Amsterdam - Day 2

Worst sleep last night.  I was not smiling!  I think the bed was made in the stoneage because it felt like I was sleeping on a piece of slate. I tried putting pillows under my body because my hips were killing me.  That wasn't a success.  I gave up trying to sleep at 6:06 am.  I would like to hunt down the person on Booking.com whose review said the beds are comfortable!  When I look to reserve a hotel, I always look at reviews to see what people say about the beds.  Everything I read about comfortable beds was a lie!

I learned another reason having a European SIM.  Having data is important, especially if you aren't part of a tour group.  This morning the hotel's internet is down.  They are waiting for someone to restore it.  It is now 5:49 pm and no WiFi.  This means no TV either because it works through the internet.  The staff aren't sure when it will be restored.  They told me they have been too busy to deal with it.  I like to know I'm connected so I can use Google maps to figure how to get to different places easily. That's why having data is worthwhile.  I have learned, however, you don't need connectivity for your phone's alarm clock or for it to keep time.  I did an experiment using Cathy's phone to see if it worked.  Update @ 8:43 pm.  Still no WiFi.  Cathy checks every 25 minutes.   haha

Thanks everyone who commented on yesterday's blog.  It is appreciated.  Yvette,  it's so cool to know you and Mike had pancakes at the Schreierstoren too!

Yesterday, Cathy ordered eggs and toast.  She tried my pancakes.  She put icing sugar on them.  That's a thing here.  Today, she wants pancakes.  We'll look for another place to try them.  I put syrup on the part of the pancake I ate.  The syrup is different than what I am used to at home.  It has a strong molasses taste to me.  I don't particularly want to order pancakes again.  Today, we went for breakfast to another pancake house.  This one is called Original Pancake.  Cathy had a pancake.  I ordered a  scrambled eggs, cheese and ham omelet.  It was very good and inexpensive.  Another small; unassuming place.  It filled up quickly so it must be a popular place.

It's interesting how narrow cans of pop are here.  One can is only enough to fill a small glass.  I've posted a picture of the sugar used on pancakes.

We walked to where the President of the Republic of Korea laid a wreath yesterday.  There have been different honour guards standing beside it all day.

One of my must dos on this trip was to go to Cafe Scheltema.  It was closed the last time I was here.  Cathy and I went there today.  I wanted to see this Cafe because it is featured every week in the British TV series called Van der Valk.  The show follows a street smart and unapologetic Dutch detective as he navigates the lively and enigmatic city of Amsterdam, solving mysterious crimes using astute human observation and inspired detection.  It is one of my favourite TV shows.  I even went inside and asked if I could take pictures of the interior. The owner said sure.  Two Dutch women were having coffee and asked what I meant when I talked about the TV show.  The owner explained that his cafe is used as a meeting place for the characters in that show.  The cafe was decorated for Christmas.  During filming it isn't. 

As we were walking to the Cafe, we could hear music.  A fellow was standing in front of an electric street organ.  He was shaking a tin can to the beat of the Christmas song that was playing when we arrived.  A different song was playing when I went into stealth mode and took a video from behind a van.

After going to the Cafe, we hopped on the tram to go to the Jewish Museum as well as the Portuguese Synagogue.  The Jewish Museum is the only museum in the Netherlands to focus on Jewish history, religion and culture. The museum is located in a group of four historical Ashkenazi synagogues at the heart of the former Jewish quarter in the centre of Amsterdam.

It features the following themes: the role of religion and tradition, the links with Israel, the persecution of Jews during the Second World War, personal life stories and the mutual influence of Jewish and Dutch culture.

The suitcase in the next picture belonged to Leon A. A. Coen.  The summons to Westerbork transit camp described in detail the permissible luggage.   Each person was allowed one rucksack or case tagged with a name, date of birth and  the word "Holland".  Leon was transported from Amsterdam to Westbork transit camp along with one hundred thousand Jews, Sinti and Roma.  Anne Frank's family was also sent to the camp.  From there, most were transported to concentration and extermination camps in the east.  Fortunately, Leon he had a job at the camp that exempted him from transport.  He was among the Westerbork internees that were liberated by the allies on April 12, 1945.

As the museum is housed in the old Jewish corner, it was almost impossible to walk more than five feet before coming to Stolpersteine.  It was very sad.

The above Stolpersteine were placed in front of the home that belonged to the people whose name are on the plates.

Part of the price for a ticket to the Jewish Museum gave us admission to the Portuguese Synagogue that was across the street from the Jewish Museum.

In the heart of the old Jewish neighbourhood stands the Portuguese Synagogue. The biggest synagogue in the world when it was built in the 17th century. Jews still worship here to this day.  It has no heat or lights.  When it is being used, 1,000 candles are lit.  Everything has been kept just as it was in the 17th century.  It was so cold in there that we felt like we would freeze if we didn't keep moving.

We left to take the tram back to our neck of the woods.  Cathy recognized the fellow we gave food to last night.  Today, he was rummaging for empty bottles.  In a city of thousands, we never would have bet we would see him again.  What are the odds?

The next picture is just a sign we saw waiting for the tram.  Cool advertisement but not enough to make me hop on a bike.

How convenient is it to have a little car when you need a parking spot?  At home, you'd probably get a parking ticket for parking like this.

Our next stop was to the Bloemenmarkt again.  We made a boo boo taking the wrong tram so walked about 15 minutes to get to the right tram station.  During the day, many more flower stalls are open.  I couldn't get over the different colours and varieties of flowers there are and for such a cheap price.  Cathy was able to get the last of the souvenirs she wanted.

We saw real mistletoe as well.  I was surprised to learn that mistletoe is a hemiparasite that clings to trees.  It's unlikely that mistletoe kills trees directly, but tree branches may die as a result of mistletoe infection. and kills them.  We saw a lot of trees with that plant on it.

We also went back to the Asian Kitchen for wonton soup and vegetable spring rolls.  We both ordered small wonton soup.  It was exactly how I like it.  Cathy gave me her wonton as she doesn't care for them. Bonus.  The owner and waitress from last night recognized us.  After we finished eating, Cathy gave them each a Canadian flag pin.

The owner came over to our table to ask if we would like to have a picture taken together in the restaurant.  Of course, we said yes.

We then headed for the tram where Cathy could hear piano music.  We decided to follow the sound and found a musician named Arian Muller playing a piano outside.  Arian has been playing piano since the age of four.  He can be hired to play at special events.

As we waited for the tram, I took a couple of pictures of the row houses.  Two different styles of architecture.  One common theme.  In the old days, houses were built taking up as little footage on the ground as possible.  Taxes were charged according to the width of the frontage which explains why most Amsterdam houses are lean and skinny. 

Back to Damtrak.  Cathy and her husband enjoy going to the casino.  There are quite a few casinos in Amsterdam.  I suggested Cathy try her luck at one.  Those darned machines didn't pay out more than a couple of cents.

Here are a couple of random pictures taken throughout the day.

Cathy still looking for a pair of shoes that fit!

Rubber ducks are a thing here.  We saw several stores that sell them.  I don't know what the draw is.  Cathy wanted me to take a picture of the ducks because the large one reminded her of a brush with a duck on it that I gave her and my mom for Easter.

Amsterdam Centraal is the train station here in the city.  Not only can you get trains here but also buses and the tram.

Every time we walk across the street shown in this next picture, I have a flashback to my time here last year when a bicycle ran into me.  This evening, I took a picture of the scene of the crime.

Here's Damtrak with the Christmas lights turned on.

Mastercard even gets into the holiday spirit!

Steps today - 16,186