Schiphol Airport (heading back to the US)

Amsterdam

Amsterdam Trip Day 3

It rained. My original thought was to explore Joordan, a yuppie place. When I arrived, the shops were not opened yet. So, I changed my plan to go visit the Joods Historich Museum. Still not opened yet. Amsterdamers surely have a nice working schedule: open late close early. I ended up having lunch at Nieuwe Kerk Café. I had croquettes for lunch. The word sounds like French. I supposed it was some French food? Croquettes are fried meatballs with creamy sauce inside. In Netherlands, you need to pay for the use of the bathroom. It reminds me of the restrooms in the Hong Kong City Hall years ago.

After the late lunch, I went to the Madame Tussaud’s Museum. I was screaming my lungs out going through one section of the exhibit. I had a picture taken with Arnold the governator.

The rest of the day was for shopping. Or, should I better describe it as educating myself on my fashion sense? The Dutch are trendy, but not trashy trendy. I rarely see people with black eye shadow and black lipstick on. The clothes are expensive. Therefore, I jotted down what I liked and would try to look for them in the States. I do not know Dutch, but I could understand the shopping language. Kassa means cashier; stint probably means sale; dames means women; etc.

I finally found an Indonesian restaurant. I have not had Indonesian food for a long time. The Netherlands to my parents is like the United Kingdom to me. My parents were born in Indonesia. Therefore, I really wanted to have Indonesian food as my trip’s finale, and I made it happened!

Oude Kerk

Amsterdam Trip Day 2

I was going to visit Begijnhof, an enclosed courtyard that houses old people. I was lost a little bit so I ended up in Amsterdam Historich Museum. I realized that if one wants to leave a legacy, one way to do it is to give a lot of money to charity or to donate large amount of art collection. Then, at least he/she will have a portrait in a museum. I learned quite a bit of the Holland history even though the place was noisy with school field trips.

At last, I found the Begijnhof entrance. It was on a side street. There was a very quiet courtyard and a small beautiful church. People did put a lot of work on churches in European countries due to religious and political reasons. I can imagine that a group of old people, who live in the courtyard, go to the Sunday service. Some very quiet simple life while in a busy neighborhood.

Being a shopping diva, I went to the Bijenkorf cafeteria for lunch. Bijenkorf is a department store similar to Bloomingdale’s. The cafeteria is reasonably priced (unlike Harrods!) and it overlooks the Dam Square. After lunch, I walked over to Oude Kerk (“old” church). You know, walking on top of the grave stones freaked me out a bit, just like Westminster Abbey. After Oude Kerk, I walked around the Red Light district. I found the men more interesting to look at than the women in the booths.

For dinner, I went to a Chinese take-out place. I finally have a craving for fake Chinese food. It turned out that the owner was from Thailand, and they thought that I was from Hong Kong! The ironic part of this was that people in Hong Kong thought I was from somewhere else other than from Hong Kong. Not knowing Thai or Dutch, my food was completely different from that I had ordered.

One great thing on this trip is that I could buy pastries, ate and wondered around town at the same time! Their pastries are delicious.

Rijksmuseum

Amsterdam Trip Day 1

Took the tram to Westerek and became the first person in queue to Anne Frank Huis. It was a hide out for Anne Frank and her family from the Nazis. It was my first stop because I learned about her during my first year of studying in the US. After the visit, I felt that I have had such a nice life and I should not take it for granted. Freedom has a different meaning under her circumstances. I met two girls from Israel. They seemed very envious that I live in America. Again, this is another different perspective.

The two Jewish girls and I then went to Vincent Van Gogh Museum together before we split. It was very nice to finally see the real sun flower picture in person. I learned about Van Gogh’s sad starving artist life and the strong bond between his brother and him. I have a better appreciation of his work now. The next stop was Rijksmuseum. It was partially open due to renovation. Still, I saw Rambrandt’s Night Watch. It was huge. Paintings in that period were very realistic. They are the true master pieces. Rambrandt had a different life. He used art in a commercial way and lived in luxury, but he went bankrupt at the end. His work was exceptional. There is a big contrast between the two artists’ lives.

