After our big night of drinking on the boat, we decided a big, proper brekky was in order - how else were we to get through the day?!
So we strolled along the canals...
And over some bridges...
Until we came across Singel 404!
It was quite a happening little place, despite it being so early. But we nabbed a seat by the door and wrote some postcards while we waited for our food...
My epic brekky of bread, eggs, cheese and bacon...YES.
Ian had a brekky sandwich of sorts, with an egg on top!
Next on our agenda was the Anne Frank House...
I don't have any photos of the interior... either no photos were allowed, or I was just too emotionally distraught to remember my camera. The Museum was incredible in that you really felt a connection to Anne Frank and her family... Quotes from her diary are written as you walk along and aid in conveying the constant fear and anxiety at being caught at any moment. I was particularly moved by the fact that Anne's father, Otto, insisted on leaving the rooms empty. Walking through, it felt as though the inhabitants had recently left, and you were forced to remember that not only were they not coming back, but they had suffered immensely.
After exiting the museum, I was distraught and needed to take a moment. While Ian went in search of directions, I took a second to gather myself and looking around, I saw something that lifted my spirits even marginally...
The line to enter the museum had reached epic proportions... It was nearly a two hour wait and it was 40 degrees outside...! It comforted me to know that although nothing could be done about the past, so many people are choosing to make themselves aware and creating the hope that it will never happen again.
It was no accident that we planned to visit the Heineken Brewery shorty after Anne Frank...
Got our wristbands and in we went!
Spotted this guy and had a good chuckle ;)
(Rembrandt's The Night Watch with a few Heinekens thrown in for good measure)
We tried our hand at a somewhat serious picture...
And decided we are much more suited to the silly sort...
The secret ingredient to making Heineken beer is the "A" yeast...
Just cookin some hops...
Ya know, makin some beer...
The Heineken horses live in the Brewery and they're quite pampered, lucky things!
At this point the tour got very interactive... Here we were given beers and taught how to properly drink them: Begin by looking someone in the eye, yelling "Proost" and taking several big gulps so that the foam head remains intact and preserves the temperature and taste of the beer...
Then there was a big room filled with flat screens and couches where you sit and watch Heineken commercials...
Then we played a little game to see how well you could draft a beer... Ian got a horrible score!
And I got the hightest!! Who would have thought?!
At the end, there was a bar/club with a DJ and you cashed in your wristband for more beer!
We met Wills and Kate, who were kind enough to let me hold Baby Prince George...
Having gotten emotionally drained at Anne Frank and then physically drained at Heineken, I didn't quite make it to dinner, so Ian all but carried me back to the apartment and cooked for us instead :)
Thankfully, I was able to snap these gorg pics of the lit up canals beforehand!
xo
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