From Amsterdam to Iceland, June-July 2017

AMSTERDAM
Tuesday, 21 June, 2017
The Amsterdam Museum is a must  so we go there.  I follow obediently  the historical  path from settlement  to modern Holland while Naomi and Rachel  discover a fashion exhibition. 'Wonderful' both say. The highlight  of today  though is the Begjinhof,  a housing project set up in 1346 . The stylish houses, perfectly maintained are set in a perfectly cared for, serene, garden.  We walk along the winding path, admire , take photos. The old plaques which have been saved from demolished houses indicating ownership are  worth a close look.

Beguinage

 and a first lodger

 the oldest house

 visitors

 old plaques

 We discover a stationery shop selling old and new writing tools. We are in Holland after all

Wednesday, 22 June, 2017

Anne Frank  house for Naomi and Rachel and walk along the canal for me. Lunch at 'prince'is special, not because of the sandwiches but because it is in an old  wooden house with prints to match.  Rembrandt might come in for a pint. Naomi and Rachel decide to climb the Westerkerk, to admire the view. I admire their determination and sit on a bench outside the church. I have a magnificent view too.












Dutch cats

,We find out how Dutch people care for stray cats; They  house them in a boat. People are encouraged to adopt a cat and pay a donation

Tuesday, 23 June, 2017

Our last day here but we make  good use of it. Naomi and Rachel go paddling down the canal - a delightful  experience they tell me-  while I visit the Dam, a central place, mentioned as a 'must see' in guide books. It might look better without the crowds. Also, the Royal Palace is closed. Dinner here  is special though, with  dishes changing daily and not written in a menu.
It starts raining, hard. We are off the next day.

Oh, Amsterdam

We  take a night  cruise and admire those magnificent building all lit up and those seven bridges all in line behind each other. Pity my camera doesn't  work in the dark


ROTTERDAM


Thursday, 23 June, 2017

To Rotterdam by train
We  have one day here and decide to visit The Windmills - since we are in Holland.
The weather is  still fine, we take  the boat that will take us to the  Windmill  Village. Pity we cannot spend more time here, we have time for only one windmill visit. We climb the  winding stairs, study the  furniture and try to see ourselves living this life. I would like to visit more windmills, walk along the canal...we get to the boat just before it leaves.

Life in a  windmill

From Amsterdam to Iceland, June-July 2017

Saturday, 18 June, 2017
Out trip doesn't start well; there is a delay of  4 hours for our flight with Southern China. Due to bad weather. So we walk in the airport and wait. SC did not offer even any refreshments , so we start our holiday by being (at least me) resentful.
My feelings towards CS do not improve during the flight; the doll like, lookalike stewardesses have very limited English, are not very friendly (maybe there is a language problem) the food is the worst possible and the entertainment   disappointing; there is a choice of movies but the sound is  poor and the subtitles Chinese (simplified)

Sunday, 19 June, 2017.

Amsterdam, Movenpick City Hotel.
The hotel is very elegant but definitely not central, despite a sign which says '6 minutes of walk'. We have no choice and start our holiday with a walk  to the Central Railway  Station  and from there along the canal. It is a long walk but the sun shines, people (lots of them) smile, there are flowers all around.  We end up in  an Asian district where   we sample some  food an meet a local cat (of course).

Monday, June 20, 2017
Time to start our tour in earnest.  At the tourist bureau we buy tickets for everything Amsterdam has to offer; boat rides along canals,  tickets to museums, food and water.  We sail along old and beautiful houses, listen to their story and arrive at the Rijn museum.  I have seen the pictures before and I can look for   my favourites and discover new ones to like.  We split; Naomi is taking Rachel on her  journey of discovery and Rachel, independent person, selects to admire the less famous.

Nice ship

The famous 'Watch'

This is a hammock, for the sailors to sleep 

I still like  Rembrandts's The Jewish  wife



We cross  to the cafeteria, eat on bizarre  roundabouts and arrive at the Van Gogh museum.
Lots of  paintings re now in Melbourne but they are not missed here. The exhibition is a  feast of shapes and colours, as only Van Gogh could  create

 The famous (among so many) 'Potato eaters'

 and The Irises

A sketch which lets me into his mind

Exhibit 'Rachel'

 It was hard  to get away so we miss the return boat. Just as five  years ago.

