Well, what a bunch of to do this last little bit has been. For some reason when I signed on everything was literally Dutch to me. I kept getting routed through to my blog but it had a .nl at the end. Took me half an hour to get to this page. For all of you that I worked with in Ottawa, you will not be surprised at this. How many times did I say just make it so.
A couple of things I need to mention before I get into what has been happening for the last week here in Amsterdam.
1: You will have to excuse the spelling mistakes. I switched to a new iPad before I left and the keyboard is rather small for these large ham hock hands of mine. They were good for farming and manual labour (not bloody likely) and not for small keyboards. You should see the stuff I catch. Auto spell check can be quite amusing at times. For instance, where I said ham hocks, this damn thing inserted hammocks. What one has to do with the other is beyond my comprehension.
2: Pictures. I know everyone is asking for pictures, and I do have them. But getting them on here is another exercise. And as I used to tell everyone when I was working, I am only paid to think between 7 and 3. If you really want to see pictures then I suggest google and input the city. Much better pictures than I can take. And as I am travelling alone there are very few pictures with me in them.
Today in Amsterdam has been absolutely pissing down with rain. Which has not been so bad for me. All this trekking around on cobblestone streets with a satchel slung over my shoulders irritated my lower back. No amount of scotch and ibuprofen can cure the aches and spasms. I have been googling North American medicines for their ingredients and then doing comparison shopping for the
European equivalents. HINT: bring lots of drugs you thing you many need when you cross the pond.
I guess I could have tried a coffee shop and smoked the pain away, but even in the 70s I didn't do that stuff.
Since my last post I have been losing my way around this city. I mean I really get lost, which is quite unlike me. But every cobblestone street and pretty bridge all look the same after 50 or so. And after awhile left turns become right turns and so on. Thank god I am never in a hurry to get to any one place in particular. And if things really get frustrating, I find a nice sidewalk cafe, park my ass and order a large draft beer. Everything seems easier to cope with a large beer.
I mentioned in a previous post how I was disappointed with the Rijksmusem and Van Gogh museums because they are intense mindst of relocation etc.. Well, I was vindicated last Friday when I went to the Hermitage Amsterdam.
The Hermitage Amsterdam is affiliated with the St. Petersburg Hermitage and they rotate exhibits to Amsterdam. I saw a fabulous exhibit called The Impressionsits. There were works from Monet, Cezanne, Lauren's, Pissarro, Manet, Rodin, and other contempories. Well worth a visit if you are here in the next couple of months. It was better then the othe two museums combined.
I am totally amazed by the amount of tourists there are here in Amsterdam. Amazed, but I really should be use to it. After all, growing up in Victoria, then living in Vancouver and Ottawa which are all major tourist destinations should make one more or less oblivious to the masses. But I guess with the limited sidewalk space here and the hordes of people cramming into these tight spaces it becomes more noticeable.
One of the things I like about spending time in cities and trying to live like the locals is that after a bit you start to act like one. I was actually approached my a less affluent member of society that had stumbled out of a coffeehouse, and he asked me in Dutch for money and I responded with a very polite nee. Here being tall is normal. Being a 'tad overweight' for the height is a bit of a problem. The clothes here are for tall slim people. I was one of those in 2003 but not now. And damn they have nice clothes here for men, and the men we nt afraid to dress. As Olga said, here they have talas in a
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