Hello!
What an adventure was had. Grover has learned way more about the ways of life in Amsterdam than any poor Muppet would ever want to know. However, fear not my trusted friends, I kept him (and me) out of all sorts of mischief.
We arrived in Amsterdam on Friday, October 31st, around noon. After traveling for about an hour on the train, in the wrong direction, we soon found where it was we were actually supposed to go. Mental note...clear directions including where to get on and off the various modes of public transport are most important. At any rate, it was later in the afternoon by the time we arrived at our hotel.
One thing I can say about the people in Amsterdam is that they are incredibly friendly and willing to help out! Many a time we would ask random strangers how to get to this place or that, and always they were willing to help us out.
The conference, the reason I went to Amsterdam, was very good. We learned all about hosting the Grade Five PYP Exhibition...at times we felt a little overwhelmed, but nonetheless we have an idea of what it is that we are needing to accomplish (or try to accomplish). It was held at the International School of Amsterdam...an incredible facility. Perhaps when my time in Kuwait is finished I'll jet off and live in Amsterdam for a little while.
Evenings were ours to explore. On Saturday night we went on a cruise of the canal...unfortunately it was raining (or, fortunately if you're used to living in the desert and miss the rain) so we were unable to see much of anything. It would have been nice had the people directing the cruise pointed out some of the famous landmarks in Amsterdam as we passed them, but no such luck. It was only after the fact, for example, that I learned we had just travelled past Anne Frank's house.
Following the cruise, several of the teachers from the conference attended Wagamama's a popular Asian chain in Europe. Delicious! Then, the evening ended with a few hours listening to some live jazz at The Alto. Now, there are events of Saturday evening that I have edited for the purposes of this blog.
Of course, in Amsterdam, one can expect to have a little bit of adventure...and I did have a little...mmmm beer. Mmmm tequila. Mmmm beer. And that was the extent of my adventure! All good, clean fun...would you expect anything less from Grover and Tylene???
Sunday afternoon saw an early finish to the conference which provided for time to check out the museums. We visited the Van Gough museum as well as the Rijksmuseum. Anne Frank's house will be one of the first on my itinerary for my Christmas tour...as it turns out I will be returning to Amsterdam in about 5 weeks! It will be nice to be heading back having a bit of an idea of where things are and what the city has to offer.
I was taken aback by how lush and green Amsterdam was. I didn't realize how much I missed the vegetation...nothing like walking through the flower market and smelling tulips...in November! Incredible.
Although the sites of Amsterdam are breath-taking, I didn't get that many pictures, however, I am sure that more will with my return to Europe at Christmas. Below, please find a few snapshots of the days I spent in Amsterdam.
I can't say that I'm glad to be back in Kuwait, but I did receive a warm welcome from my students this morning. Next week I will be off again...going to Doha, Qatar for an early birthday celebration. I must say that I am looking forward to getting away (again). While visiting with a friend last night I was talking about my trip to Amsterdam, heading to Doha next week and the three week tour of Europe in December and her comment was, "So, what are you going to do to make it through the rest of the school year?" The list of travel destinations is getting longer by the minute. Seeing other countries gives me something to look forward to. I will continue to hope that as time goes on, it will get easier. Until then, we keep pressing on, little by little.
I have discovered that trying to include a picture in a blog that I've already typed is not worth the headache, so please see the blog that will follow shortly!\
Much love,
T & G
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