Europe – “Riding the Rails” – Amsterdam (5)

Amsterdam is a city in constant motion. Streams of people are always on the move, in and out of Amsterdam Centraal train station and up and down the streets. The trams continuously flow through the city, and, the bicycles dodge the pedestrians, the trams, and the few buses and cars. Amsterdam does mass transportation extremely well and keeps everyone moving.

One knows the transportation system is good when National Geographic designates the number 2 tram ride as one of the best in the world. Knowing good advice when we hear it, we took that ride and rode all over the city. We assumed it would be a circle, so, we were surprised that we came to an end of a line. Being the last people on the tram with the conductor raising her voice announcing that this was the end of the line several times, we got the message that we were to get off the tram. She was, however, kind enough (or she felt sorry for the tourists) to direct us to the tram that goes in the opposite direction, which then took us back to our starting point.

From something fun to something serious as we toured the Anne Frank House. Prior to going through the house, we were provided with a very informative talk about Anne, her writings, her family and the history during that time. The family went into hiding for two years before they were discovered and sent to concentration camps. The only family member to survive was Otto Frank, Anne’s father, and he died in 1980. The house in which Anne, her family and several others were hidden was turned into a museum, The Anne Frank House, in May of 1960. The Diary of Anne Frank has been read by millions.

For a bit more culture we visited the Van Gogh Museum. Having prearranged the tickets, we only had to show up at the entrance to be allowed admission. The museum does a fabulous job of displaying his art and telling the story of his life, which was filled with lots more agony than ecstasy. Van Gogh left all his paintings to his brother Theo, but, Theo died shortly after Vincent. It was the Johanna van Gogh, Vincent’s brother’s wife who founded the Van Gogh Museum.

We had started our day with coffee and pastry at Mr. Rabbit, a breakfast spot. When Steve ordered carrot cake, I looked at him questioningly, and, he just responded, “It seemed like the right thing to order in a place called Mr. Rabbit.” Who could argue with that logic?

After the museum visit, it was a quick trip to the flower market for me late afternoon. However, it was mostly bulbs on display and for sale with the exception of one display of tulips. Then we ended our visit to Amsterdam by going to a concert by a Southern rock band from Nashville, Tennessee, at a concert hall called Paradiso. It was loud, and, it was a stand-only venue; we did last a half hour, though.