BRILLIANCE (British Isles) June 19-July 2,2018 REVIEW w/lots of photos

[Hoopster95]

A day and a half pre-cruise in Amsterdam

 

I'm going to try to keep these next few pre-cruise Amstersdam posts as short as possible in order to get to the Brilliance and the UK... I was asked in a previous post about my hotel. I don't have many photos but I will touch on it.

Keep in mind my motivation for what I'd was looking for regarding accomodations:

• travelling solo so budget minded
  
• location location location ... must be close to everything so I can quickly get everywhere I want to be
  
• Must be relatively decent reviewed on-line so that the greater average approves it.
  

I chose the Nadia Hotel. It is definitely not for everyone. Firstly it's within a very old building extremely close to Dam Square and Anne Frank House, so both the location and appeal of staying in an older/heritage building was instantly appealing. They also have solo rooms. My cost was a crazy low 225 euros for two nights. However no elevators and the stairs/risers are equal to an old church... extremely steep and dangerous. The rooms are very budget minded and there are no amenities other than a low end continental breakfast in the morning. So, if you are not mobility challenged and do not expect more than a bed to sleep in nightly in a cool old building in a superb location at an amazing price for a downtown large European city location, then I totally recommend this hotel. For the record, if I was traveling with my GF there is no way I would stay here... simply too budget and not nice enough for a vacation experience in my humble opinion. My next choice would've been at the Kimpton De Witt which also had a solo supplement, had everything Nadia had regarding location etc, but was an upper end hotel (2 1/2 times the cost however for 2 nights).

 

The walking distance from Hotel Nadia to Anne Frank house was about 2 minutes. To Rikjsmuseum about 20 minutes. To the Centraal Train Station about 20-25 minutes. Pretty much everything I needed to do and see was within a 25 minute walk in any direction... perfect! Those who insist on staying close to the cruise ship pier "for convenience" (ie. Moveinpick Hotel) are misguided doing so in my humble opinion, pretty much falling for the "fear" or the "I'm lazy" trap of the unknown... not as convenient at all if you are touring the city pre or post cruise.

 

So having checked in to Hotel Nadia, dropped off my bags & freshened up, is was o to site seeing for the rest of the afternoon and evening. Up today is

1. Rikjsmuseum
   
2. CLovers 1 hour Canal tour
   
3. Anne Frank Museum
   

Note the map below. I've labelled where the cruise ship pier is, my hotel, and the main things I did in order over the course of two days with the numbers.

 

 

 

1) Rijksmuseum

I got to Rikjsmuseum earlier than planned... leaving the hotel at about 1:30pm, I arrived at the front of th Rijksmuseum just before 2pm. I had a 1-hour inside museum tour booked at 3pm. If you book a 1 hour inside tour within the museum online, you get to skip the entire que outside in order to get to your meeting point by the ticket desk. In my case today, there was no line on this afternoon but have seen photos and read reviews from others who waited an hour. I made my way into the museum to familiarize myself where I needed to go to check in,. spoke with reception, and then headed back outside where I was able to walk around the back of the museum into their gardens and get a photo of the iconic "Iamsterdam" sign at the rear of the property.

 

The gardens area are beautiful as well, especially with a "dancing water feature" that is no the ground.... you can enter it, then it closes in on you so that you cannot exit it for about 30 seconds without being soaked.... then the water pattern changes on on "wall" so that you can exit before it closes again.

 

 

After enjoying the hustle and bustle outside, it was time to enter into the museum. While they have several Van Gogh's in here, this museum is dedicated more so to Rembrandt's works, and especially the famous "Night Watch" painting. The 1 hour tour was invaluable as with most museums, unless you are a historian you really don't know what to look at first and which pieces are the major works of art and why.

 

 

 

"Night Watch" in center

 

The one hour tour itself was based fully on the artwork areas of the museum, however there are many extensive impressive exhibits and various rooms of artifacts outlining the rich Dutch history. Here's only one example of at least 20 areas of further exhibits ranging from artifacts, furniture, more artworks, clothing/armour, weaponry ... all sorts of things.

 

 

So besides the tour, I spent about another 45-50min walking through the galleries stopping to read only a few of the placards that interested me and taking photos. If you are not a historian and deeply interested in Dutch history, then I estimate 2 hours is plenty time to get a good feel for the Rijksmuseum. If you wish to delve into it moire because of your heritage, or simply your interest, you could easily spend at least 4-5 hours in here reading about every piece of artwork and artifact as you go. Van Gogh's museum is next door and I am glad I did not book it... I am told it all paintings, whereas the Rijksmuseum is varied with the Dutch history and artifacts... I was "art"ed-out after the Rijksmuseum and definitely would've been dis-interested had I booked tickets to go to Van Gogh's museum now as well.

