Amsterdam

After we alighted from our river cruise we walked to our hotel, conviently located close to the docks and the central station. That afternoon we went for a walk around the centre of the city to orientate ourselves and DH directed me to the local flea market. I had fun here and bought a couple of fur hats and a frida bag. It has been nearly 12 years since we have been to Amsterdam, it all feels the same.
The canals are lovely, there are more bikes than ever, we spent quite a few hours exploring and in the evening met Alex and Cara for dinne to have a traditional Dutch meal of meatballs, beetroot mashed potatoes and sauerkraut mashed potatoes, here we will part they are off to Aaken, Berlin then Austria for skiing, we will spend the next three days in Amsterdam.

 I found Petra Prins patchwork shop, sadly it does not open until Wednesday, which
is the day that we leave, was happy with window shopping, looks like a nice shop.

A colourful bike adorned with the rubber Duckie, apparently a Holland invention.

This was on our harbour cruise which we did Sunday morning we spent a pleasant hour cruising on the canals.This hotel has a swing on the top, pay $20 euro and you can swing out over the roof.

Just some of the nice buildings in the center of Amsterdam 

This is a photo of the seven canal bridges, apparently one of the most photographed spots in Amsterdam 

Sign telling me , no shopping!

The main monument in the square.

My flea market.

Our visit to the Van Museum, we spent a few wonderful hours enjoying the art, dreams and history of Van Gogh 

One of the many canals.

Patchwork shop, ce la vie

DH and I had a photo opportunity in the museum shop.

Moco museum, contemporary art..

More amazing sculptures in the city center.

Our canal boat.

Canal cruise.

Anne Frank statue, we did the Anne Frank experience, amazing  where  they hid for 2 years, you can only buy the tickets online and try to buy in advance as it is a very popular tour, well worth the visit, as we visited Austwitch in May last year this was poi’int to us as This was where Anne was killed.

A portrait of Anne Frank, a 14yr old girl who wrote diaries about her time in hiding.

No explanation needed this is what is readily available in Amsterdam, yes you can smell it especially when walking past the coffee shops..

Rembrandt’s corner.

Bikes galore.

Yes the famous $80,000,000 sunflower painting, I felt quite privileged to be so close to this painting.

Entry to the Anne Frank house.

Quite busy in Amsterdam 

 This statue of boy and rabbit was at the Moco museum.

Religious statues on front of buildings

Christmas is over, so all fresh trees just get thrown in the streets 

Egg, Moco museum 

Pretty mosaic arcade 

No we did not visit the dungeon 

Snappy dresser

This is the Amsterdam eye,  View from our hotel window.

Holland you have been a treat

More monuments to noble men

Museum platz 

Gardens in museum district 

We spent a few enjoyable but very busy days in Amsterdam, the weather was pleasant, about 8degrees,with a little rain, we loved the food and window art displays, tomorrow we fly to Malta,  ore adventures to follow.

Cologne and Amsterdam

We arrived into Cologne in the afternoon, which is famous for its awe inspiring catherderal. We are doing a short city tour and then having some German tapas at a brewery.
Koan as it is known in Germany is the fourth largest city and sits on the banks of the Rhine, it has a population of just over 1,000,000.
Cologne Cathedral was built in the homage of the three kings also known as the three wise men.

A little trivia...at the beginning of the 18Th century, Italian expatriate Johann Maria Farina (1685-1766) created a new fragrance called Eau de Cologne, water from Cologne and named after his new residence Cologne. It is still produced today by the Farina family.

 We attended the winter market, I bought a sheepskin and leather hat

One of the famous bridges in Cologne

Inside the cathedral 

The Cologne Cathedral 

Inside.

Picturesque shop fronts.

The stairs leading to the square.

Moiac floor in the cathedral 

Stained glass window 

The weather was cold with light rain, we visited the winter market, had some great tapas and beer then made our way back to the boat, for tonight we dine at the chefs table, and partake of 6 courses.

We sailed overnight and reached Amsterdam mid morning, after lunch we took a tour to !Zaanse Schana typical Dutch village with preserved windmills.

Decorated bike, the Dutch did invent the rubber Duckie..

This house is on a lean.

Zaanse Schans village with the windmills..

Far too big..

Nice windmills

Lovely in the evening

Lots of clogs

Out and about in Amsterdam

Statues

Walking the streets

My flea markets

A clog making demo.

Exploring Chinatown in Amsterdam

Dutch village below with goats who were very friendly.

Cheese making demo.

Saturday we all leave our boat and we will spend the next three days in Amsterdam, then off to Malta.