Our Last Day in Amsterdam!

Today was the very first time we've had 0 percent chance of rain here in Amsterdam. And so ... we bravely went forth without our rainwear ... and ... guess what? Yep. A sprinkle of rain found its way to us early in the day ... but afterwards ... it was nothing but warm and sunny and bright!

GROANS: We tried to get one of the last 20 percent of tickets that went on sale today for Anne Frank but, sadly, we were not successful. So, we opted to go to the Rijksmuseum before we met with family!!

GASPS OF AWE: It was really worth seeing! We preferred the works we saw here as opposed to Van Gogh. Maybe its just that I don't have a good enough eye, but there was a child-like quality to Van Gogh's work that is not as appealing to me as the work of Rembrandt. I guess ... each to their own ... but now I know my personal preference! John felt the same. Oh, and as we were leaving the museum, we heard a fabulous group of buskers playing some unique instruments! One of the staff said they'd been playing there everyday for the last four years! I got the sense that we enjoyed their music more than he did! 🤔

GRATITUDES: We were worried about having enough time at the museum because our Hop On Hop Off tickets expired at 11:30am. But ... they very kindly extended our tickets to accommodate our needs! Wow. We never expected concessions like this ... even though we are seniors! 😉

GASPS: We were shocked by the lack of traffic this morning ... both foot and vehicular. It was dead quiet. We are not sure if it was because it was early in the morning or because it was Sunday ... but we had not yet ever seen the city so quiet!! And, we couldn't help but notice the tilting and leaning forward of one of the buildings! Many of them are tipping sideways, but there are some that are falling forwards a bit! GAH!

GRATITUDES: After our time at the museum, we got to have the #1 rated fries in Amsterdam! You can choose as many sauces as you'd like! They were fresh cut this morning and they tasted like it!! Scumptiousness wrapped in a blue paper cone!! We thoroughly enjoyed them as we waited for our ride out to see more family in Vinkeveen! 

MORE GRATITUDES: And, it was such a delightful day meeting with John's mom's side of the family! Great conversation filled with oodles of laughter and lots of warm reminiscences! We got some beautiful photos of the canals in behind their homes! And ... had fun getting everyone into one family photo on the sofa! BTW ... the family sends their warmest regards to our daughters and their families!! 💌

We had a nice roasted 'kip' dinner (chicken) with Dick and Wil (who kindly drove us to Vinkeveen) on the way home and now we are back in our room waiting for space in the washing machine! We need to get packed up and ready to leave for Utrecht tomorrow morning. I have to say that I won't miss this room ... but ... the location was phenomenal!!

In the final analysis ... we have made the most of our time here (sans Anne Frank) ... and ... I have a fond appreciation for the beauty of the canals and the dutch pancakes and the croquettes ... oh and I forgot to tell you ... they have cream for their coffee! And good strong coffee at that! ☕

It's hard to fathom that we are half way through our journey at this point! We have seen four different countries and hope to see three more before we get home! We're packing lots of memories into our hearts with each and every destination❣

Sending love and hugs from our full hearts to yours ...k&jRead more