in Travel 442 Words

Amsterdam

Road trip! On the Autobahn! To Amsterdam! Where is was actually sunny and warm, unlike Berlin!

In brief: if the Germans know pork, then the Dutch know dairy.

The Dutch are serious about dairy.
That is sliced cold butter on the bread.

The grocery store even had a walk-in milk cooler. All the milk I’ve had in Europe (even the discount milk in tetra paks) has been better than the tasteless slime you get in North America, but the milk in the Netherlands was no less than delicious.

The apartment we rented had a gorgeous terrace that was perfect for enjoying the bright sunny mornings. We ate leisurely breakfasts out there all three days. I zoned in on cheese and butter and crackers and toast. I dabbed on some jam every few bites. Lovely.

On the third day, we focussed on the until-then-ignored cereal. I scooped up that first spoonful without much thought and completely lacking expectation. It took me by surprise with how damned good it was. The milk was so good. I might have to give a wee bit of credit to Kellogg’s for their new “Special K, 3 Granen en Honing” which appears to be only available in the Netherlands right now. Damn. I should have smuggled some back with me.

The striped awning cast a shadow in the photo that was not visible with the eyes.
Twitching, gasping eels.

In addition to frühstücking, we also ate with our eyes at the Saturday markets. Oh the seafood! It was no Boqueria, but it was far better selection than most fish mongers in Berlin. (Aside: I’ve never been to Mitte Meer even though it is close to my house.)

Kristin had been unable to resist buying salmon the day before. The kitchen at the apartment was not well suited to preparing a big feast for several reasons, not the most of which was that the toilet was in there. More of a hindrance was the lack of a proper range — there were two hot plates instead. Luckily, my old friend Damian and his wife Allison let us crash their kitchen and cook dinner there. Dinner was the culmination of a full day of doing a lot of nothing. Bliss.

I’m going to stop here, and maybe when Kristin is back from vacation in Paris she can pick up the slack by talking about duck burgers and expensive bowls pasta.

ps: I know what you are thinking: The answer is yes.

11 thoughts on “Amsterdam”

  1. Wow, the review of De Jaren is spot on. I think there were at least 2 collisions of the waitstaff while we were there, plus another 3 or 4 incidents of dropping items. They even made a mistake on our bill.

    And yes, I’ll pick up some slack when I’m back.

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      2. Apartment has wireless! Had a bit of a lie-in before heading out to see the sights. Now back in the apartment enjoying a baguette and the creamiest stinkiest cheese ever (St-Marcellin).

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    1. It’s like the love child of muesli and honey nut corn flakes. It is not as good for you as muesli of course.

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  3. And on the topic of dairy, I once accidentally bought buttermilk instead of regular milk. That stuff is gross! I thought it was bad, but a couple years later went back (to the same cafeteria!) and my Dutch hostess warned me to make sure to take the regular milk, not the buttermilk.

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  4. Also, the hotel that bob & I stayed at the trip of the buttermilk incident served vanilla custard/pudding for breakfast. With chocolate sprinkles on top. My idea of a good breakfast!

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    1. Kristin bought vanilla and chocolate vla (the custard/pudding you speak of) and a mixed pack of hagel (sprinkles). She ate that together with yoghurt (which you never would, since you don’t like yoghurt). The fact that you don’t like yoghurt might also explain why you don’t like buttermilk in all its tangy creamy goodness. Mmm … buttermilk.

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      1. Maybe if I had known it was buttermilk I would have liked it better. As it was, I was expecting milk, and got a mouthful of sour.

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