 

With the very enjoyable 20 min walk through the streets and along the canals, the short visit into the rear gardens and to the "Iamsterdam" sign, and then into the museum itself.... I found this to be an excellent, and most importantly easy, introduction to the vacation and to familiarizing myself with the city without being stressed out after a long flight (aka. jetlag)

[Hoopster95]

2) C Lovers canal cruise

 

If someone had told me the next tip, I would've followed it and been very happy: Don't pre-book a canal cruise online.

 

Two main reasons

1. There are no joking at least 10 different boat companies doing canal tours with a different boat passing by every minute it seems... and they were relatively empty for the most part.
   
2. You can see the boats physically to determine if you'll like them. I found the boat I booked on even though was reviewed very highly and one of the larger companies, the boat itself was mostly domed/glass covered, and so actually seeing out of dirty glass vs. an open air boat with no cover at all was a real downer for me.
   

I pre-booked on line for C Lovers, the larger orange canal boats you see in many Amsterdam canal photos. They have many boats leaving from many different locations around the city, and was only one of two with a departure just a block away from Anne Frank House and my hotel, so I found this to be extremely appealing as I was combining these two activities to end my day.

 

 

Note the boat is mostly covered, so site lines are also obstructed.... other than a car-like "sun-roof" which slides open for a small portion (about 3 bench seat widths). It was difficult to get any real photos or site see properly, unless I stood up ... in hind-site I much preferred walking or the bike tour (to come), however I made due for the hour with a nice ride around Amsterdam with a "HOHO bus" commentary provided by head phones as we went along.

 

 

 

There's a couple of other small open-air boat companies, one with a bar and they serve drinks during the canal tour. They also sail you through some of the smaller canals compared to the large river boats and they were only 5 euro more. I would've much preferred those. However, they may start/end their tours from only one part of the city so you;d have to make your way to their pier wherever that may be. In hindsite, this would've been very easy as it's so easy to get around. Here's one of them:

https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Attraction_Review-g188590-d12691954-Reviews-Flying_Dutch_Boats-Amsterdam_North_Holland_Province.html

 

 

At this point I was getting hungry with little time before my Anne Frank House appointment and no time for a sit down dinner. So do as the Dutch do and eat their fast food..... herring! There's a "fish" stand with a sorts of Dutch traditional foods just around the corner from Anne Frank House and the Westerkerk church with a variety of options, but of course upon asking the clerk what is the most traditional and which I should choose, she immediately said the very traditional pickle and onions herring. Ok then... MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!! ..... ok, I'm lying, lol! It wasn't all that bad, but wouldn't order it again.

 

 

I also bought a package of Stroopwaffles to munch on as I watched the world go by, and that satisfied me for the evening.

 

3) Anne Frank House

 

Anne Frank's story is famous, and no need for me to get into it here.... there's pages and pages of info on line.

The most important thing you should know is to book tickets on-line at least a month in advance... for an evening timeslot at least 2 weeks in advance. I noted that both the nights I was there this venue was sold out about 14 days prior right through it's final booking time of 9pm. Also note there is absolutely no photography allowed inside, so guess how many interior photos I have to share with you? You guessed it.

 

 

Anne Frank and her story from the official website is here: http://www.annefrank.org/en/

Tickets here: http://www.annefrank.org/en/Museum/Practical-information/Online-ticket-sales/

 

And don't expect a high frills, massive signage amusement park type of advertising when arriving here.... Anne Frank House is incredibly modest, with the original facade/front door still facing the street, as plain as can be. The main doors to the museum are around the corner, you can't miss it. I'll also mention that I've been to a few Holocaust museums (ie. DC for example, I cried leaving this place) with original artifacts, writings/diaries, various old movies, etc... and this story/venue did not impact me at the level other exhibits. As a #1 "must-see" and prebook months in advance venue for Amsterdam, I expected more.

 

 

I was done at about 9:30pm and was beat! Having slept only about 5 hours on the flight, it was time to get to bed to try and catch up on rest as I had another long day tomorrow.

[Hoopster95]

After a great night's sleep, I was ready to go for the day. Munching on the continental breakfast provided, I had a great view of the canal and Westerkerk Church from the Nadia Hotel breakfast room.