After a high dosage of art, I took the tram back to Nieuwe Kerk (“new” church) and Koninklijk Paleis. Both of them were closed. Nieuwe Kerk was due to renovation, and the palace was just closed for no good reason. Perhaps they had a function of some sort… By the way, it was the first time that I saw a horse relieved (no. 1). The stench lasted for a long time! Then, I stumbled into some shopping area (due to my shopping radar). If you have read the Confession of a Shopaholic, you will know what I mean. I found that the Dutch has very good taste in contemporary styles. In addition to the blue and white porcelain, the Dutch has hip and simple dinner sets.

There are “coffee shops” everywhere. I encountered a man who was high on grass and made a fool out of himself. I was walking around town, and I saw him everywhere I went! He kept talking to himself and wanted to talk to anyone who spoke English. As for me, I could always pass as someone who does not know English at all.

I was hoping to find an Indonesian restaurant for dinner. Instead, I found a half Chinese half Indonesian restaurant. The restaurant was interesting in a way that it had a pulley system to give order to the kitchen upstairs and to receive food. Oh, one important thing to point out: the Holland government tax property based on the width of the house frontage is. Therefore, the houses are usually narrow. Hence, the kitchen of the restaurant situates upstairs.

Tiny Room

London Trip Day 4 to Amsterdam Trip Day 0

Basically, it is a day for travel. Nothing much to report except that the gate information would not be posted until 40 minutes before flight schedule at Heathrow. Therefore, I was using the wi-fi service while waiting at the international terminal. It is very convenient. I guess the Heathrow Airport security is not as tight as the US airports. I did not need to take off my shoes or take out my notebook computer. I feel bumped that the Netherlands passport control did not give me a stamp for entering the country after 45 minutes of flight time. Upon arrival, I took the train to Amsterdam Centraal, walked a few blocks to my hotel. The hotel room was tiny. I was sleeping with the sink. The shower stall did not have any barrier to prevent water from running out. I guess this is the old style “bathroom.”

Tower Bridge

London Trip Day 3

Tower of London:
After being lost in London's Underground many times, I finally made it to the Tower Hill Station. I took a tour in Tower of London. Henry VIII's two wives were executed here. There were 1500 bodies found underneath the church. Very scary... The crown jewels are lovely.

Tower Bridge:
I did not walk on the bridge. Instead, I just took pictures nearby. I was tired! Therefore, I took the ferry to Westminster.

Ferry to Westminster:
It was a lot of fun and cold to be on the upper deck of the boat cruising in Thames River against the current. I took the ferry because I was too tired to walk. However, the ride was nice!

Picadilly Circus:
After getting off the boat at Westminster, I took Underground to Picadilly Circus. It is a crowded shopping area with busy commercial neon signs like Times Square in New York.

Fortnum and Mason:
I walked over to Fortnum and Mason to have lunch. I ordered the lunch and it took forever to get the food. I was chatting with 2 old ladies sitting at the table next to me. One of them complained to the captain for me. So, he apologized and offered me champain, but I had a free dessert instead!!! Cool, eh?

St. Paul's Cathedral:
After lunch, I rushed back to St. Paul's Cathedral. The last admission was at 1600 and I was there at 1545! I climbed the many stairs to the dome. I am afraid of height. It was a bit scary looking down from the dome. Imagine what kind of death grip I had on the rail at that moment. I wanted to go down afterwards, but there was no way down! I had to take more stairs up to the outside of the dome before heading down. The spiral stairs are narrow and steep. It was quite an experience. Actually, there were some life revelations out of this trip up to the dome and down to the ground:

1. We need to do things when we are young, and I need to keep myself in shape in order to travel. If I were older than I am, it would be hard for me to climb up the stairs. Don't delay things. Life is short. Don't say you need to wait till you retire to do things because by that time, you might not be able to do anything.

2. The steep spiral stairs reminded me of life, but eventually you know your final destination at the end. You would never know what happens next. Therefore, take things one day at a time. Live the moment.

