Amsterdam & Belgium

It's been a really nice past two days.  Thursday we rode our bikes to the train station in Hoorn and then took the train to Amsterdam.  We toured the Rijksmuseum which was just recently reopened after being closed for remodeling for a full decade.  It was really neat to see, but I'm glad Sebastiaan and I are on the same page with art museums.  We were good to go after about an hour.  So, we walked around Amsterdam through shopping areas and the red light district.  We stopped to have a snack and beer on a terrace.  I was introduced to dutch meatballs.  They were pretty good and went well with the beer!  We then had plans to meet Sebastiaan's friends, Melvin, Nanya, and Djarno at an Asian fusion restaurant.  It was a really neat place and we had a nice time visiting over our 3 course dinner.  We each got to choose 2 dishes for each course so we had a fun variety to try.  After dinner, Sebastiaan, Djarno, and I took a canal cruise which was really pretty at night!  I was wondering how excited I'd be to bike home from the train station after a busy day, but it actually was rather refreshing!

Today (Friday), I was a "big girl" and took the train to Amsterdam and ultimately to Brugge, Belgium by myself.  I'd been spoiled the past couple of days because Sebastiaan planned and led most things.  It took a good part of the day by train today, but it was easy to navigate the city once I arrived.  I wouldn't make much of a tour guide because all I can tell you is I saw a lot of really old and really beautiful buildings! :0  As usual I took a bunch of pictures ~ both during the day and night.  The sites were almost more beautiful by night.  It was really relaxing walking around.  Most traffic was by foot or bicycle with an occasional bus or car that passed by.  They have many horse & carriage rides and it was neat listening to the clippity clop of the horses.  Lots of activity on the streets as most restaurants have outdoor seating.  The canals running through the city were really beautiful at night.  At one point I saw a bunch of swans swimming under a lit bridge.  Pretty!  I'll spend the night in Brugge and then head to Antwerp tomorrow.  The weather has been very cooperative so I'm grateful for that!  All for now!