 

 

This morning was bike tour day, however that wasn't until 10am. Being only about 8:45am I had ample time to get out for a morning walk around the downtown core to get fully acclimated with the streets and distances between areas. I also noted that if a boring continental breakfast of croissant/yogurt/fruit isn't to your liking, there's plenty of great cafe's and shops to stop by in order to try some local delicacies .... like dutch pannakoek (foreshadowing for tomorrow morning)

 

 

In the meantime, you can scroll back up to the map provided... I walked east from my hotel to the Royal Palace and Dam Square where the National Monument is located. I specifically wanted to note this as the Palace is available to the public on certain days and times... sure enough it was open over the course of the week (closed when dignitaries and Royalty is staying there)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Monument_(Amsterdam)

 

 

Note that this city is not alive at 9am. The streets are not that full of commuter traffic or those heading to work like in many other metropolitan cities here in North America.

 

 

You will see in pictures tonight what this area looks like during the "normal" day hours.... super busy and bikes everywhere.

I made my way up to Centraal Train Station to check out the area. Here's a site you don't see everyday... a multilevel bicycle parking garage!

 

 

And you think that's a lot of bikes? Think again... you see this around the city in high traffic areas more often than not.

This is Centraal Station, which I will point out again tomorrow on my way to Brilliance and again on the final day when I make my way back to the airport to go home. Central has quite a bit of history to it

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amsterdam_Centraal_station

"Amsterdam Centraal was designed by Pierre Cuypers, who is also known for his design of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. While Cuypers was the principal architect, it is believed that he focused mostly on the decoration of the station building and left the structural design to railway engineers". Wow.... railway engineers designed this building! There were other things mentioned to me about Centraal by our bike tour guide which has escaped me. Interesting place.

 

[PhilNDebbieAtSea]

Hi Claudio! Wow, this cruise looks amazing! Can’t wait to hear all about it! It is off to a great start with awesome pictures and commentary. Definitely on our bucket list.... Thanks for sharing!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Hoopster95]

4) We Bike Amsterdam

 

I had booked a 3 hour city tour with We Bike Amsterdam this morning. They offer a couple of other options for bike tours as well. I chose them for convenience/proximity to my hotel, but mostly for their excellent reviews.

https://www.webikeamsterdam.com/

 

This turned out to be a great morning and quite fun... simple bike ride, not strenuous at all, with superb information about the history of Amsterdam, how the city was built (dams! and the millions of posts buried 75 feet down into the marsh holding up the city), various locations of significance including the Dutch West Indies Trading Company first office from the 1700's and other great sites.... besides, the biking and views riding around were spectacular! Note the many house boats

 

 

I thought one of the more interesting sites I had zero clue about were the "hidden churches". Have you ever heard of them? There are supposedly hundreds. During the Eight Years War, Netherlands won it's independence from Catholic Spanish rule. Catholic churches were converted to protestant and Catholics were forbidden to worship in public or in a church that looked like a church. The result were churches hidden behind the facade of residences and canal houses.

 

Take a look at this average looking building on one of many canal streets... note the red hat under the window. This was a hat manufacturer or hat store back in the day

 

 

But go inside and walk through to the back of the building, and you come across this

 

 

Pretty cool! Note the 3 level balcony and the height of the pulpit & organ. Today this venue is used more for conventions and meetings. It's called De Rode Hoed (The Red Hat in Dutch)

https://www.inspirock.com/the-netherlands/amsterdam/de-rode-hoed-the-red-hat-a520750661

Another I found on line which is much more beautiful if you wish to hunt for it during your visit is this one

"Our Lord in the Attic"

http://mikestravelguide.com/things-to-do-in-amsterdam-visit-the-secret-church-in-the-attic/

 

Here's another interesting photo.... see anything out of place

 

 

This is the narrowest canal house in Amsterdam... only 1 metre wide! Thankfully it widens at the back. It is very close to Anne Frank House, the Royal Palace and so forth, so really easy to find with a wonderful short stroll along the canals when you're in the area with plenty of outdoor canal cafe's/restaurants around

http://www.simplyamsterdam.nl/Narrowest_house_in_Amsterdam.htm

 

 

We had a great tour of the city riding through Jordaan, the Jewish Quarter, over to the new city, through Vondel Park

https://www.google.ca/search?q=vondelpark&rlz=1C1RNVH_enCA559CA585&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjhiPXyj5PcAhXOGjQIHa0bAAwQ_AUICigB&biw=1600&bih=745

and ending with a ride around Museumpline (the museum district)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museumplein)

and through the famous Rijksmuseum tunnel on our way back to the bike store.

