Happy Canada Day!

Aside from almost being charged 400 euros for our overweight baggage, our flight home with KLM was quite nice. Somehow, Francisco was also able to score Ronan his very own seat!

When we got home, we barely put our bags down and headed over to our favourite sushi restaurant, Sushi Garden for dinner....or was it lunch? We were so disoriented with jet leg, all we knew was that it was a long 3 months without sushi. As we took our seats, the staff asked us about our trip and we learned that the couple sitting beside us was headed to Amsterdam on vacation in the near future. We spent the lunch talking about Amsterdam and some of our favourite things to do there. As we were leaving and went to pay our bill, we learned that the couple had paid for our lunch! What an amazing "Canadian" welcome. If you're reading this, thank you so much!

The next morning, the 3 of us were wide awake at 6AM. We had no idea what people did at this ungodly hour so, as always when in doubt, we made our way to Tim Hortons.

I guess we did the right thing because it was as if they were expecting us...

While it is sad to leave Amsterdam, it has been so nice to come home to family and friends (And on Canada's birthday weekend!) I was happy I made it back in time to make my cousin Erin's bachelorette party and am looking forward to my favourite "Canadian summer things to do" (Sit around campfires, eat ketchup chips, go to Blue Jays games and join my Danny Glover comrades in our baseball season). I was also happy to get back to being able to read a menu, bacon, coloured money and ketchup.

Happy Canada Day!

Tot de volgende keer, Amsterdam!

My sister, Alana and her friend Lindsay made a stop in Amsterdam on their European adventure to spend a few days with us before we had to leave. Knowing it was my last week in this beautiful city, we made the most of every second.

Alana and Ronan

Aside from having to leave Amsterdam, I was also sad to leave my friend Katharina. Her and I decided to go out for a "Goodbye" dinner. At this dinner, we decided we would meet the next day for a "Goodbye" lunch in Vondelpark. I still didn't feel ready to leave Katharina after our delicious lunch, so I told her that Ronan and I would go to yoga class the next morning, even though we'd been kicked out. After yoga, I still couldn't bear to leave my friend, so we had a "Goodbye" coffee. I think these goodbyes would have continued on forever if I didn't have a plane to catch (and had not packed a thing at this point) a few hours later.

Miss you already, Katharina!

In between walking around with Alana and Lindsay and meeting Katharina for goodbyes, I really tried to take in what I enjoyed most about the city. On one of my later outings, my stroller got caught on a curb (It may or may not have been from multiple shopping bags I hung disproportionately on the back of the stroller). While I was struggling, a cyclist lifted the back of my stroller, threw it back up on the curb without breaking a stride on his bicycle. Dutch strength is something I will really miss, but hope to keep up while back home. It is liberating to have stroller and not see stairs as an obstacle.

As I return home, I hope to work on things that inspired me, like Dutch strength, while I was in Amsterdam. Here is my completed I.F.A.A (Ideas from Amsterdam to Adopt) list:

1. Stroopwaffles: These should always be served with our coffees and teas.

2. Mint Tea: This tea should be regularly served and promoted at every cafe, Tim Hortons and Starbucks.

3. Minimal Makeup: This sure makes getting ready in the morning much easier.

4. Bike Hair: Forget blow dryers and straighteners, just ride your bike!

5. Dutch Strength: It is not uncommon to see someone change a bike tire and then ride that semi-broken bike home with a kid, 5 bags of groceries, the old bike tire and a friend on it. Inspirational.

6. Charcuterie Boards: Meat and cheese for dinner= amazing!

7. More flowers: They are so pretty, let's plant more of them.

8. Bike Lanes: Don't think an explanation is needed here.

9. Jumping castles for the public on random street corners: Now, this may have just been for Queen’s Day, but it made me think, why not everyday?

