Going Dutch

[Arthur Little]

Literally!

Myrna & I have booked a short 'City Break' to Amsterdam - from March 30 until April 03 - as a base for visiting the Netherlands' famous bulbfields ... my wife being a keen hrticulturist!

[RickyR]

Great! Enjoy it, lots of things to see and do there! Have a good time Arthur.

[Arthur Little]

Great! Enjoy it, lots of things to see and do there! Have a good time Arthur.

Thanks, Ricky. Reckon ... ... I'll have to give the City's "Red Light" District a miss, though!

[Terpe]

Thanks, Ricky. Reckon ... ... I'll have to give the City's "Red Light" District a miss, though!

It's not quite as bad as you might think Arthur ......worth taking a nice stroll along the canal side and passing by those windows

Very safe and quite 'touristy'. Quite an experience for that 10 minute walk.

Here's wishing you and Myrna a wonderful break.......those bulbfields are spectacular

If you have time I can highly recommend a canal cruise.

[Doc Alan]

A great time to " go Dutch " - let's hope the weather is good Arthur May you both have a safe trip .

[stevewool]

great news Arthur hope you both have a great time ,
I am trying to get Ems to go dutch too, but she says i want to see Venice first then maybe then go to Holland

[Terpe]

great news Arthur hope you both have a great time ,
I am trying to get Ems to go dutch too, but she says i want to see Venice first then maybe then go to Holland

Not trying to influence you Steve...but canal trips in Amsterdam are way way cheaper than those in Venice

Maybe not as romantic though

[stevewool]

Never thought of that Peter, will have to look now, been looking at those mini cruises to Holland from Hull, very cheap they seem

[Michael Parnham]

Well done Arthur, enjoy!

[Michael Parnham]

never thought of that Peter, will have to look now, been looking at those mini cruise to Holland form Hull, very cheap they seem

Get it booked Steve!

[Dedworth]

Never thought of that Peter, will have to look now, been looking at those mini cruise to Holland form Hull, very cheap they seem

When I was a student we used to go on "Educational Trips" on the P & O Norland from Hull to R'Dam (famous for transporting 2 Para to the Falklands and Argie prisoners back to their place).

The trip was about 5 days with 4 nights in A'Dam (staying at the aptly named student Hotel Cok) the main educational aspect was the trip round the Heineken Brewery (now sadly closed and replaced by the Heineken Experience). We used to get totally wrecked over there and one of our girls was taken back by the matelots as a trophy to an RN Warship which was on a goodwill visit, they stuck her in a taxi later ! She now lives in Rotterdam and 2 years ago Mrs D & I went with her to Amsterdam and the former brewery - you still get a few free beers but it wasn't a patch on the old days when we had brutal size 10 hangovers from the night before.

Happy days

Have a good run ashore Arthur

[stevie c]

Have a great time Arthur. I want to travel more of Europe & have plans to visit Barcelona & would love to go back to Tuscany one day - one of the most beautiful places that I have visited, but a few years back - I often wonder if it has changed much

[Trefor]

It's not quite as bad as you might think Arthur ......worth taking a nice stroll along the canal side and passing by those windows

Very safe and quite 'touristy'. Quite an experience for that 10 minute walk.

Here's wishing you and Myrna a wonderful break.......those bulbfields are spectacular

If you have time I can highly recommend a canal cruise.

I agree with the above. All very safe, just watch out for pickpockets, same goes for any touristy location nowadays though. I lived in Amsterdam for 2 years in my later 20s, right on Prinsengracht, now that was a fun 2 years

[RickyR]

When I was a student we used to go on "Educational Trips" on the P & O Norland from Hull to R'Dam (famous for transporting 2 Para to the Falklands and Argie prisoners back to their place).

The trip was about 5 days with 4 nights in A'Dam (staying at the aptly named student Hotel Cok) the main educational aspect was the trip round the Heineken Brewery (now sadly closed and replaced by the Heineken Experience). We used to get totally wrecked over there and one of our girls was taken back by the matelots as a trophy to an RN Warship which was on a goodwill visit, they stuck her in a taxi later ! She now lives in Rotterdam and 2 years ago Mrs D & I went with her to Amsterdam and the former brewery - you still get a few free beers but it wasn't a patch on the old days when we had brutal size 10 hangovers from the night before.

Happy days

Have a good run ashore Arthur

Haha that was the first ever ship I sailed on, the Norland, as a passenger. My best mate used to work on it and the new ships, he has some stories to tell about the passengers on some of the crossings. I once did a 'cruise' on it when he got me a discount and had a great time. Well worth the money.

I agree with the above. All very safe, just watch out for pickpockets, same goes for any touristy location nowadays though. I lived in Amsterdam for 2 years in my later 20s, right on Prinsengracht, now that was a fun 2 years

Reminds me of when I got pick pocketed in Rotterdam in 2008, a group of guys bumped into me and one was 'overly' apologetic, patting me on the back etc, and I had to push him away. About ten minutes later I checked my pocket and found my phone had been stolen...

I used to go there regularly for courses when I worked for Holland America Line. Could imagine it being a good place to live.

[Arthur Little]

It's not quite as bad as you might think Arthur ......worth taking a nice stroll along the canal side and passing by those windows

Very safe and quite 'touristy'. Quite an experience for that 10 minute walk.

