Amsterdam

Three full days of exploring and another day - today - to go before Friday's early train to Hamburg.

First to describe the city-scape; the center core has seven main concentric canals, each with a ration of Amsterdam's 1500 bridges.  Add a few narrow lateral canals, plus a couple more bridges; some able to lift with ancient beams or strange chains and gears.  Place a narrow street down each side with a path for cyclists, a single lane for cars and an even smaller sidewalk for pedestrians.  Decorate the railings for each bridge with clusters of locked bicycles.  Between the the bridges there are more rows of bicycles waiting reclaiming.  The background sound will be the gentle click of plastic wheeled rolling suitcases dragged by tourists over the pavement bricks.  Plant a few trees and line each canal with tiny bars, restaurants and occasional coffee shops and you have our neighborhood in 'Nieumarkt', Wandering the streets / canal views of Amsterdam, whether night or day, is a constant delight that just makes me smile. This town is also a 'foodie' heaven.  Indonesia, Chinese, Suriname, Argentina, Brasilia, Mexican - that's before the frites, kababs and Turkish pizza.  Oh, must not forget waffles and pancakes.
On the road one must make time for self maintainance.  First day's activity was locating a dentist to get a temporary filling to repair a broken root-canal, a morning surprise from Bruges.  Patched for 25 euros.  Walked back through 'Negen Straagjes' - Nine Streets,  a grid of block-long shopping that spans across three canals in the Western canal belt.  Eclectic mix of items, most regular clothing stores but also one store that sells nothing but toothbrushes!
Frozen Foam has high-end Dutch design.  Very witty items - I must throw out half our furniture and start again from this store.  Make your own neon sign at 15 euros a letter or own a tea pot with a gorilla on the top.
 A similar interior design store is 'droog' - they claim using their items will transform your life.   Certainly will transfer your cash, from your bank account to theirs.  Beautiful and functional although I'll only keep my bicycle built of bamboo in the house.
Day Two included Rembrandt Huis, his home and studio for 20 years has been loving surrounded by a modern shell for the small museum.  You walk through each room with period furniture and paintings galore over the walls giving a brief overview of contemporary 16th century artists and his pupils.  Miriam got to assist in making an etching.

Day Three was the St. Nicholas Boat Club tour.  This is the alternative canal view.  Rather than the giant glass topped tourist boat with canned announcements in five languages we walked half way across town to join 20 others in a small open boat.  (Russian water rescue craft, functional and sturdy). Got to see from the water that we have covered most of the down town core by foot.  Bonus the sky cleared up during our hour plus on the water.  Tour guide was an American actor / stand-up comedian who came to visit 20 years ago and is still here.  Knows his town!

Amsterdam Factoids:
There are two bicycles for every citizen.  The city periodically tags long parked bikes - move it in six weeks or we will cut the chain and take it.
The canals average  9 feet deep.  The Dutch say 3 ft of mud, 3 ft of bicycles and 3 ft of water.
A boat with special grapple hook makes a sweep of each canal twice a year, pulling out the old abandoned bikes, sunken cars and the aprox. 12 bodies.  (Not foul play, rather drunk people who try and take up boating or swimming.  It can be a fair swim to a chain or other handholds to climb out of a canal.)
Two types of houseboats - genuine boats and floating platforms with a wooden box on top, placed in the canals in the '60s for emergency housing.  Both discharge their sewage straight into the canals!! Eeuuh.  Once a week the city opens the locks that connect with the river and sea and flushes out each canal in turn for general cleaning.
Last night took in "My Big Fat American Election", at Boom Chicago, long running English language comedy club.  The show doesn't start till next week but we lucked into a preview for 5 euros.  Three improv comedians riffed off the audience between their set skits.  (How do you parody Mitt Romney when his every comment reveals such a hollow man.).
The Van Gogh experience has been saved up to day.  More on this later.