Having fallen in love with Belgium I felt a twinge of sadness as we boarded the train into the Netherlands. Although, I was amazed at how quickly our time had passed in Belgium I was excited to push onto our next country. Before departing on our trip we had done our homework and uncovered an unfortunate little secret of the Netherlands, many of the country's museums are closed on Mondays. While we were really anxious to see a number of museums in the Hague it was decided that this city would be most suitable for Monday. Our train tickets allowed us to hop on and off the train at various points of call in the country. Our Monday would be spent travelling to Amsterdam and hopping off the train to explore any places of interest along the way.Our first stop was The Hague, after a luggage storage debacle (there is nothing worse than hearing a ticket print but having no ticket appear... fortunately we were able to release our luggage at the end of our stay and didn't have to buy an entirely new wardrobe in Amsterdam... although that may have been fun..) we were ready to explore the city.
During our travels Richard has a very interesting way of keeping himself entrained, a little game called "pop quiz". This game occurs when Richard will randomly pull you aside with the words "pop quiz" followed by some terribly obscure question. A question that is highly unlikely you will know the answer to. He then gets to revel in the fact that he can inform you of the answer to said obscure question and mock your lack of knowledge the rest of the day. Apparently, Richard's brother and I are prime targets for this game. (Duncan.. two words: musical instruments. It's Richard's Achilles heel. He can mock you for not knowing the year in which the very first cobblestone was laid in the Hague's main square and you can mock him for believing cherubs play flutes. Who really wins in this situation?) This bird was part of the Hague's "Pop Quiz." If any of my American friends can identify this bird, you will not only greatly impress me with your ornithological knowledge but probably better the image of our people as a whole, no pressure.
After a whirlwind tour of the Hague we were to make one more brief stop before arriving in Amsterdam. Our friend, Antonie, had attended the University of Leiden and in his honor we decided to stop in Leiden. Within seconds of stepping off the train I was so happy we had stopped in the university town. The small city of Leiden is wonderfully charming with many waterways, bridges, bicyclists and a plethora of outdoor cafes. After a harsh winter the presence of sunshine had drawn many of Leiden's citizenship out to enjoy their city once more. The city was abuzz with students, walkers, bicyclists, diners and wanders like ourselves.
Joining the masses Richard and I settled down for a drink along the water's edge before departing Leiden. Being quite the beer connoisseur my travel companion sampled a wide variety throughout the Benelux odyssey. Always anxious to try something untasted Richard decided upon an unknown local brew, whereas my selection methods led me to something pronounceable. As the drinks arrived to our table so did tragedy. Richard's selection was in his words " a girl beer." Apparently light coloring and a lemon with a complimentary lemon press is womanly... Therefore, the beer did not quite live up to the established man code. A quick switch of beverages meant that I spent the rest of the afternoon pressing lemons while Richard observed the drinking habits of the Dutch men surrounding our table. Another round of drinks became necessary so that Richard could reclaim his masculinity and I could intentionally order a drink with a lemon press.. because, well, that turned out to be entertaining and womanly.
Amsterdam To-Do List--- Day One:
1. The Van Gogh Museum
2. The Rijksmuseum
3. Heineken Brewery
4. Torture Museum
5. Anne Frank House
Shockingly enough, we did manage to complete our to-do list! In addition to these five museums we walked much of the city and took in the many sites Amsterdam has to offer. While the Van Gogh museum and Rijksmuseum were impressive and are absolute "must-sees" when visiting Amsterdam, the best stop of the day was by far the Heineken Brewery. After having been so fiscally fortunate in Brussels the expense of Amsterdam came as a bit of surprise. In the morning alone we had shelled out 18 Euros a piece for admission at the Van Gogh Museum and another 18 at the Rijksmuseum. After the blow to our pocketbooks the price of admission to the brewery was daunting. Finally we decided that while it was expensive it was an opportunity that simply couldn't be missed. The high price of admission was certainly rewarded with an incredibly fun afternoon. The self-guided tour progressed through the stages of crafting a Heineken. This is shown through numerous displays, including a 4-D movie! Richard and I were placed into a room with ten strangers and watched a film that literally turned us into a Heineken. We were "stirred" "cooked" "brewed" "bottled" and "shipped" by having water showered upon us, hot lights thrust upon us, bubbles blown at us and bounced along on a ride. Following this movie/ride we had our first taste testing experience.
