Joel is Jim’s nephew, son of his next older brother David. Joel and Lacey live in Denver Colorado and are very active weekend hikers and sometimes tandem bikers. Joel was a serious bicycle racer in a past life. They visited us in San Diego over this past Christmas but this is their first excursion out of the US with us. We absolutely love spending time with them and watching how active they are.
They arrived at noon after taking the train from the airport and then the Metro to Waterlooplein. Jim met them on the street near our home.As usual, Sandy had prepared some yummy treats for us to eat before heading out to explore. Lacey and Joel have had the longest flight to get here flying from Denver to Chicago and then on to Amsterdam but they are still going to stay up.Oudeschans canal in front of our home.So many of these duck stores around this city.Old church in the red light district.An appropriate shop for this district.Joel and Lacey are only with us for four nights and they stayed very busy. They always go out very early for coffee and maybe pastries. They went to the Anne Frank House, did a full day tour of Keukenhof, and a full day tour of Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum and a canal boat tour. Our dining experiences were at Asmara, our local favorite Eritrean restaurant, and Mana Mana which is Mediterranean. Here we are heading out after 9pm to see the city after dark.They spent all day at Keukenhof, not returning until 8pm. We had a home prepared meal of Indian Dal and salad before heading out on our evening excursion. This is our canal with its famous Montelbaanstoren tower.Centraal Station.These are known as “the painted ladies” but we don’t feel that they deserve the name.Basilica of Saint Nicholas.Royal Palace.These are known as “the leaning ladies”.South Church. We did not return home until after 11pm.Grey Heron at the Alfred Cuyp Market.Walking to Mana Mana on their last day.
We were not good at taking pictures when out with these two and they were out on their own for a good part of their time here. No farewell picture as they snuck out of the house at 6am to catch a train to Bruges where they are meeting some friends. They have five more nights in Europe to explore before returning to Amsterdam for their flight home. We will be having a dinner at home with them and Rob, Jen, & Jackson.
I loved seeing the photos of Amsterdam at night! They gave me such a different perspective of the city. I am glad to see some guests are willing to stay up late for further exploration and was really glad to see you were so game to join your young guests!
Leave a Reply