10. Queen's Day: Let's celebrate Dutch Royalty once a year and take the day off of work to do so.

11. Hair Spas- A salon I went to served coffee, tea and biscuits throughout my appointment, they had a lounge for you to wait in while your hair colour sets, and they sure did take hair washing seriously. You can even pay to get a half hour relaxing head massage/wash!
12. Rollende Keukens (Rolling Kitchens): A festival of kitchens on wheels
13. Free Picnic Tablecloths: Erasmus Park had this board where you could rip off your own plastic picnic blanket or table cloth. They might not be the most environmentally friendly, but talk about convenient! Maybe we could create a biodegradable version.
14. Outdoor Gyms: In both Rembrant and Erasmus Parks, there were outdoor gyms. Bikers used the parks to commute home and stopped at these gyms for a workout. What a great way to get a quick (and free!) workout in.
15: Warm milk for coffee: Warm milk keeps your coffee warmer longer!
16. Restaurant Cats: Restaurants had their own cats that would sit with patrons! (I think the cats are actually there to kill mice and rats, but if you don't think about rodents in your favourite restaurant, the cats are pretty cute).

For my European friends, I will have a Canadian post for you on Canada Day (July 1st!)

2 Artikelen Links

As my time in Amsterdam is unfortunately coming to an end, I have been thinking about the completion of my "Things to do while in Amsterdam" list. To create my own personal list of things I wanted to do, I used the article, "20 great things to do while in Amsterdam" and Vanity Fair's article, "Where I Go: Seth Meyers."

Upon reflection, I realized I had 2 items (Both critical) left to complete. First, I have been able to get on a bike here in Amsterdam, but not longer than to run a quick errand (These errands have been run on Francisco's incredibly tall bicycle, which makes for an awkward ride as I can't see over the handlebars). The first thing I realized I had left to do was ride a bike around the city for an entire afternoon; and I decided I wanted to do it on a bike where my feet could touch the ground. Secondly, I realized I had not eaten a raw herring. Just as I began to worry I would not be able to complete my list, somehow, over the past week, both have been checked off!

I was able to get a bike ride in with my Aunt Pauline; she and I rented bikes through MacBike and went on a guided tour of the city. Our afternoon's fellow biking comrades and companions consisted of a bachelor party, a mother-daughter pair and one gentlemen who did not quite understand Amsterdam's rules of the road (We'll call him "Ralph" for privacy purposes). By the end of the afternoon, Ralph still did not understand which side of the road he should be biking on, he hit 2 pedestrians, he interfered with an ambulance's path, photo bombed the bachelor party's picture and finally, got really, really lost.

Can you spot the photo bomber?

Our tour took us all over the city; we began at Centraal Station and biked to the south end of the city. We saw Brouwerij t' IJ (A brewery in a windmill) and the zoo before moving up to The Amstel, the skinny bridge and over to museumplein. We also biked through Vondelpark, Jordaan and the downtown core. What was especially great about our bike tour, is that we did it in true Dutch style: in the absolutely relentless, pouring rain.

My second item was magically checked off last night. Francisco and I went out to dinner with our friends, Katharina and Benedikt, and it was as if the waitress knew I had one last item to complete on my list. For some reason, she brought over raw herring, on the house!  So, there you have it, my list is complete (Except for the small part about riding a bike where my feet were able to touch the ground).

Stampertjes

For anyone coming to Amsterdam, I think I have finalized my personal top 3 favourite restaurants in the city:

1. As mentioned on this blog many times, Moeders is #1. For 19 euros, you can sample their Dutch specialties, as if they came from your own mother's kitchen (If she can cook, that is). If you take me up on this recommendation, make sure to bring a picture of you and your ma as you can leave it in their hoarderesque collection of picture frames. I challenge you to find a photo I left of my mother and I. Here is a photo of my photo:

Nicole and Kayla; I'm looking at you.

2. Edel is an amazing restaurant right on a canal. The outdoor space is decorated with mismatched tables and chairs, beautiful carpets and strung lights. It is the perfect place for a sunny day. Katharina, Marlene, Ronan and I spent a lovely afternoon here this week:

Beautiful ladies! 