Thursday, 12 May, 2016

Last view of the Rockies

Monday,  9 May, 2016

It was the search for presents which led me to get to know  this  town.   I couldn't find what I  needed in Bellingham  and a kind friend    took me on a two hour journey to a DFO.  We drove through 'the scenic way', a winding road  between  craggy  peaks and the ocean,

Then I got to know Fairhaven , the old, earlier  settled part of Bellingham.  There was the old bookshop, the Cultural Centre, the  ice cream parlour, the restaurant with the Chat Noir, all built on  winding roads leading to the seashore.

  Life seems so peaceful yet interesting. I wish  I could stay longer and join the local art group, the archeological society,  see the current play and be greeted  by friends as I walk down the streets

Bellingham

Thursday, 5 May, 2016

i have been  here before, even in spring or early summer, but I don't remember the country  so beautiful.  The grass is green without a trace of weeds and  rhododendron hedges  are blooming everywhere. All against the view of Mount baker and the Rockies covered in snow.

Saturday, 4 May, 2016

Vancouver

We arrive in Vancouver. I have planned to spend the day here before taking the train to Bellingham  in the afternoon.  The 'Hop on, hop off' tram will take me around the city and let me do some shopping at the Gaz Clock district.   The train stop is near the railway station near the Science museum. The  good weather continues and as I walk slowly towards the tram stop  I wonder at the beauty of the place. The mountains copped with snow   and the ocean stretching  far in the distance seem to be dwarfing the  huge skyscrapers (I am told that rents in Vancouver are  very hight; with such view no wonder).

Thursday, April 26, 2016

WE board the train and  I found  my little  cabin. The  bed is  made, and it occupies the whole  space, but  as it is  my private space I don't mind. I fall asleep  being rocked by the train (there are some  worrying  noises, it feels as if it is about to  fall apart), but as we get up in the morning and  look around we  see that all is well;  there are elegant dining rooms, a lounge -narrow, but  comfortable with plenty of room to sit,  a bar offering  drinks and food, some 'panorama' carriages  with  wide windows
I get  to know  my fellow travellers. There is a beautiful dark haired Indian looking lady, she  describes herself as  member of 'the first nation' and talks about the horrible Whites  who 'have taken everything from us'. She is on  the way to Edmonton , to meet her  husband who is  working for 'lots of  money' at  a refinery; 'a very dangerous  job'. She also talks about  her lovely children. They are  doing well, having overcome their hurdles. Then there are couples who have chosen train travel because they 'hate flying'. This particular pair would have find it  hard to sit in  an airplane  seat, they would need at least  two, each. They endear themselves to me as  they declare that 'Trump is the man to vote for, he will make America great again'.  Of course, most people are decent and pleasant to talk to; they travel by train because the enjoy a leisurely  journey, are  not pressed for time, and wish to admire those famous Rockies. Then there is a young  Australian, who is  really afraid of  flying.  He is  getting all sorts of advice from his fellow travellers regarding his problem. He works - interestingly-  in the computer games field; I would think that a person  familiar with gadgets will feel at ease in a flying machine.....
So we talk, eat, read. The Rockies have not come into view yet, they start after Winnipeg, where we have a long stop, long enough for us to have a conducted tour of the  city.  The sun is shining and we  get to see the city really well.   As we  walk around our  guide  talks about the rich cultural life of the city  and its bilingual  - most children are getting an education which makes them fluent in both French and English.  We start  with The Forks, the national historic site,  at the confluence of the Red and Assinboine  rivers. This  is now a very trendy area, with elegant shops, eateries , displaying some aboriginal symbols.  It is early in the morning though, and the place is  empty.

Aboriginal  symbol decorating  The Forts

We listen to  our guide as she talks about the multilingual character of Winnipeg. French is widely
used and most children are educated in both languages.
Our next stop is the Legislative Assembly, a splendid traditional  building build  in 1911. There are many symbols from the Bible, mythology, aboriginal  lore which are supposed to be hard to decipher. There is no mystery about the  statues of the two bulls guarding the entrance.

The Cupola

The next  stop is the Assinboine Park, which also houses the Zoo, which we can't visit. We only get to see a buffalo, one black and  a rare white one, through the fence.

We admire  the statues  in the  park. (theirs is the only presence; there are no people around.)

St.Boniface

I walk away with the impression of a city pleasant to live in, and very beautiful.