Another Birthday in Amsterdam and A Visit to The Keukenhof

For the second leg of our trifceta of traveling weekends, we returned to Amsterdam for Julie's thirtieth birthday weekend - apparently we always celebrate birthdays in Amsterdam.  We were fortunate enough to have booked our apartment rental in advance because the city was flooded with tourists for the blooming tulip fields.  Friday was Julie's actual birthdate, thus we brought in the proverbial "Dirty Thirty" in a more literal fashion - meandering through the filthy streets and alleys of the Red Light District.  There is a limited amount of time we could explore until the novelty is outweighed by depravity.   For us, we ventured around the Dam District for a half hour, but we settled in a centrally located bar/arcade - an area primed for people watching.  Oddly enough, the "Hangover Information Center" was opposite our window seat, adjacent to a traditional brothel window - an interesting and comical juxtaposition.  Later, we returned to our apartment to enjoy the view overlooking a canal with glistening street lights reflecting off the calming water.

Hangover Information Center and Prostitute Windows

When we visited Amsterdam last summer, I was in the waning stages of my involuntary Salmonella Diet - severely limiting my gastronomic options to the blandest cuisines.  We started our morning the same way we began our last visit, grabbing breakfast at Bakers and Roasters - a most delicious affair, especially since I wasn't limited to toast.  After our meal, we made our way to the Van Gogh Museum, sped past the ridiculous line and waltzed right inside.  Privilege rewards the prepared, always buy your tickets ahead of time, this way, there is no hassle of waiting in line.  Our self-guided tour was ameliorated with the help of an audio guide which proved useful - explaining some of the many nuances we could have easily overlooked.  By the time we finished the exhibit, the museum was holding an Art Class, free of cost to patrons.

Time to paint

Van Gogh's palette (before I was informed of no pictures)

Pretty sunflowers

Not having a plan to bridge the gap to our afternoon activity - this was the perfect opportunity to avoid the dreary weather.  Julie painted a pretty picture of sunflowers while my lack of artistic ability was prominently displayed.  Two hours were spent on my mess of a canvas; I was way in over my head and probably should have painted something more simple - like a smiley face.  The employee/teacher made her best effort to remain positive with her critiques, but ultimately, she painted over my disaster to provide a better (scaled) outline.  My artistic proportions were that of a person with one near-sighted and one far-sighted eye - looking through a series of Fun House mirrors.  Seeming to have overstayed our welcome, we pressed on to the next museum, the Anne Frank House.  Again, we purchased our tickets ahead of time, set for a specific hour in the afternoon - avoiding another long line.  The home is a well preserved part of history and truly shows the extent to which Otto Frank and others sacrificed for survival during the Third Reich's occupation of the Netherlands.  Unfortunately, the majority of those hiding perished after being exposed by an unknown informant.  We spent the remaining hour of the afternoon walking the streets and canals, quickly developing an appetite.



One thing that has always struck me as odd about Amsterdam is the sheer abundance of Argentinian steak houses.  The restaurant specialty is ubiquitous; imagine a bowl of mint chocolate chip ice cream, if the scoop represents the city, then each chocolate chip is the equivalent of a Argentinian steak house.  However, the flooded market of advertised steak houses convinced us to dine at one, settling on Cau - a phonetically appropriate venue.  Our evening drew to a close, but we had a highly anticipated Sunday activity, visiting the famous Garden of Europe.



This time last year, we had just arrived in Germany, were living out of a few suitcases and some boxes.  Our semblance of stability was awry, and a difficult time to plan a present for Julie's birthday.  It was our second day in the country and I had zero ideas for her special day.  I scoured the city of Landstuhl for gifts and ended up finding a vendor who sold fresh tulips, Julie's favorite flower - great success!  Fast forward a year.  To celebrate her thirtieth, a few tulips wouldn't due, thus, we headed to the Keukenhof, the land of tulip fields.


Lisse is about a half hour southwest of Amsterdam and the one lane traffic makes the last kilometer painstakingly frustrating, but worth the effort.  The line for tickets was minimal, but we had previously bought ours online in the event a mass of tour groups descended upon the gardens.  The entrance may have not been crowded, but once inside - a sea of people coursed through the pathways.