 

_ox606glPfY

 

 

This was a great start to the day, a must do for anyone wanting to say they actually conquered biking in the streets of Amsterdam!

[Hoopster95]

Hi Claudio! Wow, this cruise looks amazing! Can’t wait to hear all about it! It is off to a great start with awesome pictures and commentary. Definitely on our bucket list.... Thanks for sharing!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Hey Debbie!!! How the heck is the whole gang?! Thanks for dropping by and following along .

Say, is Alaska on your bucket list anytime soon??.... How about May 13, 2019 on Ovation? (note my signature) ;p

I'd love to turn around in the check-in line in Vancouver like on our Hawaii sailing with you guys unknowingly standing right behind me again lol! That was funny. Hey, with Ovation you can relive the Quantum sailing too ;)

[PhilNDebbieAtSea]

Hey Debbie!!! How the heck is the whole gang?! Thanks for dropping by and following along .

 

Say, is Alaska on your bucket list anytime soon??.... How about May 13, 2019 on Ovation? (note my signature) ;p

 

I'd love to turn around in the check-in line in Vancouver like on our Hawaii sailing with you guys unknowingly standing right behind me again lol! That was funny. Hey, with Ovation you can relive the Quantum sailing too ;)

 

 

 

Everyone is good, thanks! That was funny! We did do Alaska in 2009... Maybe 10 years later is a good time to go back, especially on a Quantum class! [emoji4] We do already have Canada / New England booked for 2019.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[JimAOk1945]

I'm following along. Great start!

[KansCocoa]

Great start!!!

 

I totally missed Amsterdam’s skinniest house - how did I miss that? And here I thought I had exhaustively explored every nook and cranny of the city...I guess we’ll have to go back, just so I can see this. ;)

 

I totally agree with your suggestion about waiting to book a canal cruise until you’re actually there...I saw those boats with the roofs, and wondered if the view was good or not. Now I know. We used Those Dam Boat Guys, and had a blast...it was BYOB, but that was perfect for us. :)

 

And snaps to you for doing a bike tour. Hubby asked if we could do one, and I was immediately, “Nope.” I am not a very good bicyclist, and knew I would not only wipe out, but I would probably take down about 30-40 other bicyclists who were unfortunate enough to be near me. Wasn’t going to happen. Nope.

 

Keep it going!! (I’ll be starting my own review next week, when I get settled in my “writing place” and have some peace and quiet. :)

[captainannoyed!]

any Brilliance experts? The search function isn't helping me. Just realized our (aft) cabin 1604 is beneath the Windjammer outdoor cafe!!! How much noise can we expect? We like to sleep in.

I've had 1604 on Serenade. Yes, some noise from Windjammer, mostly chairs on the deck and some conversation from above. It didn't bother me much, but everyone is different. I loved the cabin and have it again next September.

[LBumb]

great pics

[Hoopster95]

We used Those Dam Boat Guys, and had a blast....

 

Keep it going!! (I’ll be starting my own review next week, when I get settled in my “writing place” and have some peace and quiet. :)

 

 

Ya, I saw this boat company and was jealous :)You must've had great photo ops.

You're going to have a massive following on your review lol! Can't wait myself :D

[Hoopster95]

5) Westerkerk Church

 

Having finished the bike tour, it was time for lunch. Iasked our guide for a referral for local food. He pretty much smirked and saidnothing close by will give you good “local” food, however he asked if I wouldbe interested in Dutch pancake (pannekoek) for lunch? Of course I said sure, sohe said find the Pancake Factory… “turn right, go over 3 bridges, turn left andyou’ll see it”. Ok… so off I went!

 

 

The directions were perfect, as I turned the corner afterthe 3rd bridge there was the little door to this restaurant, howeverwith 25-30 people waiting in line outside to get in… GRRRRR! Wasn’t going towait in a one hour line but at least now I know it’s likely pretty good here with so many people waiting. Imade a point then and there that I would skip the mediocre continentalbreakfast from the hotel and come here tomorrow morning.

 

 

Onward I go to find a place to eat, but not before passingby Anne Frank House again and all the crowds of tourists… the Pancake Factoryas I just discovered is only a block down from here, and thus only 3 blocksfrom the hotel… sweet! Continuing on I walk right in front of WesterkerkChurch, where I noticed the door open. It was not open the evening before. Peaking inside, they obviously had aclerk/counter taking payment for entry up to the bell tower. I had read onlinethe views here are fabulous, so putting my hunger aside I went in.

