Spring Break: Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Thursday, April 12.  Our hotel in Zandvoort left much to be desired, especially after the fabulous apartment we left behind in Bruges.  The shower was actually in a closet and all 7 of us had to share a card table and two chairs whenever we wanted to eat.  But, it's not the hotel you stay in that makes a trip wonderful but the city you get to explore and Amsterdam certainly did not disappoint.

The train station in Amsterdam.  We took the train from Zandvoort to Amsterdam so we wouldn't have to worry about traffic or trying to park.  Lucky for us, Rick Steve's walking tour of Amsterdam starts right at the train station:)

The "hidden" Catholic church.  For two centuries it was against the law to practice Catholicism.  Even though it was illegal it was tolerated as long as Catholics practiced in humble, un-advertised buildings, such as this.  What a contrast from the rest of Europe where Catholic Cathedrals are the main attraction!

The Begijnhof.  This courtyard housed unmarried women and widows that wanted to leave the world behind and live out their days in quiet service to Christ.  The women who lived here took care of the poor and sick of the city.

There is only so much walking you can make three kids do in one day so we opted for a boat tour of Amsterdam.  It was a nice way to get some views of the architecture and layout of the city.

A view from the water.  Amsterdam was sort of like Venice...with cars.

Classic view of Amsterdam, the city of bikes!

After the boat tour we decided to split up.  Hyrum took the boys to a fabulous children's museum and Oma, Andrea and I hit the wonderful art museum.  Can you tell Julian is super happy to not be in his stroller walking around an old city?

Townsend, surrounding himself with a giant bubble

Emerson, being silly with mirrors.  Even though it was crowded Hyrum said the boys had a great time and they were happy to be in an environment that was made for running, touching, exploring, building and climbing.

Oma, Andrea and I continued the walking tour of Amsterdam on our way to the Rijksmuseum Art Museum.  This was an interesting arch.  Above is written, in latin, "Homo sapiens non urinat in ventum" which means, "Don't pee into the wind."

Only in Amsterdam!

During our walk Oma found something that she liked...

...and I found something that I liked.  I debated taking the train back into Amsterdam the next day just so I could have one of these chocolate croissants!

Oma and Andrea in front of the Rijksmuseum.  If you like the art of Dutch masters, this is a must see museum.

A little Frans Hals...

A little Vermeer...

 A little Rembrandt...

And a little Jan Steen...

By far the most impressive piece in the museum is "The Night Watch" by Rembrandt.  I love the use of light and dark to focus your eyes on the important figures.  Seriously, a wonderful masterpiece.

After leaving the museum we wandered around a bit to find a bite to eat.  Unfortunately, the "OMA Falafel" was closed...we were all very sad.

We met up again with Hyrum and the boys outside the Anne Frank house

Anne's diary is actually on display at the museum.  I read the book "The Diary of Anne Frank" when I was in 8th grade.  I still remember how much it touched me and how I had hoped it had a different ending.  Seeing the house and the hidden annex where she lived for two years was really amazing.

You weren't allowed to take pictures inside the museum so this is a photo of a postcard showing how this bookcase concealed the stairs leading up to the secret rooms.

Most of the rooms are pretty empty but there are quotes from her diaries on the walls and it is so amazing to walk through the rooms and imagine living life in fear of being discovered each and every day.  I had to include this photo of Anne, what a beautiful little girl and what a tragedy she and so many like her were killed just because they were different.

Amsterdam streets are lined with these posts.  The boys got pretty expert at jumping over them.

Family photo in Amsterdam.  Probably my favorite part of the whole day was walking around in the evening, after we had already seen all the sites on our list.  The city was quiet and the lighting was perfect for some photos.

Wow...what a day!  It was busy and full of walking but I'm glad we got to see Amsterdam.  We headed back to Zandvoort on the train and went off to bed as soon as we got to the hotel.

Spring Break: Keukenhof Garden, The Netherlands

Wednesday, April 11.  After a bit of walking around Bruges one last time we loaded up in the van and headed up to the Netherlands.  The drive took about 3 hours so we got to the famous Keukenhof gardens with plenty of time to walk around and enjoy the flowers.

As you can tell from this photo, some of the fields weren't in bloom quite yet.  

What is a trip to Holland without a photo of your kids in giant wooden shoes?

