TWO ARTISTS IN PARIS: April 2010

Amsterdam was a 5 mile (each way) bike ride from The Durgerdamdijk. So after 3 days of biking, our asses were really sore and we decided to stay in a hotel in central Amsterdam.

What an amazing city! I can definitely say that this is one of my favorite places I have EVER been too, and I will now always have a special place in my heart for this incredibly progressive and historical city!

The Dutch are great people. While they don't speak much English, Dutch actually wasn't that hard for us to understand (way easier than French to say the least) and we got around great. The Dutch are friendly, incredibly good looking, bashful and generally happy people. The men all look like they have just rode in on unicorns... blonde flowing hair, beefy, tall and rugged. And the women all look tall and healthy as well, with rosey cheeks, creamy skin and mostly blonde hair.

The city of Amsterdam feels old and cold, and slightly like I would imagine Soviet Russia in the 1960's. It's small and filled with thousands of canals, bridges, and dark alleys. But the vibe is happy and warm, with "coffee shops" on every corner, awesome shopping, and the best and most food options we've encountered thus far in Europe.

The canal houses sit precariously on the water. The water level is controlled by hundreds of dams and canals and ingenious Dutch Engineering that moderates the flow and tide, to keep the city safely above water, even though it's actually 18 feet below sea level!

Bicycle parking lot near Central Station, Amsterdam. Driving in the city is discouraged.

We rode our bikes in from Durgerdam, and took the Ferry over Idj Djk to arrive at Central Station in the heart of Amsterdam.

This is the road into the city... you can see the Amusment Park in the distance, but it's actually in the middle of the city square. It's the biggest Ferris Wheel I've ever seen.

First stop, a coffee shop, the famous Dampkring. Coffee Shops are just like a bar... or a bar alternative rather, because they don't serve alcohol. They serve strong Dutch coffee, homemade minty teas, soft drinks, and oh, yeah.... POT! You order a coffee and ask to see the "menu", then you can purchase up to 5 grams of the best pot ever, for a fraction of what it costs in the states. Then you sit there, warm up, drink your coffee, smoke your pot... it's all quite social... and reflect on where you are in the world at the moment.... AMSTERDAM!!! It's great! It's a much more mellow and social experience than I expected, and you can meet people from all around the world, from all walks of life in the coffee shops, as well as get great advice on seeing the city.

After the coffee shop, we checked out the city... It's like the 1200's have met the 1960's.

There is a crazy amusement park in the middle of the city, with the most frightening looking rides I have ever seen.

Because the Dutch government discourages driving, the Dutch got cute, and came up with these mini cars that you see all over the city, which are small enough to drive in the bike lanes.

It was about 30 degrees out and felt like a cold Soviet winter, so it was nice to duck into a warm Dutch bar and enjoy some Belgium Brew and meatballs. We also tried some Dutch Croquettes. All and all, we loved all of our food and beer we tried in Holland!

Clogs and Delftwear are everywhere! Don't worry, we purchased some of this and we'll bring it home...

Dutch Police on horseback.

Here's a weird thing that's popular in Holland... vending machine hot food. For 1 Euro, you can get a burger out of a metal box, which is cooked fresh behind the case and stoked regularly. People were all about this... but we didn't try it... too weird.

Nuns relax in the city center over a pack of smokes and belgium beers.

This was our Amsterdam apartment, The Seven Bridges. We stayed in the top... where the small window is open... pretty much in the attic of a 5 story old dutch canal house. But once we were inside, it was roomy with a divine view. Only $100/ night it also came with a HUGE Dutch breakfast served to our room. What a deal, what a location! I will defiantly come back and stay in this exact room again!

Our room with exposed beams and antique dutch furniture. An incredible temperpedic mattress provided a great night's sleep too!

And now here are some pictures of our amazing canal view from our apartment...

Durgerdam was our home base 3 days. We stayed in an adorable hotel called De Olde Tarveerne, which was built in the 1700's, and still stands as is. It's located on the Northern tip of the province of Holland, in the Netherlands. It's a healthy bike ride (about 5 miles) each way into Amsterdam, which we didn't know when we rented bikes as transportation. But we managed to make the trip into the city and back multiple times, and the bikes inabled us to take in the amazing scenery of what we think is "the cutest place in the world." On one of our bike rides, Jacob asked "I wonder if the Dutch know that they live the cutest lives ever?". Indeed, the pastoral landscape, abounding with ducks, geese and baby lambs, flanked by adorable canal houses that look the same as they did when the city was founded in 1200, look straight out of a fable book!

The most incredible thing about Durgerdam and Amsterdam is that both cities are actually about 18ft. below sea level. The water line is practically at most front doorsteps. But thanks to inventive Dutch Engineering, the cities canal system, dams and drawbridges haver controlled water levels and kept the city above water for the past 800 years just fine.

The quality of life in the Durgerdamdijk seems to be quite good. Here everyone maintains both the inside and outside of their homes meticulously, paying close attention to good design, which the Dutch seem to have an upper hand at in general, from everything to architecture to city planning to art and home decor. Here, it seems quite possible to have a nice house, a farm, a boat, a bicycle and the best of country and city life combined, with Amsterdam so close. I could easily live here, and do well I think. The Dutch seem very happy with their lives.

Entering Durgerdam, this is also the main street of the village.

This is the beginning of the bike trail to the ferry to get to Amsterdam... it winds through farms and over canals to make a beautiful ride!

Our room in the Durgerdamdijk, which is really old.... built in the 1700's.

Baby lambs and sheep are everywhere... soooo cute!

Cute old 1960's German cars are everywhere.

A evening view of the central harbor of Durgerdam

This is an old levy thing that the Dutch use to pull up and maintain their boats close to their homes.

The Dutch keep french lop-earred rabbits in cozy cages across the street from their homes. We couldn't decide if they were raising them as pets or for food?