So That Happened

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Ten

June 3, 2005

The last day of my European summer tour!  While I was extremely sad about the trip's inevitable end, I was also kind of glad to go home. 

Morning in Amsterdam.  I took this from the living room window of Nara's apartment.

DUDE.  I was SO SAD when I learned that the Cat Boat was right by Nara's place and I totally missed it!  I wasn't a cat fan for the longest time until George (cat of Writer Ex) came along and enlightened me, and now I dig both the canines and felines. 

My awesome packing skills on display.  I can't believe I got everything I bought into just two bags for check-in.  Mr. Bear looks somewhat displeased at his temporary placement in the backpack.

Centraal Station.

Mr. Bear keeps a wary eye out on the runway.

Flying over the Atlantic.  Hello, Iceland!

How funny that this song came up during my trip home!

Note: I created a new category called Amsterdam 2005.  If you'd like to see my other posts on the trip, please go there.  Thanks!

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Nine

June 2, 2005

Sadness.  This was my penultimate day in Amsterdam.  I tried to take in more museums and Dutch life while I still could.

Outside the Museum Amstelkring, or Our Lord in the Attic.  Having always been interested in religion (even though I am a non-practicing Catholic), I was really looking forward to coming here. 

Cliffs Notes History Moment: In 1578 following the Protestant Alteratie (Changeover), Roman Catholicism fell out of favor in Amsterdam, and practitioners were forced to worship in secret.  So, from 1661 to 1663, Jan Hartman, the owner of this canal house and a Catholic, converted the attic into a secret church, complete with an organ, priest's quarters and a confessional.  It was eventually expanded into the attics of the two homes adjacent to the Hartman house.

The church is still in operation today.

Taken from the back of the church facing the altar.

Taken from the altar facing the church.  The organ is visible above.

The Oude Kerk, or Old Church, built in 1260.  It's a hard building to take a picture of. 

You should know that this is very close to the Red Light District, so close in fact that there were ladies standing in the windows with the red lights just to the right of me when I took this.  Yes, there were prostitutes RIGHT NEXT TO A CHURCH.  I KNOW!  (And no, I did not take a picture of them as it is illegal to take pictures of the women in the red light windows.)

Hundreds of people are buried at the Oude Kerk, and their gravestones make up the church floor.  Many are unmarked save for a symbol or year of death.  This is one of them.  It moves me deeply.

The grave of Rembrandt's wife, Saskia van Uylenburg.  A small standing light is posted at the foot of her grave, which is why it appears illuminated.

Photo Whiplash: Cockring, a gay club located not far from the Oude Kerk.  I read about this in one of my travel guides and knew my trip would be incomplete without a photo of the establishment.  No, I did not go in as it was closed. 

The Rembrandt House Museum.  It's terrific, and don't you just love his self-portrait?  It's on magnets and postcards as well.

Just a few objects inside Rembrandt's home. 

I'm afraid this photo doesn't convey how freaking steep Dutch staircases are.  They're practically vertical!  See the rope?  That's your banister.  Seriously.

Now, I love collections and antiques, and this display of old audio/video equipment at a flea market I came across while heading to my next destination caught my eye.  How could it not?  I love how all of the electronics are stacked just so, and I especially love how the green projector in the middle looks like it is smiling.  It's Pixar-rific!

It is somewhat hard for me to explain why, but this picture holds a very special place in my heart.  I was debating on whether or not to post it, being that it means so much to me, but in the end I thought it would be best to share it and not just keep it for myself.  I hope you like it.

The Amsterdam Photography Museum, or Foam.  As an aspiring photographer and avid fan of the artform, this was one of my must-see sites.

Note: Have you clicked on the link to the museum yet?  No?  Do so now and then come back here.  How bummed am I to be missing out on the photo exhibit of pole dancers?  SO BUMMED.

I did some rule-breaking and took this self-portait inside.  Soon afterwards a security guard politely advised me that there was no photography allowed.  In Foam.  A PHOTOGRAPHY MUSEUM.  I know why and all, but still, I thought that was pretty funny.

I was tired of walking (I was covering over ten miles a day, y'all) so I hopped on a boat for a canal tour of the city. 

An artsy-looking houseboat that reminded me of Venice.  California, not Italy.

 

One GORGEOUS houseboat.  LOVE.

Another view of the Anne Frank House.

The Dutch equivalent of the front yard of a frat house.

That's Justin, Mike, me, Nara and Doei out on the town after dinner.  I love this picture.  Thank goodness we found someone on the street that could handle a camera.

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Eight

June 1, 2005

This was the second of my "Try to See as Much as Possible" days in Amsterdam. 

 

The Rijksmuseum.  Loads of Rembrandt, including The Night Watch, an immensely large painting that just takes your breath away.  Stunning.

