I’ve been to the Netherlands quite a few times. Mostly on business. One of the last times was on holiday. We went to the Floriadae Exhibition. Beautiful, it was.
That must have been a disappointment Bob, I’ve heard a few people say the same…
Did you go to the Anne Frank house?
Unfortunately Besoeker, when visiting places while on a cruise, time is very limited, and because the cruise was mainly centred on the New Year celebrations we could only afford a few hours to get a general impression of Amsterdam and I was very disappointed with the cleanliness and the lack of maintenance of the city. I did enjoy the magnificent architecture, but with the crowds of people and disorganised roads, cycle lanes and trams it just seemed like a very badly designed and dangerous city. I expected something better from the Dutch, and having visited many cities around the world, I’m afraid Amsterdam will not be present on my list of favourite cities to return to.
OFF, I too have been to Amsterdam and came away with views similar to yours. I have subsequently been told Rotterdam is much nicer.
That, I can understand. I, too, have many places around the world. Some, I wouldn’t go back to. For different reasons. Not always for the more obvious reasons.
Well Im not too bothered about not having been to Amsterdam now… it was on my list but I might cross it off 
Ship looked nice though Bob… Im still waiting for the cake though
Don’t cross it off your list because of me Summer, we all see things in a different way, and I was only there for a few hours, but my first impressions were not favourable…
Unfortunately the nice looking hound that followed me through customs wouldn’t leave me alone until I gave it something to eat…You guessed it…it was your cake Summer…sorry…
By the time we returned to the ship on New Years Eve my big toe was the size of a large bratwurst, so after changing into something appropriate I limped my way down to the restaurant and enjoyed a splendid meal, all washed down with champagne and some red wine…
The only place to dance properly on the Arcadia was the Globe, about the same size as a large pub, and it cost £100 to reserve a table, I was relieved to hear that all the tables were booked, so we spent the evening sat in the Rising Sun pub doing quizzes and looking pretty in our suits and bow ties, and that was just the ladies…
Unable to dance with a throbbing foot and limited space, I managed to take part in the traditional Auld Lang Syne and the following hoki koki…Where I made my escape up to the buffet restaurant on the top deck and enjoyed a ham sandwich followed by tea and biscuits…And a happy New Year.
The late night did me more damage than the single glass of Peroni and two glasses of champagne that I consumed all night…So after a very painful nights sleep, what was left of it, and a seriously throbbing toe, I finally surfaced around ten and staggered down to breakfast. I thought the ship windows had steamed up but no, it was thick freezing fog outside with visibility down to just a few yards, so together with the toe from hell my photo opportunity around Amsterdam was cancelled.
It gets worse…
After steaming through the night we arrived in Zeebrugge, my throbbing toe had settled down so we left the ship to visit Bruges. P&O had laid on shuttle busses to take us to Blankenberg? We were dropped off at the station where a train could be caught to Bruges.
An old surly ticket seller peered through a small window and informed me that my debit card was not accepted here and I would need to pay in cash, he gestured to an ATM on a wall opposite so I fed it my card…It was the last time I would ever see that card again.
A message on the screen said “Card withheld, Machine now out of service”…:shock:
The surly ticket seller threw his hands up in the air and said “Nothing I can do!”
We left Blankenberg on the next shuttle bus back to the ship…
Could it have been a sniffer OGF?
Donkeyman!
I never thought of that Donkeyman…
I haven’t been to Amsterdam since the 1950s but isn’t that a problem that the docks in older cities tend to be struck in run down areas? Think Tilbury.
Yes that’s quite true Bruce, but after a decent walk from the cruise terminal, which I must say was clean, newish and well organised, we found ourselves in the city centre and I was very disappointed. Perhaps had I delved further into Holland’s interior It would have been the country I had read about and admired since childhood.
Having been a courier I have visited most of the UK’s towns and cities, and any one of them would give Amsterdam a serious run for its money.
Sorry your visit to Amsterdam was such a disappointment to you Bob, I hope that, and your bad toe, didn’t spoil your holiday too much.
Had some very good food and company Mags, just a pity that we didn’t get to see Amsterdam the next day so I could have posted some photos.
It turns out that after a visit to the doctors on Monday I have got gout!
My big toe has caused me problems for the last couple of years and I thought it was just a bunion. So much for self diagnosis on the internet…
My late FIL used to get bouts of gout and use to say how painful it was. I wonder what caused you to get it whilst on holiday
Sue and I board our ship in Amsterdam at 10am later o this year, the brochure says about it.
Quote"
City of charming canals, elegant gabled houses, splendid museums and abundant bicycles, the Dutch capital of Amsterdam is a delight to explore. Its patchwork of waterways forms about 90 islands connected by 1,500 bridges. The legacy of the Dutch Golden Age lives on in gilded manses and in the lush paintings of Rembrandt and other Dutch masters that adorn the Rijksmuseum, The Netherlands’ grand repository of art and cultural history. Today, discovering Amsterdam is a pleasure best pursued on foot, following tranquil canals past charming narrow-fronted houses. Linger over classic Dutch pancakes, or take a stroopwafel to go." unquote
by the time we board and go through ship safety drill we won’t see any of it. also there are no tours laid on anyway
second day we will be in "KINDERDIJK in the Netherlands
I believe it was the red wine Mags, I only usually have a glass with my Sunday lunch, but we had a bottle with our meal every night while on board the ship. I suspected it might be the case so when we got home after my toe had settled down I deliberately had a couple of glasses on Sunday night and I was in so much pain in the early hours I couldn’t go back to sleep.
Mrs Fox and me enjoying our New Years Eve banquet with plenty of red wine…
It might look better in the summer realspeed, but watch out for the cycle lanes (deadly!) avoid all the cigarette butts, and don’t try and smuggle any of that cannabis stuff through customs. I wasn’t too keen on those skanks sat half naked in the windows either…
I will look forward to your photos though…
Have a good Cruise though…
OGF
we are going with Viking cruise line on one of their long ships doing 4 countries in 15 days . Flying with them to Amsterdam first .
DAY 1 Amsterdam, The Netherlands
DAY 2 Kinderdijk, The Netherlands
DAY 3 Cologne, Germany
DAY 4 Koblenz, Germany
DAY 5 Miltenberg, Germany
DAY 6 Würzburg, Germany
DAY 7 Bamberg, Germany
DAY 8 Nuremberg, Germany
DAY 9 Regensburg, Germany
DAY 10 Passau, Germany
DAY 11 Melk, Austria
DAY 12 Vienna, Austria
DAY 13 Vienna, Austria
DAY 14 Budapest, Hungary
DAY 15 Budapest, Hungary
fly back from Budapest