We learned all about serving and drinking the perfect Heineken. As a warning we are now a bit snobbish regarding our Heineken beer. During this tasting we learned that to appropriately drink Heineken one must take "manly sips" so as not to disrupt the foamy head, as it is that head that seals in the beer's flavor. We raised our glasses and Richard and I locked eyes as we said "proost" and took our first manly sip. In Dutch tradition it is essential that one retains eye contact while proosting and indulging in the first sip, otherwise it is said one will be plagued with misfortune in one particular aspect of their existence. After our first sip we were left to indulge in our drinks before continuing the tour. It is best on these tours to finish quickly so as to beat the rush of people to the next attraction. Hurrying from the room to the next room of the tour Richard quickly hugged me whispering "I'm so proud." Having little idea as to what I did to receive such a statement I prodded "For what?" To which I was told "You drank that beer faster than any woman in the room." Well, the guide did tell us to take manly sips. Mom, I'm sorry... at least we didn't go to Hard Rock!
I know many of you have been waiting anxiously for the story of Messy Richard. Well my friends, the time has finally come. You no longer need to be perched on the edge of your seats in suspense but can sit back and enjoy the karma that was certain to befall a particular individual. At the end of our tour we each received a pint of ice cold Heineken. This time I took the time to savor the drink and had quite a bit of beer left to finish by the time Richard had polished off his pint. Now, for some reason Richard and I drink liquids at an alarming different rate. Richard finishes the average cup of coffee in 8.5 seconds while I generally finish a cup in 8.5 hours. Because of this Richard will finish his beverage and around the 2 hour point of my indulgence begin drinking from my glass. As this time neared Richard reached to grab my Heineken glass. But, his grabbing resulted in spilling. And, not a little spill but a massive splash which catapulted off the table and walls onto the back of the man seated in front of us. Stifling my laughter I jumped to help Richard clean the mess and fled from the scene. As we stood at a stoplight the red finally had begun to fade from poor Richard's face. It was in that moment that I told him that I had really wanted to ask the table if it needed more beer or if it had had enough. Looking at me Richard began to explain how the spilling incident was really and truly my fault when he tripped in the middle of a very busy Amsterdam street. And, the trip wasn't just a small little shuffling of the feet but instead a trip where one has to fight desperately to regain balance. After making certain that he didn't fall and was okay I burst into laughter and continued to laugh for at least a mile down the road. After about 15 minutes of my incessant laughter I received the quintessential raised eyebrow look with an "are you finished?" I finally stopped laughing long enough to say how happy I was to have found someone so much like me, before I replayed the image in my mind laughing hysterically once more. It was at this moment Richard pushed me into the bike lane.
Speaking of bikes, they are everywhere in Amsterdam! In addition to having the standard driving lanes the roads in Amsterdam have bike lanes, which we mistakenly found ourselves walking in numerous times. The people of Amsterdam bike everywhere and lock their bikes onto any grounded surface. Much of our time spent in Amsterdam was spent pondering how Amsterdammers find their bicycles and whether or not a moped should ride in such a lane.
Our day finished at the Anne Frank Museum and we crossed the street for a quick dinner. Sitting at dinner we discussed the city and the effects tourism has had on the city's image. Wandering around the city throughout the day we had been exposed to innumerable tourist shops and attractions, almost all of which seemed to focus on the legality of pot and prostitution. While many argue that the Dutch's open-minded attitude regarding sex and drugs has led to their rapid advancement it is unfortunate that this is what they have become known for. While on the train into the city a Dutch man was speaking with tourists about the Red-Light District. He was stating the rapid decline in the area's appeal and the plans of diffusing the area into the city so that it is not so heavily concentrated in one area, an area which seems now to only appeal to the tourist population. While we admitted to sounding old and possibly boring we felt sorry for the city's populous and the stereotypical viewpoints many tourists seemed to harbor. While part of Amsterdam's appeal is in fact their liberal open-mindedness it is not the only aspect of note within the city. Fortunately, we were able to experience these other aspects of note seeing that Richard appointed himself moral director as well as navigator of the trip. Meaning, our time spent in Amsterdam was spent in museums and on canals rather than in coffee houses.
We finished our dinner and argument over Lingua Franca (It should now be extremely evident how fun of a couple we are!) and slowly made our way down the canals. While I greatly enjoyed seeing all the marvelous sites in Amsterdam walking along the canals that evening was wonderful and reminded me a bit of our walk down the Seine. While it is entirely cliche, it is always the smallest moments of these trips that I love and remember most fondly.
The next day our flight was scheduled to leave late in the afternoon. Because of this, we spent the morning exploring the Rembrandt museum, walking the streets of Amsterdam one last time and finally taking a canal cruise.
As we settled into our plane seats we spent a few minutes enjoying the peace and quiet of the plane before the Ryanair flight crew tried to sell us everything under the sun. I leaned over looking at Amsterdam one final time "I'm said it's over, Richard." "Well, me too but all good things must come to an end." As we turned off our cell phones and pulled out our books I, of course, had to debate this statement. "What about things with longevity such as your job or spouse... aren't those 'good things'" and as our plane left the tarmac we left Benelux with these ever so optimistic words "Let's be serious, you will retire and you will die."
Our good thing had come to an end but fortunately it can live on a bit longer in this blog.
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