The Concertgebouw, considered one of the best concert halls in the world.  Alas, I did not attend a concert here due to time constraints.  I'm still kicking myself over it.

One part of a lovely grassy area between the Rijksmuseum and Concertgebouw.  It is reminiscent of The Mall in Washington, D.C.

 

The Van Gogh Museum, located within walking distance of the Rijksmuseum.  How convenient!  I liked this museum much more than the Rijks, if I may say so.  The Egon Schiele exhibition knocked me out. 

I purchased two posters from the store and when I returned home and opened the poster box, there was only one.  Grr!  I sent an e-mail to the museum store explaining what happened and that I would like a second poster shipped to me, and within three hours I received an e-mail from the manager, who apologized profusely and guaranteed a poster would be shipped out (free of charge) tout suite.  Sure enough, it arrived in less than a week.  I was SO impressed. 

I love me the buskers.

Scenes from the Flower Market, or Bloemenmarkt.  I was as happy as a clam here.  Just look at those tulips!  I wanted to take bunches of them home so badly.  Sigh.

There is a Christmas store at the market.  LOVE.

Heh.  You won't see this at the Home Depot.

Nara's place.  The shower and toilet were in actual closets.  Hee.

I tagged along with Nara for dinner with his co-workers, and we headed over to De Gieter for drinks afterwards.  It was like any other college pub, except this place was populated with hyper-photogenic Dutch students.  It's good for a pint with friends.

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Seven

May 31, 2005

This sign was near the exit of the Pancake Corner.  I love it.

Breakfast at Nara Huis (Nara House).  Mmm, muesli.

Photo Whiplash: One of the public urinals RIGHT NEXT TO A CANAL.  I'm just sayin'.  Sorry, ladies, but these are for men only.  We'll just have to take our business inside. 

Yay!  We're having lunch at Wagamama!  I love this place.  I've been to the London location and now the Amsterdam location.  They should really get on it and open up some places in the U.S.  Seriously. 

(Aside: Not long after my trip I went to a sushi place for lunch and happened to be wearing my Wagamama t-shirt.  The waitstaff and chefs all got a big kick out of it.  Why?  I was told "wagamama," translated loosely, means "stubborn."  Heh.)

Yum.  (In case you wondered, I took a picture of every meal I ate while abroad as suggested by my friend Pavan.  It is really a great way to memorialize your trip!)

I HATE cilantro.  H-A-T-E it.  It is EVIL.

Street chess players at Max Euweplein just outside Wagamama.  Read more about exalted Dutch chess player Max Euwe here.

Everyone takes a picture of wooden shoes when in Amsterdam.

We couldn't go to the Royal Palace due to "circumstances."  Color me intrigued.  Just what kind of "circumstances" are they talking about?

This woman had two kids plus assorted...furniture? in the front cart and a third child in the back seat, all without helmets and (possibly) untethered.  If I saw her in L.A. doing this, I'd think she was a terribly unfit mother and that the Department of Protective Services should pay a visit.  However, I saw her in Amsterdam and not L.A., and so I thought that she and her brood looked just charming and how strong must she be to bicycle everywhere with all of that weight?  So strong.

Nara and I took a tour of the Westerkerk, or West Church.  Opened in 1631, the Westerkerk still holds regular services and is where Rembrandt is buried.  The exact location of his grave is unknown.

These are just some of the 50 church bells still in operation.

Nara and I near the top of the church tower.  This photo was taken by Linda, our tour guide and the most naturally beautiful woman I've ever seen in my life.  Ladies, you'll understand when I say that she didn't even have to try to be pretty with makeup or a fancy hairdo - she just was.  My God. 

Nara, needless to say, was in love.  Not only was Linda gorgeous, she was also really nice, knew all about the church's history and answered all of my questions patiently.  I was so flummoxed by her beauty that I couldn't even ask her if I could take a picture of her with Nara, even though I'm sure she would have said yes because she was nice and seemingly had no idea about how she looked or of its effect on others. 

As for Nara, he too lost his game and didn't give Linda his business card.  We're losers.

The view from above.

The view from below.

I partook in some pommes frites afterwards to comfort myself over the harsh realization that I will NEVER look as effortlessly beautiful as Linda. 

At least my bag looked cute. 

The frites, by the way, were excellent.

One of my favorite "Come to Amsterdam!" shots.  For lack of a better word, this picture is twinkly to me.  It's the way the sun is shining through the trees.

It's Harlem, the restaurant where I had my first Dutch meal!

OH...

 

...MY GOD.

