Amsterdam Day 1

Amsterdam, Day 1 - Monday, July 11, 2016

Thanks to Gavin’s many months of hard time in China, and his stalker nature in looking for the absolute best possible frequent flyer tickets, he managed to secure us business class seats from SFO to Frankfurt for an amazingly low number of miles. Score! Our flight to Frankfurt was smooth and uneventful, and to pass the time during the 10 hour flight, we enjoyed a movie, some reading (I started the fascinating Diary of Anne Frank, in anticipation of visiting her secret hiding place in Amsterdam), and of course we slept. We had a couple hour layover before the short 1-hour hop to Amsterdam. We took a taxi to our hotel, The Marriott Amsterdam, and arrived around 7:15 PM. We settled into our room and decided to just dine at the hotel that evening, as we were exhausted and jet-lagged.

 After a steak and half-bottle of wine, I practically fell into bed and was asleep almost instantly, but my ever energetic husband had to roll out for an evening stroll to check out the lay of the land. Ewan watched the France-Portugal match, and went to bed disappointed to see Portugal win.

The next morning, we were all wide awake at 6 AM (typical on the first day after arrival). We were happy to get up for an early start, and headed to the hotel’s executive lounge to partake in our included breakfast buffet. After breakfast, we set out on foot, loosely following one of Rick Steve’s suggested walks into the Jordaan neighborhood. We headed in the direction of the Anne Frank house. We had heard that the lines were terribly long, and we had tried to purchase tickets online prior to leaving, but there were none available. We thought we would stop by to see if there was any chance of getting tickets. We were informed that all entries before 3:30 were for reservations only, but after that we could queue up with the masses. Gavin checked the website from his phone to see if any tickets had come available, but there was only one single spot that popped up. Bummer. So we went next door to check out the Westerkerk (Western Church) of which Anne describes hearing the bells in her diary. The Protestant church was light bright and airy, but very stark compared to many other European churches that we have been inside. There were no icons, no paintings, no stained glass, very few sculptures. There was however, a beautiful organ, that we had the pleasure to hear someone playing. One interesting tidbit: Rembrandt is buried here. 

From there we headed to the center of town, Dam Square. Along the way, Stalker Gavin continued to check the website for the Anne Frank House and as luck would have it, 3 tickets popped up for 2:15! Naturally, he pounced on them and we were excited to have a reserved entry time only a couple hours away. To pass the time until our entry, we continued to stroll around. Amsterdam is built on a series of canals, and there are lovely scenes of bridges, flowered window boxes, houseboats, and bicycles. Lots and LOTS of bicycles. In fact, there are special lanes specifically for bicycles and mopeds, and it can be downright dangerous trying to cross the street if one isn’t careful! Hundreds of bikers whiz by like race car drivers, and we found that we really had to be careful and really look every which way before crossing any street. 

The architecture in Amsterdam is very unique and characteristic with residences as well as businesses having very narrow facades, yet the buildings are all several stories tall adorned with interesting and ornate gables. The houses are all quite deep however, and though narrow in front, the buildings extend quite far back. The purpose of this is that it used to be that buildings were taxed according to the width of the front facade. Therefore, the practical and frugal Dutch kept the width small, but built up and deep to give themselves enough room. 

We cruised along the various canals, passed restaurants, souvenir stores, and many of Amsterdam’s infamous “coffee shops” (i.e. regulated marijuana dispensaries.) Given we had Ewan with us, we of course didn’t investigate further, but let’s just say there were a few places we passed where we were at risk of achieving a contact high. 

They sell goods other than coffee here...

We found a little restaurant off the beaten path where we had a light lunch, and then headed to the Anne Frank house museum for our reserved entry time. This is the actual house where the Frank Family (Anne, her older sister Margot, and her parents, Otto and Edith) hid for two years from 1942-1944 during the second World War before they were discovered and taken away to concentration camps. 

The unassuming facade of the Anne Frank House.

She was only 13 years old at the time that they went into hiding in the “secret annex” behind her father’s business office, along with another family of three, and a middle aged man who was a friend of her father’s. It was absolutely fascinating and sobering to see the space in which they lived for over two years, never able to go outside for fresh air. Eight people sharing a 1,000 square foot space, one toilet. I had read about 25 percent of her diary at the time we went, and that was enough to help me really appreciate the history and understand the struggles they faced. It is so unbelievable that such atrocities could have occurred in a lifetime not so far before my own. Over 100,000 Jews in the Netherlands alone were dragged from their homes, separated from their families, and sent to concentration camps to die. Of the eight people living in the secret annex, only Anne’s father survived the war. Anne and her sister Margot both died of disease in the camp. I left there with a heavy heart, but gained new perspective and appreciation of how truly lucky and blessed our lives are. 

After we finished touring the house, we were quite tired (and Ewan quite whiney, despite our attempt to appease him with ice cream!) after walking so much and so far, plus we had woken up so early in the morning. We headed back to our hotel for a much needed two-hour nap! We woke up quite hungry and combed Yelp reviews in search of a suitable, nearby dinner destination. We had heard several people recommend Indonesian food (given Dutch ties to Indonesia as a former colony) and we were intrigued by this popular cuisine. We were fortunate enough to find a restaurant called “Kartika,” with good reviews just around the corner from our hotel. I called and made an 8:00 reservation. The restaurant was just a five minute walk away, and we were seated promptly. I had read that a recommended way to sample this cuisine is by ordering a set menu known as a “rice table.” This consists, naturally, of rice, along with a collection of a dozen or so other small dishes of exceptional spice and exotic flavors of coconut, curries and such. It was fun to try so many different items: meats, stews, salads, vegetables, and sweets. Our waiter was absolutely adorable; so friendly and attentive. Even Ewan loved the food. With pleasantly full bellies, we walked back to our hotel to relax for the rest of the evening.