 

 

Wersterkerk has a little bit of cool history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westerkerk

Built in the late 1600’s, Westerkerk is the largest built Protestantchurch in the Netherlands. The guide took us up the winding stairs to the firstlevel with a couple of various displays. The bells have a story behind them whichI can’t remember, but I have a close up of one of them dating back to the 1700’s

 

 

Note the guide walking up the extremely steep stairs inbehind the beams. Note the width/diameter of the beams. Huge!

 

 

The highest allowable level is the top of the wooden-builtportion of the church about 2/3 of the way up. The upper portions are closedoff to the public. The views are spectacular nonetheless. Here’s the pano viewlooking south … I’ve labelled the Rijksmuseum in the distance (about 20 minwalk) as well as my hotel & the Royal Palace to the left (10min walk)

 

 

You’ll find the 3 XXX symbol everywhere in Dutch history…. it's the Amsterdam Coat of Arms, the official symbol of the city, and as a result can be found on everythingfrom manhole covers to light poles and government buildings. It consists of ared shield and a black pale with three silver crosses, two golden lions, theImperial Crown of Austria, and Amsterdam's motto: "Heldhaftig,Vastberaden, Barmhartig" ("Heroic, Steadfast, Compassionate").be sure to keep your eyes peeled for this triple X symbol all around town—fromtraffic bollards to the Red Lights District—but also remember that it hasnothing to do with sex tourism and everything to do with cultural heritage.

 

 

One more photo of the view, this time looking north overtopof the Anne Frank Museum directly below.

I’ve labelled the Pancake Factory eahead about a block and ahalf, and Centraal station up no the top right (about 20min walk). Another20min walk to the right of Centraal will take you to the cruise ship terminal.

 

 

[Hoopster95]

Now coming down from the church tower, I was hungry! The day before during my walks and picture taking, I noticed a restaurant/café across the street right from Westerkerk on the canal with a menu of local dishes. I didn’t bother hunting around any further for food and headed there.

 

 

 

I asked the waitress what she had on tap besides Heineken and of course ( I had forgotten) they have Amstel which is Dutch as well. Amstel is the major canal/river flowing through Amsterdam. And get this…. “Amstel”…”dam”…the early settlement name was Amsteldam , obviously with dams built in the delta to keep the tides out. Over the years it transformed to Amsterdam.

 

I also asked the waitress for her favorite local lunch meal,and she pointed me to the “HutSpot”, basically the Dutch version of “Shepperd’sPie” without the pie. The photo below does not look at all as good as it tasted…hit the spot big time!!! And the Amstel lager was great as well as I watched the world go by (remember the view I had of Westerkerk from this café, 1st photo in the post above) In the previous post, I showed you the picture of Westerkerk from where I was sitting having lunch.

 

 

 

6) The Royal Palace

 

#6 is labelled on my original city map at the beginning of this review, as well as in the pano shot from the top of Westerker. Finishing lunch, it was about 2:45pm…. I had a break now to do what I wanted until dinner time and my 7pm Red Light District tour. I wanted to be close enough not to be rushed, so decided to head over to the Dam Square area and the Royal Palace. I had read online that the Palace would be open in the summer for public visits, but could not remember the dates/times. My short 10-15min walk over there was rewarded…. I entered for my approx. 1 hour’ish visit

 

 

Here’s the official Palace website

https://www.paleisamsterdam.nl/en/

It was built in the Dutch Golden Age of the 1600’s, and also later became the Royal Palace of Napoleon. There is some fantastic art in here, and obviously the opulence of the rich is obvious.

 

 

Note the view they have over Dam Square from their elevated balcony, and imagine when they were in rule presiding over the inhabitants of Old Amsterdam from here looking out over the crowd.

 

 

There are a ton of fabulous photos and information on line if you’re interested so I won’t go on about this, however I can say I enjoyed this visit for a little over an hour and was well worth getting a feel for the history of the monarchy.

 

[Hoopster95]

Tip: Even though I had a late lunch, I wasn’t going to survive through the dinner hour to late evening without a dinner meal before my 7pm Red Light Tour… you’ll find in several higher traffic areas a large supermarket store, there’s one just a block down from the Palace towards Centraal, which have a large variety of pre-made and extremely generous sized take-out salads, sandwiches, stir-fries, etc at very inexpensive prices. I grabbed my takeout dinner and headed out towards Dam Square to have my dinner sitting by the monument with the rest of the masses and enjoy people watching in the hustle and bustle.

