises Are So Nice, Because The Ships Were Near The City.
I think In Every Country Something Is Wrong. And Amsterdam Is A City Known For Being Morally Loose. But As A Visiting Artist, I'd Like To Paint A Beautiful Picture of Amsterdam. OF Course, This City Has Great History, UNESCO Sights And Ambitious Cultural Life. We Came Primarily To Do An Art Pilgrimage. The City Has Many Positive Assets That More Than Cover Its Multitudes Of Sins. Although Many X-Rated Attractions Like The Coffee Houses And Red Light District Were Forbidden Fruits, We Couldn't Resist Being Curious. Not Wanting To Be Ignorant And Missed What's "Hot" At This Part Of The World, We Took A Short Peek-A-Boo! We Hid Our Halos For A Few Seconds. Yes, The Stories About The Red Light District Are True But I Don't Like To Elaborate.
"GOEDENACHT!" (Good Night In Dutch).
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