AMSTERDAM

Matt and I had the pleasure of meeting up with friends from Denver in Amsterdam, the weekend of April 18-20. Mike and his family were visiting his in-laws for the week and generously volunteered to show us around town that weekend. It was quite a busy week for the two of us, especially for Matt who was first in Poland and then Austria before arriving in Amsterdam.

Hilton Amsterdam

View from our hotel room

I flew out Friday morning and the day started out well because when I arrived at the airport I was very early for my flight, so they offered to put me on the earlier flight (7:45am) which I accepted. After arriving at the Amsterdam airport, I took the tram into town and went directly to the hotel. We were using our points to stay at the Hilton and I was pleasantly surprised on arrival to be told that we were given a free upgrade to an executive room! The room was great and had a fabulous view of the city. We were also given access to the executive level dining room, where we had breakfast Saturday morning. After freshening up, I took the tram into the main part of town and wandered around a bit armed with a trusty guidebook and map. I pre-booked admission online to the Anne Frank House and toured the house later in the afternoon. It was quite an experience to imagine what it would have been like for 8 people to live in those cramped quarters and be hidden away for so long. It is truly sad to think what happened to all of them in the end. After that tour, I met up with our friends from Denver, Mike and Natasha. Natasha was born in Amsterdam and they were there visiting her family. On this evening, the kids were not out but we had drinks with her parents and two of their oldest friends. From there we moved on to dinner at a nice Italian place, after much walking around trying to find the place. During dinner Mike got a text from Matt that he had arrived at the hotel. Since it was around 10:00pm, if I recall, he was just going to stay in and go to bed. I showed up soon afterward.

Anne Frank House

Natasha and Mike

Following breakfast Saturday morning, we headed back into town to meet up with Mike and Natasha. While waiting for them, we watched an interesting street performer. Nothing was too different about his skills, but the language he used was horrendous. I guess that is Amsterdam for you?! Most of the day we spent wandering around and taking in the sites, stopping for beer at several locations. We went to the Heineken Brewery for a tour but unfortunately it was closed for renovations. One of the must-eat items of Amsterdam is the fries. They are served with a great mayo sauce or other toppings, but they are fabulous. We also went on a canal tour and stroll through the Red Light District. At first glance the main thoroughfare through the RLD looks like any other busy tourist area, but walking through you can be amazed by how many windows and doors there are that lead to "sinful pleasures". We ended the day having dinner with Natasha's aunts at a Thai restaurant.

Red Light District

Canal Boat Ride

Sunday morning we decided to have some of the much-spoken-about pancakes at a local pancake cafe. There were so many choices! We had a pleasant breakfast and then returned to the hotel to pack and check out. After checking out we decided to head to the train station to put our bags in lockers and get Matt's ticket to Germany. This was a lot of back and forth travel for us, but we decided to do it this way instead of leaving our bags with the concierge and having to go back once again. We couldn't quite figure out the kiosk at the train station so had to wait almost an hour in line for Matt to purchase his ticket at the counter. Not exactly how we wanted to spend our last few hours, but something that had to be done. Once that was taken care of we walked through the RLD again, which was much different yet still as sinful in the daylight, and went back to Dam Square for me to ride one of the rides I was thinking about since I saw it on Friday (as shown in pictures in my web album, you know where to find them). At around 4:30pm we sadly parted ways at the station. I got on a train to the airport and Matt boarded a train to Germany. Since then he has been gone every week, except the period of time that his parents were in town later in April. We don't like things that way, but it is just something we have to deal with right now. We are thankful for the time we do get to spend together and all of the leisure travel we've been able to do since moving abroad.

Yummy Pancakes

Booster Maxxx! Awesome ride!

Carnival in Dam Square

Girls' Weekend in Germany!

Oh boy, do I have a lot of time to make up for! Well, I finally planned an ADPI Girls' Trip for sisters living in Europe. I've always wanted to getaway with the girls and am envious every time my Zeta Phi chapter sisters plan a weekend out of town. This trip was especially exciting because those who attended had never met each other until then. So, on the weekend of 11-13 April four of us had a wonderful visit in Mainz, Germany (near Frankfurt). Two sisters, Andrea and Gina, live within an hour away of the city, Colleen flew from Naples, Italy, and of course I arrived from London. It seemed like we were old friends and conversation flowed easily. Ahhh, the bond and joys of sisterhood!

Amber, Colleen, Andrea, Gina

While I arranged the hotel details, Andrea planned most of our activities for the weekend as she has been living in Germany for quite a few years now and is the most familiar with the area. On Friday evening, Gina and I were the first to arrive and dined alone near the hotel. Unfortunately, Colleen had some transportation problems and did not meet up with us until later in the evening. Andrea was finishing up work for her graduate class and did not arrive until Saturday morning.

After enjoying a delicious german buffet breakfast, we met up with Andrea at the Gutenberg Museum Workshop. (The Gutenberg Museum is one of the oldest museums of printing in the world.) We probably spent a couple of hours in the shop creating ADPI prints. I have to say that the children caught on much faster than we did and had many more prints by the end. Afterward we did a quick tour of the Museum to see the Gutenberg Bible and other "treasures". We strolled through the local market before meeting up for a guided walking tour of the city. Our guide spoke in both German and English, but it was obvious that the german dialogue was much more detailed than the one we received in English. Apparently the version given to us was a bit embellished and after deciding our attention was not being captivated we decided to duck out early and see a few sites of our own before moving on to our next "appointment".

Working one of the presses

Our finished product

Andrea very wisely made arrangements for us to join the wine tour (only in German) at Kupferberg Wine Cellar - a specialist producer of sparkling wine ("Sekt"). After a tour of the cellars we were treated to a wine tasting of three varieties of Sekt (again dialogue in german). Needless to say we were all very giddy after that activity. We were released into the gift shop where we all proceeded to buy several bottles of Sekt. Andrea took my bottles back to her place, in hopes that I would come visit to collect! Hopefully I'll make it there before she moves back to the States at the end of the summer! Otherwise, she'll have to mail them to me. Anyway, after getting drunk for "free" we headed to dinner. We went to an authentic Mexican restaurant, for more drinks...and oh, dinner. (I have not seen another authentic Mexican restaurant anywhere in Europe. ) Oh, but the night was not over yet!!! Germany is known for its spas and thermal baths, so of course we had to experience this for ourselves. We drove across the river (thanks Gina!) into Wiesbaden to one of the spas and enjoyed an hour or so in the large "heated pool". Now by this time it is about 10:00pm or so. We eventually returned to the hotel, sadly putting an end to our fabulous day.

Enjoying our Sekt!

Our "souvenirs"

Sunday morning, we took a stroll around the hotel along the Rhine River and said our goodbyes. What a wonderful weekend it was! I will treasure the memories and the new friendships I've formed. I hope I can get in a few more girls' trips around Europe before returning to the States.

Beautiful girls!

ALL Pictures http://picasaweb.google.com/amber.biviano/Germany

P.S. I learned that Andrea and I are only four days apart in age (I'm older) and Colleen and I share wedding anniversaries (I married in 2001, she married just last year in 2007)!!!