The entrance to the Anne Frank House.  This was my favorite part of the entire trip.  The museum is worth the cost of a trip to Amsterdam alone.  I know this will sound trite, but it is a humbling and awe-inspiring experience to walk through the famous "secret passage"' to the apartment where the Franks, the Van Pelz family and Fritz Pfeffer hid in secrecy for so long. 

Most remarkably, the walls of Anne's bedroom have been preserved, and one can still view the  pictures of movie stars and (then) Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret she herself pasted to those walls all those years ago.  You will also see the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award won by Shelley Winters for her portrayal of Mrs. Van Daan in 1959's The Diary of Anne Frank. 

The museum is a simply amazing place.  I wish everyone could go there. 

I love the sunflowers.  Now she has no problem finding her bicycle!

That is an awesome houseboat. 

Another shot of the Anne Frank House.  Otto Frank's business was located on the ground floor (note the dark green doors), and the Secret Annex was upstairs.

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Six

And now for something completely not list-related...

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May 30, 2005 </MTV Diary voiceover>

This was a big travel day - we drove from Cologne to The Hague (shout-out to Erin!) and then back to Amsterdam.  Let's go, shall we?

German billboards are weird.

My last free meal before leaving the Dorint Sofitel.  Don't think we didn't stuff ourselves silly or that we didn't take some baked goods for the road.

The Burger King drive-thru menu in Germany.

The Hague (or Den Haag), straight ahead!  I was SO excited to go here.  I've always had an affinity for the United Nations (the seed was planted early in a high school civics class), so it was imperative that I pay a visit to the International Court of Justice, the UN's chief judicial body.  I was very happy to know that Nara and his colleague who joined us for the ride back to Amsterdam, David (heretofore known as Doei - pronounced 'dewey' - how he got the nickname is another story), were willing to check out the Hague, too.

After a pit stop at a gas station for maps and a stop at the tourist center for even more maps and Den Haag souvenirs (okay, that was just me), we made our way through the somewhat confusing streets and found the International Court of Justice - hooray!  (You can read more about the court here.)

We pulled into the delivery entrance (you can see the FedEx truck just beyond the gate) and hopped out of the car for some quick picture-taking.  I was convinced that we were going to get busted for doing a drive-by and that we'd be locked up in THE HAGUE (just like in the movies!) but nothing of the sort happened.

The post you see in the foreground bears a sign reading "May Peace Prevail On Earth."  Dig it.

Here I am grinning like a crazy person and throwing a peace sign in front of the ICJ. 

My boys Doei and Nara.

This is kind of sad.

I just love the name of this restaurant.  Sadly, we didn't eat here.  Erin, you may have to do some recon for me and check this place out when you go to Den Haag, okay?  Thanks in advance!

I love this picture.  It's very "empty chairs and empty tables," isn't it?

Watering cans.  This is really one of my favorite pictures.

We ate lunch at Greve, a restaurant that looked like it held some pretty happening music nights, judging from the notices I saw in the windows.  I just liked how this man looked completely wrapped up in his newspaper and how he had his hand resting on his belly just so.

We were back in Amsterdam when I took this picture.  You KNOW Snoop has to love coming here.  Fo shizzle.

You'll never see someone on a multi-speed mountain bike in Amsterdam.  Everyone uses these beater bikes that look like they were previously owned by messengers who ferried memos of great importance during the war.  I still don't know how they can tell their bikes apart because they all look the same. 

Amsterdam at night.  Nara and I were desperately hungry (okay, I was desperately hungry) and we were on the hunt for a place that was still open.  Happily, our quest for food took us to...

...The Pancake Corner in the Leidseplein, home of yummy pancakes and satellite television so Americans could watch live baseball games in the middle of the night.  Hee.

I finally got dinner at 11:30 p.m.  See how health-conscious I was with my grilled cheese sandwich and poffertjes (the Dutch equivalent of silver dollar pancakes) served with whipped cream?  SO HEALTH-CONSCIOUS.  What?

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Five

I paid a brief visit to the Cologne flea market, where I came across this wedding dress for sale. 

Nara was working the big NFL Europe game between the Cologne Centurions and the Rhein Fire, which was promoted as Die Mutter Aller Schlachten.  (The Germans have really taken to American football.  Who knew?) 

On Game Day the RF fans took this huge party ferry down to Cologne.  Here are just two shots of the madness and excitement.

Why, hello, Random German Guy and Rhein Fire Fan Who Posed For My Camera.  How you doin'?

On the field of the RheinEnergie Stadion.

The football game had all the trappings of an American game: American players, cheerleaders, manic fans, you name it.  However, I saw one thing that I'm sure I'll never EVER see at an NFL game at home:

A GAY PRIDE PRE-GAME SHOW.  I AM NOT KIDDING.

I ran into Mario (owner of the previously mentioned Neideck) and Chef Igor at the game.

