- Day 0 E-Mail & Photo Sampler -
"Day 0" - Sept. 10, 2002 - AMSTERDAM - en-route to Beirut ...
We are awaiting our flight to Beirut. Flight over was uneventful (except for Patrick forgetting to take his watch off at security check point, hooo-eeee, but that is another story). Did not sleep much at all, we were at very back of plane.
Dad and I Spent a FABULOUS Afternoon wandering around Amsterdam. From the airport here you can take a train directly into the city. It is fast, clean, efficient, and the people are incredibly helpful and pleasant. And OH, MY, GOD the BUILDINGS and the CANALS!!! We walked a lot and are very tired. The architecture, both the old and the new is incredible.
We spent some time in the shopping district. They have some fabulous stuff, on the main drag it is very SF tourist y, but little tiny side alleys and getting away from the over-done areas there is some MAJOR loot to be had. I found an incredible pair of hot pink and black cowboy boots that are exactly what Karen has been looking for. Did not buy :) BAD KITTY!!
Dad forgot and left his camera in the carry-on luggage we stored in a locker. So Patrick ran around taking pictures of everything. I got some great shots of the buildings and the churches (OH WOW) and the canals. We were walking down one alley and I noticed a young couple getting hassled for using their video camera, they left and when I reached the cross streets I saw a fabulous church well worth photographing. SOP I tried very surreptitiously (successfully so) to take some shots, not knowing why it was verboten. I turned to Dad as we walked down the street and glanced in a shop window to see a half nude woman beckoning, we were in the red light district. Most amusing, they are broken out by ethnicity in separate regions and there is a major China town on the edge of it. Kinda strange and there were the equivalent of the Walk Wiz tours, groups of people being taken through the area, most hilarious.
I got a couple of shots of the canals as it started to rain. I really hope they turn out. The weather was perfect. Rain was light and not cold. Wished I was not wearing nice new fisherman's sandals but that was OK.
SEE AMSTERDAM SLIDE SHOW FOR MORE PHOTOS FROM THIS DAY.