3. Civilization has its wonderful side and its dark side. The wonderful side is human advancement and its process. The dark side is the killing and Darwinism. You need to decide what role you have.

After getting to the ground floor, I waited for the 1700 service because I wanted to hear the Evensong. While the choir was singing, there was big explosion sound continuously outside the church. It sounded like air strike bombing. But the choir continued singing. If you have watched the movie Titanic, you would know what I meant. At the end when the ship was sinking, the band was still playing. Very dramatic. It could have been like this when Germany attacked UK in WWII. Anyway, the explosion sound turned out to be fireworks instead of thundering or air strike.

I called it a day after St. Paul's. It was dark and I was tired and hungry!

I am heading to Amsterdam in a few hours. It has been fun in London. People are generally very nice. I will definitely come back again because there are still lots of places that I have not been yet.

I am a bit nervous about the trip to Amsterdam because I don't know what to expect. Wish me luck!

London

London Trip Day 2

Big Ben and Parliament:
After breakfast, I took Underground to Westminster. Took a lot of pictures outside Big Ben and Parliament. Big Ben and Parliament were not open to public. However, I still felt very compelled. Afterall, we used to watch the debate in Parliament. A lot of laws were passed there that affected us as people from Hong Kong.

Westminster Abbey:
I walked across the street from Parliament to Westminster Abbey. There were lots of tombs and memorials in the abbey! It was amazing not only the archetecture, but also the symbolic feelings. Think about it. In my lifetime, Princess Diana and Queen Mom had their funeral there, and I was there.

London Eye:
I walked across the Westminster Bridge to London Eye. London Eye is a huge ferris wheel. I went on the capsule to look at the skyline of London, very facinating. I became a tourist sucker. I bought two copies of the picture taken by London Eye when I was in the capsule. I figured, it was one of the rare pictures that had me in it.

Harrods:
I took Underground to Harrods, the famous department store. There were lots of people in the store, and I was not allowed to wear the backpack on my shoulders. I had to carry it in my hand. It was a bit snobbish of them. Don't you think? I had the most expensive meal at Harrods' food court: a sushi lunch that costed me 18 pounds and it came with green tea (what a deal...)! Well, it had the shortest line, and I was very hungry. When I am hungry, nothing matters...

Buckingham Palace:
I took Underground to Victoria and walked to Buckingham Palace. The palace was not open to the public at this time of the year. But still, I took pictures from the outside. Imagine that, the royals waving at the public at the balcony.

Marble Arche:
Then, I wondered to Victoria Street and took a bus, my first bus trip in London, hoping to go to Notting Hill for dinner. I ended up getting off the bus too early at Marble Arche, a place where they hanged people in front of the citizens. It was getting dark. I had to take the pedestrian subway to find the Marble Arche Underground to continue to Notting Hill. I had no idea I was that brave.

Notting Hill:
Places close early in London. There was nothing much to see in Notting Hill by the time I arrived. So, I found a Starbucks to stay till 1830. Then, I decided to look for food. Stepping out of Starbucks, I found an Indian restaurant right across the street! I love Indian food. It was one of those little Indian restaurants with about 10 small tables. Yummy!

After dinner, I went back to the hotel.

British Museum

London Trip Day 1

British Museum:
After I checked in to the hotel, I went to the Underground station next to the hotel to exchange my voucher with a 3-day Travelcard (good for Underground, buses, and discount for the ferries). I then walked around my hotel to be familiar with the surrounding. I found a Starbucks to have lunch and internet wi-fi access on Baker Street. Then, I walked over to the Bond Street Underground and took the Underground to British Museum. I was a bit lost on the way to British Museum, but it was manageable. I looked at a lot of the Chinese treasures and other treasures taken by the Brits.

Covent Garden:
After visiting the British Museum, I walked over to Covent Garden for dinner. I had Ribena!!!! The purple grape juice that I used to have as a kid, and fake Indian food from an Italian fast food place. That was the highlight of the meal.

Transport Museum:
Afterwards, I roammed into the Transport Museum nearby, looking at double decker buses and choo choo trains. It made me feel like a kid again.

I went back to the hotel by taking the Underground and called it a day.