The smallest car I have ever seen in my entire life.  This was taken in the parking structure of our hotel.

My bean and cheese burrito at a local Mexican restaurant.  It had green beans.  No, I don't know why.

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P.S. I didn't even realize that I had spelled a word wrong in the post's title until much later.  I am not thinking clearly, am I? 

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Four

 

It's Bob Ross!  With Dutch subtitles!  Sweet.

Nara and I drove to Cologne for the weekend.  He worked and I tagged along because, hey, free trip to Cologne, you know?

Hee.  "Ausfahrt."  I'm twelve.  (By the way, it means 'exit.')

The Cologne Cathedral, or Dom as it is more commonly known.  Neither words nor my photo do it justice. 

When I finally got to the Dom, I had walked about five miles.  It was hot, I was still adjusting to the time change and was cranky, and my energy started to lag. 

The very first thing I heard upon walking up the Dom's steps was these buskers playing Vivaldi's Four Seasons, which is one of my favorite classical pieces.  It's hard for me to explain, but at that moment, in the shadows of this stunning church and with the air filled with beautiful music,  everything sort of fell into place.  I no longer felt cranky or tired or out of my element.  I was happy, peaceful and curiously light, and my heart filled with joy and my eyes with tears because I became totally aware of where I was and, most importantly, who I was.  For the time being, things just made sense. 

I was exactly where I needed to be.

Yes, I bought the group's CD.  It's one of my iPod playlists.  Whenever I listen to it, I remember that moment of clarity, and I smile.

This was taken near the top of the Dom's tallest spire.  The ascent to this point was up a single staircase which was very narrow, crowded, hot and vertigo-inducing.  It is definitely not for the faint of heart!

See?  High up.  It was totally worth it, for just look at that view! 

The timeworn stairs leading to the top of the spire.  I took this picture on the way down.

The sign at the ticket counter.  Caveat emptor.

Outside the Dom. 

Outside H&M!  I love you, H&M!

If you're in Cologne and looking for a great place to eat, I highly recommend Neideck.  The owner, Mario, is a delight, and the food - prepared by chef Igor - is off the hook.  I can only hope that our waitress, Zoe (a lovely German woman who spoke English with an Australian accent due to her years of schooling Down Under - crazy, I know), is still there, charming accent and all.

I can't not love a place called Bastard.

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P.S. It looks like two major newspapers are mocking me today, what with the cover story on Amsterdam in the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times piece on Cologne. 

Fine.  BE THAT WAY, NEWSPAPERS.  Mock me, why don't you?  GOD.

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Three

The view from Nara's apartment, taken at 10 a.m.

Breakfast (ahem) at The Pancake Bakery.  Mmm, pancakes.

The Anne Frank statue, located just around the corner from the Anne Frank House.

Impossibly cute Dutch children at play.

My "Come to Amsterdam!" postcard photo.

Impossibly cute Dutch adults at play.  I am positively taken with the idea of having get-togethers on a little boat with food and drinks. 

The view from Nara's apartment, taken at 10 p.m.

Hee.  "A'dam-West."  Never mind the sort-of-creepy bloody handprint.

Hmm, do I want a Happy Meal or a Verrrrry Happy Meal?

Amsterdam Revisited, Part Two

I had been in Amsterdam for about three or so hours when I took this picture at 8:13 p.m.  I was on my way to dinner with my friend Nara's co-workers at a place called Harlem, a soul food restaurant (!!) in Jordaan, a neighborhood which he described as "kind of like Melrose."  It was, by the way. 

The menu.

The Finger Lickin' Chicken was yummy, and pretty!  See?

Amsterdam Revisited, Part One

Aw.  On this date one year ago I began my European Summer Tour 'with stops in Amsterdam and Cologne.  It was my second trip across the pond and I was a bundle of emotions - excited at the prospect of getting new stamps in the passport and seeing brand new places, stressed because I of course tried to do too much right before leaving (like work a full day at the office - what was I thinking?!), you name it.

But really, I just couldn't wait to get out of town, and neither could my keeper of secrets and faithful travel companion of 20-plus years, Mr. Bear.

Here he is taking a breather at the gate before boarding our plane at LAX.  Isn't he cute?  Check out his snazzy tartan bow tie, a tribute to his presumably Scottish heritage.

(Aside #1: I've decided to post a photo a day from the Europe trip.  We'll see if I get off the stick and actually put a proper album together for your viewing pleasure.  It's not like I don't have photos - I took over 800! - but I wouldn't put y'all through the pain of looking at all of them, because that would be just mean.)

(Aside #2: This is my 300th post!  Imagine that!  I feel like I should do something to mark the occasion...like have CAKE.)