 

Remember my early morning photo of Dam Square a few posts ago? Here’s what it looks like at 6:30pm.

 

 

Yep, major difference! Here in the square the focal point isthe 72 foot high National Monument depicting the Dutch Resistance and World WarII suffering.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Monument_(Amsterdam)

 

 

 

 

 

7) Red Light District Tour

 

This monument was also the meeting point for various tours, whom showed up 15min early in various colored clothing (ie. Red = Sandeman’s tour, yellow t-shirt would be another company, etc) so it was really easy to find and check in. I chose the 2 hour 7pm Sandeman’s Free Walking Tour online

http://www.neweuropetours.eu/Amsterdam/en/sandemans-tours/tour-view/Red-Light-District-Tour?date=11/05/2018

 

This was a fun tour and I learned a lot. We passed by several well known areas and shops located within the Red Light District including theCondomarie and Cannibis Shop to name a few. This tour is not good for kids as there are definitely some shops with very explicit magazines/toys/etc in full display at the windows that everyone can browse

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was so much information on this tour I was astounded. Our guide was fabulous... really fun blending great history/information at the same time! From the various shops, to how the sex trade works, the history, when men tried to work the Red Light District (4 of them… for a grand total of 2 hours until they were outlawed as it was a media circus!!)… note that film/photography is an absolute no-no when the women are at work. Large tours are now shunned, and guides can be fined $10,000 for allowing photography. Before I took photos as we entered the sensitive areas, I did ask the guide… I was at this time as the windows were not quite open yet as it was a bit early. Note the red light being on is that window will be open for business, and the woman is a “real” woman. A blue light window?.... well, transgender or something else a straight man would not be expecting!! Black light??... use your imagination. If you see a beautiful woman in the window, definitely look at the light above her!!!!! Note the red lights above the windows on the left.

 

 

Along the main canal are various sex shops and sex theatres. This is the most famous and largest, and the pink elephant logo being worldwide famous. Here you can go over snacks and drinks, watch real life couples having live sex

 

 

After this photo I had to put my camera away as many of the windows were being populated. There's plenty of silicone to be seen. We passed by a window which wasn’t open yet but the curtains were open… our guide was hoping so as this one belonged to a well known Italian Dominatrix. Incredible what we saw on the table and the wall!!!No way I’d get caught in there with her.. YIKES!!!!

 

The most interesting bit of info is that the Red Light District is being forced to shrink by the local government they are trying to soften the whole cannabis/sex trade persona placed on Amsterdam by the world. Several years ago (I believe it was 2009) “The Grasshopper”, the most well known pot purchasing venue closer to Centraal had been converted to a higher end restaurant. Of the over 500 windows for rent, there are today only about 280. The government is buying out the windows and renting them back to legitimate businesses at less than market rates. There's a 5-star Michelin restaurant right beside one of the sex theatres for example. The guide was very specific…the Red Light District in 5 years will look nothing like it is today, and likely be relegated to the canal area (a couple of blocks only) of the Sex Theatre I showed you above.

 

All in all a fabulous tour that I fully recommend to adults…it’s not at all tacky and super informative. The tour over at 9pm sharp, I made my way through some of the streets we had just come from to revisit some of the areas and people watch a bit…. Very interesting! I gave the guide my 15 euro donation for his 2 hours and he was very grateful to me.... he was worth every penny. There were a couple of obvious cheap a$$ people slowly lurking away at the end and truly left without paying. I believe in karma so I hope they've been duped by someone since.

 

I slowly made my way out of the area and through Dam Square in order to get back to the hotel as I was done on this long day and really looking forward to getting on Brilliance tomorrow!

[crusinpeg]

Where would I find info on the Red Light District Tour.?

[Hoopster95]

Where would I find info on the Red Light District Tour.?

 

Viator

https://www.viator.com/Amsterdam-attractions/Amsterdam-Red-Light-District/d525-a774

 

Sandeman's

http://www.neweuropetours.eu/Amsterdam/en/sandemans-tours/tour-view/Red-Light-District-Tour?date=11/05/2018

 

Get Your Guide

https://www.getyourguide.com/amsterdam-l36/new-amsterdam-red-light-district-tour-t5005/

 

That Dam Guide

https://thatdamguide.com/amsterdam-red-light-district-tour/

[crusinpeg]

Viator

https://www.viator.com/Amsterdam-attractions/Amsterdam-Red-Light-District/d525-a774

 

Sandeman's

http://www.neweuropetours.eu/Amsterdam/en/sandemans-tours/tour-view/Red-Light-District-Tour?date=11/05/2018

 

Get Your Guide

https://www.getyourguide.com/amsterdam-l36/new-amsterdam-red-light-district-tour-t5005/

 

That Dam Guide

https://thatdamguide.com/amsterdam-red-light-district-tour/

Thanks for your prompt reply.Must of these sites are more than the 15 euros that you mentioned.