3. Lieve Bellgisch Restaurant on the Herengracht: I was finally able to visit this restaurant last night with my Aunt Pauline (in town on a conference) and my cousin Brynne (who flew over from Ireland to see her mom and meet Ronan). At this restaurant, you chose to either eat at a Living Room, Belgian Baroque or a Gastronomical table. Each table comes with a different experience and is dressed for it: The Living Room offers a "Feel at home" meal, the Belgian Baroque offers guests "A unique sharing experience", and the Gastronomical choice is "An Exclusive Dinner." We went with the Belgian Baroque and shared some amazing bread, appetizers and main courses.

Euro Reunion! Nice!

Flash-forward to Brynne and Ronan's introduction the next day:

"Who needs a restaurant when you can just eat hair?"

Today my aunt Pauline, Brynne and I went on a very important mission: We searched high and low for an English version of a famous Dutch children's story. Allow me to explain: Some ladies in my yoga class have been calling Ronan "Stampertjes," which translates (I believe) to "Stompers." When I asked what this meant, they explained that Ronan looked identical to characters (The Stamertjes) from a famous Dutch children's novel called Pluk van de Petteflet (Which is Tow-Truck Pluck in English). We found a copy of the English version at The American Book Center; I bought it immediately and cracked it open to see these Stomper characters. After careful analysis, examination and comparison, I just couldn't see it:

Speaking of yoga class, I'm pretty sure mine and Ronan's days there are numbered. I've mentioned in an earlier post that Amsterdam has baby yoga class, which take place in 2 parts: For the first half hour, the babies get a massage (They are naked) and the last hour goes to yoga practice. Ronan has recently begun rolling and can get from one side of the room to the other in a matter of minutes. He is throwing a bit of a wrench in the studio's zen vibe as he is rolling into other babies, the instructor, various mats and downward dogs. He has also broke his "no peeing" streak, and with all of his rolling, I wasn't quite able to contain it. He pretty much marked his territory across the entire room, and didn't stop to avoid anyone's personal belongings, yoga mats, blankets, or those damn hardwood floors. My cheque to the studio is in the mail.

Paris: La ville de l'amour et pas de files d'attente

This past weekend, Francisco, Ronan and I went to Paris. We used Airbnb and rented a lovely flat in the 7th district.

We only had 48 hours in Paris, so upon our arrival, we dropped off our suitcases and started walking the city-- well, as soon as Francisco finished being contemplative at the window, of course. Our first stop was the Eiffel Tower and while here, we were very impressed by the level to which people took "Park Lounging." It seemed as though no one but us had any concept of time or another place to go. As an example, check out the couple in the bottom right corner of this GIF (You may need to click on it):

Aren't GIFs the best?

We really tried to get into this mind frame, but we just had to much to do and see (That, and the fact that my very fair skin can only handle 15 minutes max in direct sunlight).

Time to get out of the sun, girl! 

From here, we continued our walk and moved on to see the Dome des Invalids, the Arc de Triomphe, The Grand Palace, The Petit Palace and walked the Champs-Elysees and over the Pont Alexandre III (The beautiful bridge that Carmella from The Soprano's has an epiphany on...and I'm sure it's also very important for many other historical reasons).

Dome des Invalids

Arc de Triomphe

The next day, we stopped for a cappuccino and croissant and were entertained by a partially costumed mime who scared young children and tourists alike. After this short break, we knew we needed to get moving. During our travels, we found the key to touring this city quickly: You need a baby. On 4 separate occasions, we were literally pulled out of lineups and told to cut straight to the front of the line. For some reason, the French don't seem to think babies should wait in line for anything. The time we were happiest about this perk was while waiting in line for The Louvre:

We were not only yanked out of line, we were basically given our own private security guard who showed us around and let us use secret elevators with him. Our only regret is that we weren't there on official business. Having our own security detail, we really wanted our own important investigation to work on. We decided to make our own mission: We would get a picture, front and center, of Mona Lisa.

Mission Distraction: Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss

Mission Distraction: The Venus de Milo

The Obstacles

Mission Accomplished

The next place we were given permission to "line hop" was at Notre Dame. We were directed to enter straight through the exit. 

"Common in; ain't nobody here but 1000 other people."

850 years old!

