Tuesday 23rd April

Our bedroom is the third attic along from the left

It was Craig’s last day so we decided to have an early (for us) start and then another boat ride. Craig had sorted out a place for us to have brunch in the Jordaan area, which is a very historic neighbourhood with lovely old buildings and narrow streets.

One method of getting stuff into the houses. The most common method is still to attach a pulley system to the hook above each building and lift stuff up and through the window

The Ann Franke house

We walked there with Craig guiding using the Citymapper App. All the shops seemed to be closed which was odd as I don’t think it was a public holiday. It’s school holidays but otherwise just a Tuesday. I think the shops open late.

Preschooler transport. This time walking with the cart but most often it’s on the front of a bike.

We found one cafe but the menu was no good so decamped and looked for another. The one he opted for was great. On a busy and interesting street with great food and coffee. We each had the scrambled eggs with salmon and it was delicious.

We had a leisurely chat and then suddenly it was time to rush for the boat. Craig had got tickets from a different part of the city so we would see slightly different things. This time he guided and we ran along behind. We got there just before 12 and weren’t the last but it was a good workout all the same.

The tour was interesting.

The guide wasn’t as informative as the previous one but told us some different stuff and it was nice just to see the city from the canals.

The Sluice House. In the old days you paid a toll here to get into the city. Now its a bar.

The dancing houses. Their foundations are struggling and like many houses in Amsterdam they rely on their neighbours to stay upright.

Mr and Mrs Bird with their chicks on the nest

After the tour we made our way back to the apartment (on the tram thankfully) and Craig got himself organised and off to the station and airport for his flight back to London. We had a bit of a rest and then headed down to the corner where we knew there was a restaurant. It turned out to be a Spanish restaurant. Haphazard service but good food. We ordered seafood paella for two and had half to take home for the next day.