The daffodils were in full splendor

The boys had fun hopping around these platforms in the middle of the lake

The whole garden smelled so wonderful.  There were so many different types of flowers planted that as you walked around your senses were delighted by every turn.

Token photo of a windmill

The gardens really are spectacular.  It's amazing all the work they put into something that is only open for 2 months every year!

The boys weren't that impressed with the beautiful flower beds in the garden but they sure loved all the fun play areas.

Me and my man

We lucked out with weather once again, it was supposed to be raining.  This was a nice relaxing stop on our trip.  We could enjoy walking around a wonderful garden and the boys could get some wiggles out.  After leaving the garden we headed up to Zandvoort, to our hotel.

Spring Break: Bruges, Belgium

On Monday, April 9, after leaving the sites of Normandy France we headed to the city of Bruges in Belgium.  The drive took us about 6 hours so by the time we got to Bruges we just wanted to have a bite to eat and head off to bed.  The house we reserved in Bruges was wonderful.  There was a full kitchen with a dining table that we could all sit around.  The best part was the washer and dryer so we could do some laundry and get ready for the rest of the trip.  

What is there to see and do in Bruges?  The main attraction for me was the architecture and the city itself. There are no "must see" sights in Bruges so it was relaxing and nice to just enjoy being in a new city.

Tuesday, April 10, we headed out to see what there was to see in Bruges.

We used this window as a marker to help us find the way back to our house.  From the main street, turn right when you see this window;)

Bruges has a main canal running through the town.  It used to be one of the main stops on the cloth trade route and most of the cities money was made this way.

THE attraction in Bruges is this bell tower.  It has been on the square since 1300 and a carillon bell rings each 15 minutes.  We just had to climb the 366 steps to the top for a view of the city.

Emerson waving goodbye as he heads up the stairs.

The inner workings of the bell tower.  We were in this room when the bells rang and it was so neat to see how this machinery runs to make the bells ring out a specific tune.

Belgium chocolate anyone?  No thanks.  I have never liked Belgium chocolate...too waxy.  I thought I would give it a try since I was in Belgium.  Nope, still no good.  They are pretty to look at but they have no real chocolate flavor.

Moving on  to Burg Square.  This is the Basilica of the Holy Blood.  This church was built by a crusader in 1150 to house the drops of Christ's blood he brought back from Jerusalem.

The interior of this church was beautiful!  Unfortunately the phial of blood was not on display the day we visited.

Townsend showing off his monkey skills in front of City Hall

The "Gothic Room" inside City Hall.

There was a carnival on the main Market Square while we were in Bruges.  The boys played a fishing game and won these action figures...

...and this is what the action figures looked like after only about 5 minutes.  Have I mentioned my twins are hard on toys?

Our only attempt at a family photo while in Bruges.  This stone bridge was so cute.

Inside the Church of Our Lady.  This is the only Michelangelo sculpture to leave Italy in Michelangelo's lifetime.

This church was very beautiful.  

The final resting place of the last local rulers of Bruges.  After Mary of Burgundy, and her father Charles the Bold died, Bruges was ruled by the wealthy Hapsburgs of Austria.

We visited two museums while in Bruges.  We found the Bruges city ticket to be quite handy.  For one price you get admission to all the sites in the city.  The Gruuthuse Museum was the 15th century mansion of one of Bruges wealthy merchants.  The neatest part about this house was that they had their own chapel that overlooked the inside of the Church of Our Lady.  So they could wake up on Sunday morning, walk into their own little chapel and observe the service without leaving their house.  The second museum we visited was the Groeninge Museum.  This museum showcases the art of Bruges painters during the 1400 when Bruges was a wealthy and very cultured city.

After a full day of site seeing we let Oma and Andrea continue their adventures (they went to another museum and then on a boat ride through the canals) while Hyrum and I took the boys to the playground.  They had a lot of fun climbing and sliding and jumping and digging.  We spent the night again in Bruges and walked around a bit the next morning before heading out of town.

Of course the sun decided to come out on the morning we left!

Bruges was a nice relaxing stop to break up our road trip.  Just being able to stay in the same place for more than one night helps make you feel less rushed.  I really enjoyed this cute little city, I hope to visit again some day.

Off to the Netherlands...