From here, we made our way to the Latin Quarter, went shopping, had a Parisian dinner on a terrace, and went to see the Eiffel Tower lit up at night. Although we accomplished a lot, 48 hours just wasn't enough in this amazing city. My lasting impressions: I was inspired by the city's sites and architecture; I found it weird not having to bike dodge for 2 days; and, I thoroughly enjoy seeing people walk the streets carrying only a baguette in their hands. 

A bientot, Paris!

Geleerde Lessen

Good weather, great company and celebs in town have made for a great week. On Monday, the lot of us met at The Groot Melkhuis in Vondelpark for a delicious "1 half hour, 2 half hour" lunch. Ronan just couldn't decide what he wanted to order:

"Do I feel like pancakes or sausage? I just don't know."

What has been hilarious about this week is that somehow, Matt just keeps popping up. He unfortunately broke his phone within an hour of his arrival to Amsterdam, so it has been a little difficult to get in touch with him. Luckily, he always finds us and I think this GIF below pretty much sums it up (You may have to click on the picture):

Later that evening, Miguel, Elisa and I went to Dam Square to do some exploring. We popped into De Dokter, which is the smallest pub in all of Amsterdam. We quickly learned that the waitress eavesdropped all conversations that took place (The place was so small, it is impossible not to overhear) and then played a specific song about the person's story. When she played Rod Stewart's "Maggie May," we asked who that song was for. She replied, "This one was for me. I played it because I met Rod Stewart tonight; he was in here just before you arrived." We quickly asked which direction he went, grabbed a pen and paper (for autographs) and were off on a mission to find him. Although we came close, we didn't find him; but, to end the story happily, Matt found us.

Over the past week, Ronan and I have spent a lot of time with our friends Katharina and Marlene. Katharina has taught me how to make amazing coffee with warmed and frothed milk (Anyone who comes to my house for coffee when I get home will seriously be inclined to drop a thank you card in the mail for Katharina). Marlene has been trying to teach Ronan, Master of "Rolling Around", the fine art of sitting up without help.

As you can see, all this "sitting up business" was a little much for Ronan (also Master of "Lying around"), and so, he passed out at her house. Looks like I'll have to continue working on sitting with him, plus add in a little lesson on good manners.

Amstel Zeilen

So, we have a problem: We just can't stop renting boats. Miguel (Francisco's brother), Elisa (Miguel's girlfriend) and our friend Matt are in town and when trying to decide the best way we could all spend a sunny Saturday afternoon, absolutely nothing other than, "Get on a boat and cruise the canals" would come to mind. So we did it. We grabbed some good food, music and headed back to boaty, endured the 15 second boat training course and we were off in a canal cruiser (Her name was Nina).

"I'm on a boat!" (ft. Mig and Bacon)

Francisco was again the captain, Miguel and Matt shared the very important role of "Look out for other boats we might hit" and I was in charge of navigating the canal cruiser. Like last time, Boaty gave us a laminated sheet which outlined a couple of boating instructions and also contained a map with different routes we could take (The downtown route, The out of town route, the South East route).

I first directed the captain to take the downtown route; we cruised through Jordaan and stopped in the area for some french fries with mayonnaise.

When we finished this loop, we decided we should live on the edge and go a little off the map. We took some other canals to check out the flower market, Waterloopein market and the hotel Alicia Keys was staying at. We enjoyed our own makeshift cruise so much, we kept at it and ventured through some other turning, winding canals. Their names? No idea. I just know they were not Prinsengracht or Herengracht, which were the canals we were supposed to stay on.

Anyway, all was going well until a sudden gust of wind picked up our laminated map and tossed it overboard. We tried to reverse the boat to grab it, but that map sunk faster than my waitressing career. It was a very tense couple of minutes but luckily, we did have a rough idea of where we were and got ourselves back to the Amstel River. From here, it was easy to navigate ourselves back.

Amstel, straight ahead!

Aside from being potentially "lost at sea" (or "lost in canal," I guess I should say), we all agreed it was the best way to spend a sunny Saturday afternoon.