Yes ... I've had "the tour", Peter - about 8 years ago. Merely as a passer~by, you understand! But somehow, I couldn't help feeling rather sorry for these young girls sitting staring forlornly
(or so it seemed to me, anyway) through those windows.

Here's wishing you and Myrna a wonderful break.......those bulbfields are spectacular

Thanks ... I'll bet they are ... we're really looking forward to the experience.

If you have time I can highly recommend a canal cruise.

Y'know, I would've loved that. Alas ... ... we're going too early in the season for the canal cruises.

[Doc Alan]

Tomorrow ( Sunday 30 March ) Arthur and Myrna " go Dutch " until 3 April . Have a safe and enjoyable trip .

[Michael Parnham]

Have a wonderful break Myrna & Arthur!

[Dedworth]

How was your run ashore to the Port of Amsterdam Arthur ?

[mickcant]

Hope the trip went well, please tell us about it, I went there around 30 years ago it was good to see.
Mick

[Michael Parnham]

Hope you arrived home safely and enjoyed your well earned break, look forward to hearing all about it!

[Rosie1958]

I spent a long weekend in Amsterdam a few years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it. We stayed at the Swissotel, just off Dam Square. Looking forward to hearing about your trip Arthur!

[Arthur Little]

Thanks ALL, for your good wishes.

Having set off from Perth in fog, ... it was a real treat to discover the dramatic extent to which the weather had picked up by the time we'd reached our destination, a trend that would continue throughout the duration of our stay, thankfully.

Trip itself went well - with the city and its environs fully living up to expectations - especially our pre-booked visit to the truly spectacular Keukenhof Flowerfields in tandem with various organised sightseeing excursions ... including a tour of a *diamond factory ... at *which point, kuripot menfolk would be well-advised to make themselves scarce! Unless, of course, they've already taken the precaution of leaving their wallets in a safety deposit box back at their holiday digs ... lest they be subjected to a different kind of "dig" (in the ribs) by their partners.

Architecturally, vibrant, bustling Amsterdam reflects a bygone era aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Hardly surprising, really, in a city renowned for being the "haunt" of such renowned painters as Vincent Van Gogh, Rembrandt and other artists of that ilk. Modern trams and buses skilfully weave their way through streets where cyclists are ubiquitous; indeed unwary pedestrians are far more at risk of being mowed down by [mostly old-fashioned] pedal bikes than by any other form of transport.

Cruises on Amsterdam's famous network of waterways offer a welcome respite from plodding the tarmac ... providing as they do, wholly unique opportunities for viewing the attractiveness of the city's plethora of fine old buildings in relative peace and quiet. Yes, the Travel Agency got it wrong, Peter and, to our delight, we discovered canal cruises are available the whole year round. Not only that ... the location of our accommodation - the Amstel BOATEL (so~named on account of its conversion from a former cruise liner) - meant commuting by ferry to and from the Central Area at least twice daily.

[Dedworth]

Did you get a chance to go here Arthur ?

[Arthur Little]

Did you get a chance to go here Arthur ?

That was, one of the dozen or so stop-off points mentioned in the brochure, Ded ... and I managed to catch a glimpse of the venue in passing.

But ... ... at 15euro per head entrance fee, a visit to a booze manufacturer didn't sufficiently inspire my interest - and it most definitely wasn't Myrna's

[Dedworth]

Amsterdam in Winter with Bowie soundtrack

[Terpe]

Sound like you had a very nice Amsterdam break Arthur

Glad to learn you enjoyed it and happy the travelling was trouble free

Welcome back

[Arthur Little]

Sounds like you had a very nice Amsterdam break Arthur

Glad to learn you enjoyed it ...

Yes we did, Peter ... truly memorable on BOTH counts.

... and happy the travelling was trouble free

Ah, well ... not entirely ... not on the return journey.

Here's why:

Boarded plane and - to my delight - discovered we'd been allocated a pair of seats next to an Emergency Exit.

Proceeded to put our hand baggage on the overhead rack along with anoraks etc and made to sit down ... cracking the edge of my napper in the process.

Incident witnessed by an alarmed~looking female fight attendant who hurried across to check I was OK.

"Fine", I assured her, ... "just a few arthritic twinges in the old joints causing me to lose focus as I was settling down ... nothing to worry about"

STEWARDESS: Oh ... you've arthritis? she queried. Hmm ... well, in that case, Sir ... I'll find you another seat; you cannot sit next to the Emergency Exit.

ME: Honestly, I'm alright where I am ... ... besides, the more legroom I have, the more comfortable I'll be ... y'know ... I don't want any fuss.

But she was adamant ... I was equally insistent and I could foresee a "battle of wills" was in the offing - especially when she stormed off to fetch her boss, the male Head of Cabin Crew.

OUTCOME

CHIEF STEWARD: Sir, I've had a word with the Captain who's found alternative seating for you and your wife; it has almost as much legroom. But you'll NEED to move before the plane can take off, Sir. Can't afford
to run the risk of someone with arthritic knees sitting where they'll be a danger to themselves and other passengers in the event of any unforseen emergencies.

Oh dear ... such embarrassment.

Welcome back

[Terpe]

And so they moved you to Business Class ???

[Arthur Little]

And so they moved you to Business Class ???

....................... 'll be right!

Mind you ... ... it wasn't for want of trying on my part.

[Dedworth]

Would you like to name & shame 'Elf n Safety Airways Arthur so I can avoid