We took off on Friday afternoon. We decided to forgo the $25 taxi and take the metro instead - it was my first time, though Katsu takes it every day for work. It worked well, until there was a delay on our second line and then the metro was totally packed and we were standing with the kids and stroller and our bags - 1 diaper bag, Katsu's backpack, Andrew's backpack, a very large backpack luggage, 1 roller luggage, and my poster. We figured we were going to be hauling it over Holland - why not start now?
Our flights mostly went off without a hitch. We flew to Memphis where our flight was delayed 1 hr, but left probably at least 1.5 hours late. We ate a lot of good barbeque while we waited, so it was fine. Andrew and Seth both slept most of the flight to Amsterdam. Andrew was very excited about watching movies and eating food, but he pretty much slept through it all. Just as well, as there was only a large viewing screen for the whole place. I even managed to sleep a little on the plane, which is basically a miracle for me. Those little neck pillows really do work wonders. When we got there, Andrew wanted to go on another plane ride!!!
We took a train to Amsterdam - this was kind of a pain as no where in Holland can you use a credit card to buy train tickets. But, in addition, you can't use cash, even coins, at most of the kiosks. So you have to buy them at the desk and that costs extra, but there's not much else that can be done about it. So, un-tourist friendly.
We walked with an enormous amount of cash from the train station to the apartment we were staying at. We had to pay cash upfront everywhere we stayed this trip and it was kind of a pain. The apartment we stayed at was great. It was on the prettiest canal in Amsterdam (according to our guide-book even), right around the Joordan area, and right across from a park. On the first floor - which is a HUGE plus in Holland with itsy-bitsy teeny tiny stair cases. We had a fridge and microwave and a kitchen table, but it was like one very large room with a sofa, double and single bed on the main floor and another double bed on the loft. The bathroom had a tub as well, which was nice. The rate was kind of expensive for just our family, but we shared it with Katsu's brother Kiyo, his wife Hiroko, and their 3 month old son Shutaro, and then it was a good deal for Amsterdam (which has VERY expensive hotels!!!). It was a little crazy having 3 kids under 3 in basically a large studio apartment - trying to be quiet and get them all asleep and then talk in the evening ... plus jet lag for our kids, was quite challenging.
The apartment:
View from the Apartment:
After getting settled, we were off. We walked to the North Market which was having a pricey, but yummy, Organic street market. We bought some cheese and fruit and bread, and then about 45 minutes later, we finally got to Vondelpark and ate it. The park seemed smoky and dirty to me, but we didn't explore too much. We then bought a Holland Pass, which gets you in free to a few attractions and then discounts on a whole bunch of others, which turned out to be a great deal for us.
We then visited the Rijksmuseum. Overall, the kids are pretty good at art museums as long as we don't keep them longer than about 45 minutes. Andrew does pretty well, especially if we buy postcards or have pictures for them to find. Seth got pretty fussy so I had him wave "hi" to each of the paintings, which kept him moderately entertained. The museum is under extensive renovation, so only the greatest hits were on display. They had a great Dutch collection, of course, and not only still lifes (which I hate). I especially liked the Vermeers they had on display as well as the Rembrandts, though I don't really see what is so fascinating with the Night Watch.
The under lots of construction Rijksmuseum and playing outside afterward:
We took a long nice walk home. I just loved all the canal houses and canals - it was so pretty! The tiny stairs in canal houses probably wouldn't have been as charming (Andrew comments everytime we climb up the stairs in our building here in St Louis - big stairs!). The weather was cool and windy most of the time we were there, which I loved.
Andrew & Katsu went to explore the park (and wait for Uncle Kiyo and co to arrive, since we weren't sure if they knew exactly where we were staying) once we got back. They came back to the house earlier than I expected with Andrew having blood running down his face. The park was sandy and he fell and busted his lip and nose, poor boy. Thankfully, the bleeding stopped after not too many minutes and he just looked lovely for the rest of the week. Kiyo arrived and we got groceries from the grocery store, ate, took baths, and slept.
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