 

 

Really enjoying your review!

[Hoopster95]

8) Pancake Factory

 

Once again had a great sleep and up relatively early. In addition to packing my few things last night, I had more time this morning in preparation for check out. I was out of the hotel early (around 8:30am)... speaking of which, I don't think I showed you the staircase of this elevatorless hotel, have I? Well, here's what you have to face with luggage if you stay here....

 

 

Take note that this is from the hotel's first floor, there's two more floors of rooms above!! If you are the least bit mobility challenged, do not book this hotel whatsoever.

 

I walked directly past Westerkerk and Anne Frank House to find the Pancake factory right away, secretly hoping they'd open the doors earlier than the posted 9am I had noted on the sign the day before.... nope. Still "closed". You'll find the Dutch are extremely punctual. They will open and close to the minute... and I'll mention now that the Bike Tour guide this morning was missing 2 people at 10am sharp, and we still left. The trams are pretty much to the second on time as the posted electronic sign. Folks... this isn't North America where most people wait for you.

 

 

The walk from my hotel to the Pancake Factory was 10 minutes tops. I had time to walk around the area a bit and take photos.

Here you see the proximity of Westerkerk Church only 2 blocks up.... very easy and pleasant walk along the canal.

 

 

 

At about 8:50am I noted a couple of people standing at the entrance. By 8:55am there were about 10 people so I made my way off the little bridge I was standing on to the entrance. At 9am sharp the doors opened to about 15 of us. The venue itself is somewhat of a hole in the wall.... from the front entrance you walk down about 6 steps into the basement area, looking much like an old tavern or cellar, very cool actually with lots of character. Service was great, ordered my latte (which they served with a Stroopwafel on the side!) and I was about to ask the waitress about the menu.

 

 

They have some "regular" offerings like omelettes, bacon, etc, however a majority of their menu is dedicated to the pannekoek, and divided into two categories: "Sweet" or "Savory". Sweet would be much like desert waffles... nutella, chocolates, bananas, cinnamon, etc. The savory selection is more typical breakfast with ham, bacon, mushrooms, etc. They also have a Dutch Specialty funny enough called the "Dutch" comprised of Stroopwafel chunks, cinnamon ice cream, chocolate flakes and whip cream.... OMG!! They have any other flavors to incorporate into a dinner even such as Indonesian, Mexican, and even Thai. Very cool offerings here. I stuck with one of their traditional breakfast pannekoeks of ham, cheese and mushrooms.

Folks.... the taste of this was awesome... the picture does not do it justice

 

 

I called the waitress over and asked her how to eat this thing! There's a few condiments on the table that I didn't know, including an open jar with spoon which looked like syrup... it's Dutch syrup. It's more of a molasses consistency, not very runny. There's also caramel syrup and powder as well.

 

 

While used more often on the sweet pannekoeks (right... more sweet than they are already??) locals often use them on the savouries as well. So I went ahead and tried a bit of syrup and powder on a small corner of my pannekoek .... WOW MMMMMMM MMMMMMM GOOOOOD!!! Yep... slathered the rest of my pannekoek and went to town lol!! Totally delicious breakfast, recommend this for any one of you to try when visiting Amsterdam.

[Hoopster95]

How to get to the Cruise Pier by tram

 

It is very easy to get to Amsterdam Cruise Pier without fretting that you need a private transfer or taxi. If you are mobile and do not have huge luggage, then the tram is the way to go. If you have a family, a lot of luggage, or simply mobility challenged I would agree that a taxi or private transfer will be the best. However if you're a mobile couple, this cold be for you.... and fun to try. If you remember previous photos (my initial map at the beginning of the review for example) the cruise pier is not that far from Centraal Station, and Centraal is not that far from anything else!

 

Hotel check out is 11am. I had ample time to leisurely walk back from the Pancake Factory, collect the rest of my things from my room and check out by around 10:30am. The tram stop was only a block away from my hotel right across from Westerkerk Church, so very easy to pull the one luggage I had along with carrying my backpack.

