Another wonderful day in Amsterdam. Today we woke up early. Deb had already left to take the girls to school (via bikes) and Paul was just leaving for work. Sue & I took the time to get a bit organized and get ready for the day.
Later in the morning we walked down to the corner bakery for cappicino and pastry, then on to the The Albert Cuyp Market, a street market on Albert Cuypstraat in the Oud-Zuid district of the city. The street and market are named for Albert Cuyp, a 17th century painter. It was alot like going to a swap meet in Southern CA with a broader variety of venders - bread cheese, meats, olives, fruits & veggies trinkets, clothes, and fabric to name a few. Oh, yeah ... and kohlrabi. YUM! Many of the stalls were extensions of shops along the street.
After walking through the market we checked out the Heinekin Brewery but opted not to take the tour. Instead we hopped a tram and headed toward Rembrandt Square where we found a quiet cafe to have lunch. We ordered some lunch and a glass of local beer and enjoyed the sites and sounds of Amsterdam. One of the cutest things was the wagons filled with toe-headed nursery school children being pushed by their, tall, blond teachers. Have I mentioned Dutch people are very tall?
After lunch we hopped back on the tram and headed back to the Dixon Hotel to rest up for our big evening out - Paul's "Red Light" tour!
We head back out around 6:15, jump back on the tram and head back to central Amsterdam. First stop, In de Wildeman, an authentic Dutch pub located in an old distillery. After sampling of some great beers we move on to our second stop, Wynand Fockink, a liquer distillery established around 1679. We try the house specialty in apple flavor - WOW! Perhaps it's time to get some food in our bellies.
So we head back toward Rembrandt Square via the red light district - through the ethnic section, the "hottie" section, the transvestite section, and on and on. This is part of Amsterdam one always hears about, but there is so much more to this city!
It's 9:30 and our last stop is dinner at a Thai restaurant. Great food and great company! Suddenly it's 11pm and it's time to go home.
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