We are coming to the end of a lovely two week cruise. We docked in the morning in Amsterdam in a location that is too far to walk to the city center. All night long we were in a race with another Gate 1 boat to see who would get to the dock first. The second boat would have to dock alongside the first and it’s guests would have to walk through the first boat’s lobby to embark. We got there a little while before the other ship. This was the view from our cabin at sunrise. But once the other ship arrived, we had to close our curtains. What a view of the city waking up!
Gate1 provided transportation to and from the ship to the city center. Everyone jumped on the buses in the morning for a local guided tour of Amsterdam by bus, then on foot and finally on a 1 hour canal boat tour. We’ve been in Amsterdam a couple of times but having a guide provided a lot more information than wandering on our own. The canal boat tour was a great perspective.
Our little group did some wandering afterwards. We found a perfect spot to eat that met everyone’s requirements – outdoor seating, good food, close by (Dante Kitchen and Bar). Saturday was an unusually nice Indian Summer day and streets were packed with tourists and locals enjoying the sun.
Our cultural experience for the day was to visit the Amsterdam Museum – a history of the city. It was an odd museum. We all did learn a lot but it just felt like they were trying to hard to be cool and modern but the layout was confusing. It is built in a former orphanage. During the reformation, the city of Amsterdam declared itself a Protestant city and kicked out all the Catholics and took over their churches.
Back on the ship, we sat on the sundeck until the temps dropped. Then we all headed to our cabins to start getting ready to leave – packing, paying ship’s bills, handing out tips, and saying goodbyes.
At dinner, our little group started the meal with some self deprecating toasts. David toasted himself for being able to keep up with the busy agenda and only getting a little sick. Me for thinking up trip and making it all come together. Bill toasted the group for getting along so well with no conflicts except when Maria told David to stop whining about his cold! We recognized Bill for being the bird dog. He is a fast walker and would lead the way on our city wanderings, even if he had no idea where he was headed. Cynthia was toasted for writing six chapters in her book and being the shopping diva and Pat the most stylish dresser! Bonnie would get the award for being the sickest but hanging with us as much as possible.
The excitement for the evening was health related. Bonnie was still sick and had traipsed around with us all day. She finally agreed to see a doctor recommended by our Australian friends Jim and Jennifer. They actually make house calls to the ship after hours. Bill thought he was done for the night in his PJ’s at 9pm when he learned he had to go fill Bonnie’s prescriptions. And the pharmacy closed at 10pm. The ship had called him a taxi. I gave him her credit card, the prescriptions and a phone that only had 15% power charge. But no map and no contact info for the ship. So the taxi driver dropped him off “near” the pharmacy because there was no street parking nearby. By the time Bill got the prescription filled, the original driver was gone – the one who knew how to get back to the ship. So he found another driver but couldn’t tell him exactly where to go. Eventually they found their way to the ship. Lesson learned – don’t wait until the 8pm the night before an international flight to get medical attention! And take a map, money and a phone when you leave the ship.
Such a mix of new and old architecture throughout the city.
Sunday morning we all say goodbye. Maria, Bill, Cynthia and Bonnie heading back home. Pat and David meeting their son Christopher in Amsterdam for a few days. David and Christopher will continue their travels to Copenhagen, Berlin and Munich for Octoberfest. Pat heads back to work on Tuesday. All in all a great trip was the group concensus!