 

Like most European cities, the tram (and bus) network is incredibly awesome. Very easy to look at the map once you're at the stop and determine your connections. I re-confirmed that I wold be heading to Centraal (where about 20 trams connect) and then transfer to the 26 which should stop almost directly in front of the cruise pier

 

 

Note the electronic sign as the tram pulls up... there's a tram every 2 minutes. Great service, you never have to wait long. Also note the clock says 10:37

 

 

The tram only accepts credit card... NO CASH. You walk into the tram, go up to the clerk behind the desk and order your ticket.... that simple. You can buy 1 hour, 4 hour and day pass. I bought the 1 hour, re-confirmed again with the clerk that I wish to transfer onto the 26, and off we went. Very very very simple... and plenty of room to stand with my luggage by my side.

 

 

There were only 3 stops between my hotel and Centraal IIRC, and we got there in only about 5 minutes. Like a large bus station, the trams are "parked" at various spots all in front of Centraal. I had to walk down the row of trams to find where the 26 would be, and at the farthest end of Centraal Station (closest to the cruise pier) the 26 was just pulling in.

 

 

I validated the transfer ticket when entering, and off we went again within maybe 5 minutes. Obviously with the trams travelling only in one direction on the tracks, this tram had to wind it's way all around the large bay in front of Centraal and back to the direction from which it came towards the cruise pier.

 

 

We made our way under a tunnel and to the next main road where the tram bore sharp right along adjacent to the river boardwalk where I can see many river boat cruises moored.... And there she was! My first peak of Brilliance as we got close to the tram stop for the cruise pier

 

 

Remember the tram stop above where we started said 10:37am? I looked at my watch and it was 10:57... a grand total of 20 minutes and 3 euros from my hotel to cruise pier..

[Hoopster95]

Hopping off the tram and looking across the street, it's extremely easy to figure out where to go. I can see the passenger terminal labelled only about a block away to the right as I await my turn to cross the street. Note the sign I circled below on the left

 

 

Not only that, immediately after crossing the street from the tram this sign is right there in front you, can't miss it

 

 

And so a short 3-4 minute walk rolling my luggage along the boardwalk, I was entering the cruise terminal

 

 

There is a superb video I found pre-cruise on youtube that I wish to share regarding getting to and from the cruise pier by tram if you are there for the day from a ship on a port of call day.... it's an excellent video which helped me greatly

 

bNuUtK4YNr8

[IrishLassie]

WOW, loving your review & your pictures are great. Can't wait for more! :D

[Hoopster95]

The cruise terminal is as large as anything we have in North America... better yet, this was the first time in many cruises where the D/D+ line actually meant something for me. I posted in one of my other recent reviews that I went through the regular 1st time cruiser line than those too proud to move over from the D+ line as the regular line was shorter!... come on people!

 

Here, the line for "regular" cruisers and gold was quite long... note the far end, those are all golds... the "Disney Land-like" roped off maze line was totally empty... I simply walked up to the front of the line and was escorted to the first available clerk.

 

 

Did you miss buying wine while in Amsterdam to bring aboard? No problem, they have a store here as well.... albeit more expensive. I bought a couple of nice bottles for less than 10 euro close to the hotel. Nonetheless, the option is here. Also note to the left the many people seated... these are lower C&A and 1st timers awaiting their turn to board. I have no clue how long they waited as the suites, PNS and D+ line-up was beginning to move through

 

 

 

 

In this terminal, security and an immigration stamp was through the doors after being checked into the ship

 

 

 

This line-up went very quickly. I would say within 15 minutes I was going up the gangway and onto Brilliance. I must admit I really miss the "bong"..."bong"..."bong" as seapass cards are checked in. I wonder why they removed that sound? Nonetheless I was finally on board! It was a few minutes after 12pm... so from hotel, to tram, to walking to the terminal, to actually walking onto deck 4 and the Centrum it was about an hour and a half... not too shabby at all for efficiency and stress free ease. Couldn't have been more pleased with how pleasant and easy this morning has been. I did have a back-up pan regarding rain, etc.... calling a cab from the hotel, would've dropped me off at the front door for 20 euros. No big deal if that were to be the case.... **it happens!

 

 

[Hoopster95]

WOW, loving your review & your pictures are great. Can't wait for more! :D

 

Hang tight IrishLassie... I'd love to hear your feedback on my two days in Dublin when I get there :D

[cruiztime]

Great pictures Hoopster95! Can you tell me how long those balloons remained in the atrium please. Did you notice any other balloons while on the cruise?

 

 

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