A little Amsterdam humor

Homo Sapiens Non Urinat in Ventum

This is a very large pillared entrance into one of the busiest city squares in Amsterdam, the Leidesplien.  The inscription atop the stately pillars can roughly be translated, "A wise man doesn't pee into the wind."

Okay.

A strange Latin inscription to be on top of such an imposing entrance, don't you think?  I read that the architects who designed the renovation of the building attached to this entrance got totally fed up with the red tape they had to go through during the planning process and they put this inscription into the plans, expecting that the city counsel would not notice this small detail.

They didn't.

Amsterdam again

When Daryl decided that we would take a trip to Amsterdam this spring, I was all for it, but had no idea what to expect.  The only thing we knew about was that there are tulips in Holland.   But, there is a lot more to Amsterdam than tulips.

Amsterdam is the capital of The Netherlands.  Holland is one of the provinces and isn't its own country.  I didn't know that.  Calling the Netherlands, "Holland", is like calling the United States, "Texas".  Most of the 'row homes' along the canals were built in the 17th century and we enjoyed just walking and gawking.

There is a LOT of water there.  The country sits very low so there are canals, ditches, and berms everywhere to control the water.

Amsterdam has a beautiful canal system.  As you walk through the city, the blocks are divided by waterways full of boats.  Some of the canals are lined with very expensive houseboats.

This was the view outside a restaurant we ate in one night.  It was as fun as it looks.  And it looks like fun to me :)

Amsterdam is a bicycle town.  There is a dancing sort of rhythm you have to get to walk around the city without getting run over.  Not that the bikers were rude.  Not at all.  They just have the right of way and they are riding directly beside you.  If they see you getting in their path they ring the little bell on the handlebars.  For real!  It was really a cute sound around town with those little bells ringing.

As I have thought about posting these pictures I realized that I don't have much to say about our trip.  It was a great experience, but one that is better felt than told.  

And it felt great!

Amsterdam

Once upon a time there was a traveler.  She traveled thousands of miles without one single sneeze, cough or sniffle.  On the way home from her wandering she sat behind a sick lady on the airplane for 9 hours.  The sick lady's germs jumped from Row 29 to Row 30 and sat down on the traveler.

And thus began a germ's journey.  From Amsterdam to Atlanta to Montgomery.

In Montgomery the traveler is fighting back with antibiotics, steroids, antihistamines, and cough syrups.  And exercise.

And we all lived happily ever after this cold goes away.

:  :  :  :  :

SO.....

We are home from our trip to Amsterdam!

The weather while we were there was cloudy, cool and gray.  Occasionally, the sun would break through the clouds, but not much.  The reason for going to Amsterdam this time of year is to see the Aalsmeer Flower Auction and visit the Keukenhof.

The flower auction is the largest in the world, housed in the largest commercial building in the world.  It smelled glorious!

The Keukenhof gardens are only open for two months every year to showcase tulips and other bulbs, but in that time period millions of people come to visit. 

Just beautiful!