Amsterdam - Sunday - continuation

Continuation from previous post--
Note to reader:  This tablet sometimes takes off and adds weird characteristics to postings.  This is not due to the incompetence of the operator (85% of the time), but is due to cyber-pixies and compu-trolls embedded deep within the CPU. -JM

We thoroughly enjoyed the spirit and life in Amsterdam's Jordaan district.  The love for life of the many residents on this beautiful Sunday afternoon was inspiring. Young families with their children in tow, countless, bicycles, motor scooters, trams with bells ringing and pedestrian traffic made the sidèwalks and crossings risky, although we never saw any actual accidents.  If you dislike positive, but frenetic activity, avoid Amsterdam.

We had planned to takè a tram back to our hotel, but the activity on the the streets just pulled us along, like a giant magnet.  As we approached Dam Square, the site of the city's origin, the crowds thickened, at times, reminding us of Disneyland's Main Street.  Unlike many city's central business districts, which are silent on Sundays, Amsterdam was running full tilt, in party mode.

Working our way through the teeming crowds and the twisting canals and streets, we were soon back at the Carlton.  After slipping out of our shoes off, we checked our smart phone and discovered we had logged over six miles so far today.

Turning on our tablet to check our messages, we received a note from Heidi Hoas, a distant cousin of John's, who had driven down from Norway and was in the city.  We had corresponded with her many times online, but had never met her in person.  She is a charming woman in her early 20s who was traveling with her boyfriend. A few years ago, she was an exchange student in the United States.  Her English was flawless. We had drinks in the hotel's bar and learned many things about life in Norway. This was certainly a high point of our trip.

Returning to our room, too tired for dinner, we snacked on a few items we had stashed in our fridge and turned in at about 10:30, after watching "Funniest Videos" on TV, in German, a language neither of us speak.

He have drinks with John's Norwegian cousin, Heidi, who is also in Amsterdam

a view form our Amsterdam hotel room on a quiet day.