Doog Amsterdam!

Lest I forget as the Netherlands slowly but surely evaporates into the distant memory, I promise myself that I'd write this particular post recounting our last Amsterdam trip.

It took place on the 14th of August as we set out again on the northbound train to Amsterdam Centraal. As wont, we configured our jaunt after breakfast and happily trotted off to the train platform that balmy Tuesday morning.

The weather had improved from the previous week with scattered thunderstorms lulled us into a state of stupor, hiding indoors in our sweatpants and t-shirts.

Our main agenda was to go on a canal cruise around the city, which are being offered by several cruise companies dotting the piers in the vicinity of Centraal station. With their own individual docks, these canal cruises cover a slew of tourist attractions along the extensive waterways of Amsterdam.

Before we hopped onto our cruise of choice, we ambled over to our favourite casual diner, Bakkerswinkel to relish their delicacies for the very last time. And the time had never been more opportune with Sadia napping as soon as we're about to arrive in Amsterdam. However, we risked disturbing her peaceful slumber by entering the cafe at lunch hour.

Despite our initial hesitation, we sat at the quiet corner further into the cafe, albeit a smoking section of the place. Since noone was smoking at that moment, we selected the long repast table, not unlike the one you might see at a mess hall, for its outwardly serene setting.

Oh yes, the primary reason we didn't seat at one of the non-smoking tables was due to the presence of a group of inebriated and rowdy men on the table opposite to the proposed vacant seats.

We ordered the usual set of fluffy, savoury scone with cream cheese and a tomato quiche with a side salad. With our expectations high on the farewell trip to Bakkerswinkel, we were disappointed to find that this time the service was below par. Probably, it was attributed to the lunch crowd or that it was the first day of the week it was opened (it closes on Mondays), but we had hoped with a number of successful years under its belt, the cafe would be efficient at all levels.

Sadly, it was presumptuous of us to make such a sweeping statement. The cream cheese was out of stock and was replaced with a big slice of cheese that came a little bit too late for my ravenous appetite. Also, the wilting and stale greens on the side added insult to our gastronomic injury.

In the middle of eating lunch however, Sadia stirred from her kip as three persons with smoking agenda settled across the table from us. I nimbly moved Sadia from the area and up the stairs to the cosy, living den that houses the cafe's knick-knacks and other memorabilia. Sadia jolted out of her groggy state by a large cat which scampered off and disappeared behind the rooftop adjacent to the sitting parlour.

While hubby settled the bill, Sadia and I waited for hubby outside where a strong scent of hash hit my nostrils. Bakkerswinkel was after all situated in one of Amsterdam's prominent, infamous pedestrian streets filled with marijuana joints. Later, hubby informed me that the cafe proprietor apologised profusely for the yellowish vegetables and proffered a new salad instead, to which my husband declined due to time constraints.

After getting our bearing from a helpful canal information booth, we hiked to the dock at which we were to climb aboard a canal boat. Unfortunately, the cruise company we selected didn't live up to its boastful credentials on the internet. For one, its pinnen or debit card service was out of order (which looks like it has been status quo for a protracted period of time) and the dilapidated state of the dock and the boat left little to the imagination. Furthermore, we were the last few people to enter the packed vessel and luckily obtained a seating room at the farthest end of the boat, albeit next to the public toilet.

As soon as the vessel got underway, I understood fully the very purpose of the toilet. The one-hour, laborious ride through Amsterdam's waterways might be disagreeable to some people's strong desire to relieve themselves. The sound of water moving and swishing about must have compounded to the fervent wish to pass water, so to speak.

Coupled with the sound of the roaring engine, the poor audio quality of the captain's off-the-cuff remarks on selected attractions saw us becoming increasingly restless, most of all Sadia. She only ate a few pieces of the plain scone that we had doggy-bagged from the cafe and thereafter wanted to roam around the boat. (There were also recorded commentaries in different languages - one after the other - being played in correspond to certain tourist spots on our route. This multilingual set-up was not only headache-inducing but also grating!)




















The interesting historical and modern sites along the route however managed to somewhat offset our anxiety, encompassing namely, OudeKerk, Westerkerk, Zuidekerk, Anna Frank House, the narrowest house on Singel canal, the docked cruise ship at Passenger Terminal Amsterdam (PTA), the replica of Dutch East India Company ship, 'De Amsterdam' and the famous skinny 'Magere Brug' wooden Bridge.

We were more than glad to hop out of the boat as soon as it parked at the exit Pier close to Centraal Station. We later scurried to find a tram for our next destination: the Albert Cuyp Market, located in the neighbourhood of the The Pijp. Opens everyday save for Sundays, this street market is arguably the largest daytime market in Europe. In line with the Netherlands' erratic weather, its hours may vary according to both seasonal and climactic changes.

Having lived in Delft for almost a year with its customary Thursday and Saturday markets as well as the weekend antique street market, we found Albert Cuyp rather bland and ordinary in comparison. After purchasing Sadia's soft-serve at the start of the market, we zipped through the stalls without stumbling onto anything that struck our fancy. Perhaps, it was late in the summer or that most vendors either were on vacation or had moved to other more lucrative spots, but that day the market definitely lacked any buzz!

What a day! We decided to walk it off to the nearest tram station that we'd find. And what a long stroll it was! Even Sadia got antsy in the process. Things turned for the worse in the sardine-packed tram, with Sadia crying for some nursing action. As a result, we came down at Spui and subsequently sat down at an eatery to have some coffee with a scrumptious plate of Belgian waffle and also to nurse Sadia. Sadia was however distracted by the late afternoon crowd grabbing a bite at the bistro.

Thereafter, we moved to the Kalvertoren shopping center in search of a quiet nook to do Sadia's bidding. But Sadia had other ideas and literally jumped out of her babyseat to chase a couple of stray pigeons lolloping about inside Hema's cafe. We took the cue and briskly walked to Damrak so she could play with a gaggle of pigeons, or as the cynics would say, rats with wings! Here, two young girls occupied themselves with feeding the pigeons, some of which perched and pecked on the seeds laid in the palms of their hands. Even their mom offered some birdseeds to Sadia, but she shyly ran away instead. She preferred to enjoy the pigeons congregating on the grounds of Damrak.

And that concludes our final excursion into the colourful capital of the Netherlands. We boarded the full train back to Delft, and immersed ourselves in the sight of the countryside for the last time - polders, cows, sheep, horses and ponies, windmills, and Sadia's favourite - wind farms.

Hope to see these familiar sights again when we balik kampung in the next 5-10 years or so. :)