FINALLY finishing off the photos from my first trip to amsterdam! i know, it’s about damn time!! how is it that i’ve already been back to amsterdam another time since?? my DSLR photos from this first trip… and my second trip to amsta… are still patiently awaiting to be edited and posted. such a shame. but someday!
i do love this city and all its charm. i don’t think i could ever tire of it…
{a tiny little bakery that we ate at for breakfast one morning. see those croissants with the custard and strawberries? my mom got one and it was TO DIE FOR.}
{…this chocolate-dipped waffle that i got though? not so much. i wasn’t impressed with the texture – it was grainy and sugary and kind of hard. but give me one of my dad’s hot, fresh from-scratch waffles dipped in chocolate and i’d be ALL IN.}
{those holland pastries sure are cute though!}
{in wooden shoe heaven. the tiny ones are super cute. i bought a little pink pair.} :)
{a gray day at the market. and yes, those are cacti!}
{at the flower market!}
{for most of our time, the weather was really nice, but there were one or two days where it rained on and off.}
{on the left, the mall entrance, NBD! and on the right, a whole line of people eating french fries from cones. those french fries sure are a thing here.}
{betcha didn’t know that i play for holland.} ;)
{she get it from her maaama.}
{since we were there during the world cup, it was orange everywhere!}
{another “pedal pub!”}
{we had lunch and beer at a traditional brown bar.}
{a caprese-style sandwich and the best french onion soup.}
{mimi didn’t think it was fair that NOT ONLY do the hollyhocks in amsterdam grow to be seven and eight feet tall, but they also grow straight from the cracks in the sidewalks… here’s proof!!}
{i had taken a picture of this hostel knowing that mike and i were planning on backpacking europe the following year. we didn’t end up staying here when we came to amsterdam but it’s still kinda cute. [uh,minus those buckets?] and there’s the sign for mimi again!}
{a holland boat party! and mom standing next to a statue of anne frank. we went to the anne frank museum, which is in the actual house that was her actual hiding place during world war two, and it was really neat and also very sad.}
{lovely amsterdam}
{chocolate heaven}
{pepper flavored chocolate?}
{tea-flavored chocolate}
{in the red light district}
{one somewhat depressing thing about amsterdam is how many beautiful old churches there are that are vacant or used for other non-religious purposes. it just feels weird.}
{a hammock store! and apparently they serve pancakes at starbucks in amsterdam.}
{on our last night in amsterdam, we went to a living room restaurant for dinner, which is a rapidly growing trend in the city. you actually visit a chef at their own home and they prepare you a meal. we went to marits huiskamerrestaurant and it was wonderful, and such a perfect atmosphere too.}
{the patio was just lovely.}
{meet tilly!}
{…she even had her own portrait hung on the wall!}
{i know. i just took a photo of the water droplets on the mint leaves in the carafe. please don’t judge me.}
{the first course: watermelon triangles with camembert, cilantro, pesto, fresh cilantro, an olive, and freshly ground pepper. soo good.}
{left, the second course: a salad of greens + escarole with oven-roasted tomatoes and olives and brie and dijon mustard dressing. right, the third course: beet ravioli with a walnut pesto. i so wish i had gotten a photograph of the inside of these because the filling was the most gorgeous color.}
{the fourth course: an asparagus tart served with carrots and scalloped turnips. [as you might have guessed, it’s a vegetarian restaurant.] additionally, there was a side of this amazing potato salad for the table…}
{…and also this yummy barley salad. and for the fifth and final course: a strawberry rhubarb tart. the food was outstanding and marit’s home was beautiful.}
{on our way home, we saw a group hanging out, all dressed in blue, standing by this old church. i’m guessing it was a wedding? whatever it was, it was quite picturesque.}
{the netherlands was playing in a world cup game that night, and like paris, the police in amsterdam were EVERYWHERE. aaaaaand on the right there is the view from our hotel window.}
{the last thing we did in amsterdam on our last night was go to a local bar to watch the netherlands play costa rica in the world cup. the bar was insane – orange everywhere, and they had set up a bunch of projectors with the game on and devised makeshift theater seating. it was SO crowded, and although mimi was unsure about going because it was late and the fans can be rowdy, she ended up loving it. the people were so nice – one person gave up his seat for her, and so we hung out there, sipping a beer and cheering for the netherlands. such a fun experience! they won in a shootout, in case you were wondering.}
{i took two pairs of shoes with me to europe [well three, if you count the ones i wore over there] and ended up throwing two pairs out right before i left. i had brought old shoes specifically for that reason – mimi taught me this trick – and i think it’s actually a pretty good idea because first off, you already know they’re comfortable, so you’re less likely to get blisters than you are from new shoes; secondly, your shoes are going to look like crap by the time you’re done traveling if you walk as much as we do; and third, throwing them away allows you to do more shopping because there’s more room in your suitcase on the way back! i think it’s brilliant logic and proceeded to do the same thing on our backpacking trip this summer. anyway, i threw those nasty pairs of ballet flats away and never looked back. and then had to take a picture of my foot tan, because that’s what happens when you wear ballet flats outside for two weeks straight.}
{at the airport: creeping on someone’s blinis. and on the right, i finally tried some dutch hot chocolate. they literally put a cube of chocolate at the bottom of your glass and then fill it up with hot steamed milk… it’s the real deal. /sooooo delish.}
{i made it home with a chocolate croissant and so many wonderful goodies from paris and amsterdam.}
and that concludes our paris-amsterdam girls trip! [until the DSLR photos hit the scene someday.] great times, ladies, great times. i’m a lucky girl to have these women in my life. xo