Amsterdam

 So, it was time to leave Morocco and after all the drama on the tour with the people on it, I was actually really happy to go. My flight to Amsterdam went well and I had a planned overnight in Amsterdam and was excited for a room to myself and to visit a city I have been to before. When we landed I immediately took myself to the train station and into the city. I didn't do anything special, just walked around and enjoyed the city and the Christmas lights. I then had a wonderful chicken burger, fries and beer before heading to the hotel for a relaxing night of BBC TV and a very comfortable bed.

I had expected to fly home on a direct flight. So, to the airport I went and waited at the gate only for it to be cancelled. Then 4 plus hours waiting to figure out how to get home and then get vouchers for a night's stay. It was a really depressing day and I just wanted to go home. I did take myself into the city though for a visit to MOCO the modern art museum and although it isn't usually my thing it really did cheer me up. The colors the style was all so interesting.

After some drama about which gate, the flight really did take off and I finally got to go home to the dogs.  After this rough trip I am not sure when I will travel internationally again.

Amsterdam

Made it to our very last city on our adventure. We are now sitting on a houseboat which is our home for 4 nights trying to decide what to do first. Update: The first night we ended up not doing a whole lot other than going to the grocery store and picking up food to cook in our kitchen and watching American TV. Friday: We decided to check off the two things we wanted to do the most. A trip to the Anne Frank House was first. The 2 hour wait in line outside talking to a couple from Ohio was completely worth it to see and feel what it was like to have to be hiding from the Nazis. After that very emotional museum we walked a bit to the Van Gogh Museum. That was a different kind of experience in a modern building surrounding by some beautiful art work and writings. It was very worthwhile experience. Saturday: It was the Amsterdam Cana Pride Parade. We found a spot on the canal looking between 2 houseboats at the parade going by. Each of the boats/barges had a theme and a party atmosphere. It was a crazy cool show. After the parade we got lost in Old Town walking all over the place.

Sunday: We woke up to find out that our hot water wasn't working. So, we had to work with the owner a bit before leaving and catching a train to Haarlem. Our goal was to see a museum about the people who were hiding Jewish people during WWII. It turns out it was closed on Sundays so instead we got to explore the cute town and eat pancakes in the square before heading back to the big city. We took a canal boat ride when we got back to Amsterdam and it was really interesting to see the canals from below. We ended the night eating tasty Irish food in a pub before heading back to the boat and packing everything to go home.

The Hague

We left Belgium for the Netherlands. Our destination was The Hague and the surrounding area. In fact our hotel was a funky slightly dated hotel on the beach in Scheveningen which is on the North Sea. It was an easy tram ride from the train station, in fact we got to go to the end of the tram line and then just basically had to cross the street to get to the hotel. Our first partial day was spent walking along the windy promenade and exploring the sculptures and shops.

The next morning we skipped The Hague and took the tram the completely other direction to Delft. A cute little town that is known for their blue and white porcelain that is still hand painted (although they do stamp some of it). We explored a few too many souvenir shops filled with the pretty porcelain and walked the rather quiet streets. We stopped at the Peace Palace on our way to the Madurodam a really interesting and interactive miniature city of the Netherlands.

Before heading to Amsterdam we visited a famous art museum the Mauritshuis that was filled with Rembrandts and Vermeers.