Our first impression of the Keukenhof made us wonder why we don't have our own elaborate, radiant garden full of color.  Then we realized, neither of us have the so-called "green thumb."  In fact, we inherited three cacti in our home when moving - they have since perished.  We couldn't even care for succulents, plants that require the least responsibility and are essentially a step above caring for a fake plant.  I digress.  The Keukenhof is beautiful, the gardens are manicured to perfection and the fields in the distance urges one to explore.  To get another perspective, we took a boat tour through the canals that transect the floral farms.  Unfortunately, the weather wasn't cooperative and some of the land had been harvested for sale - thus, we shivered whilst looking at immense fields of dirt piles.



Since we found the boat ride underwhelming, we had a more active plan - ride bikes through the area in search of colorful pastures.  This venture proved to be a far more enjoyable experience, except the route we were looking for had zero signs.  Instead, we aimlessly biked through various areas exploring the tulip fields - having so munch fun that we found it difficult to leave.  The long drive home was a distant burden we preferred to ignore.  We returned our bicycles and tried our best to race to the Belgian border, however; our preoccupation with the botanical gardens delayed us from our goal of a Belgian Beer Run.  Similar to the boat ride, our hopes were high, but were dashed at the last minute - we arrived fifteen minutes too late.  After eating dinner at a pizzeria, we cried the rest of the way home.

Wien: Why is Standing so Painful?

Sunday got off to an early start due to our morning activities; see (hear) the Vienna Boys Choir sing at Burgkapelle, followed by a horsey show at the Spanish Riding School.  Conveniently, the events are located in the same area (Hofburg Palace), however, to ensure standing room tickets for the Burgkapelle, it is imperative to get there early due to the limited allotment.  Luckily, there is a distinct advantage getting to the Hofburg first thing in the morning, there are very few tourists to obstruct pictures.

No tourist in sight

Enjoying the quiet morning at the Hofburg

Before the buses arrived

The Vienna Boys Choir sing at the weekly Sunday mass held at Burgkapelle, a small chapel located inside the Hofburg Palace.  The line for standing room tickets starts around 8:15 and can quickly accumulate with tour groups arriving by the busload.  Fortunately, the line was relatively short when we got to the chapel.  A half hour later, an attendant distributed tickets to the patient freeloaders.  Also, my parents could be heard singing joyously knowing I attended a church service for the first time in (well) over a decade - my heathen skin remained un-scorched.  During the service, neither the choir nor the members of the Wiener Philharmonic are visible to the audience.  Although, when mass concludes, the choir sings a final song in front of the altar - the only time photography and/or video is permitted.  Immediately following the "concert," we walked the short distance to Spanische Hofreitschule.

Vienna Boys Choir

Pre-show, no pictures during event

Where we ended up standing for the performance

The line for standing room at the Spanish Riding School begins a half-hour before showtime and can crowd quickly due to the bottle-necked gate.  Once inside, there is limited room available and the spots directly behind the seats fill up first - a cutthroat affair.  We had selected our location, but were kindly asked by an employee to stand to the side (not behind the seats) because we were near the entrance.  As the show edged near, more and more people crowded the area, attempting to swoop -in on our area like hyenas.  To get our spaces back, we had to be assertive and state our claim to our (standing) seats - with little recourse, sans some disappointing snarls.

Ruin of Carthage (Roman Ruin) and carriage ride

Schönbrunn Palace

Back to back posts with a picture of us.

Non-scaffolding part of Gloriette

The performance started shortly after the designated time, beginning with the young stallions, a display of fancy hoof-work from the immature steeds.  There were four programs in total, the best of which included the jumps and the Ballet of the White Stallions.  The announcer described the jumps and prances as natural horse behavior, neither coerced nor contrived - although, that is clearly debatable.  When the show ended, our bodies were strained - having stood all morning took a great a toll.  A long Metro ride to the Schönbrunn Palace was a much welcomed idea, provided we could find seats.

Palace through fountain

Neptune Fountain

Turtle Fertility Statue...?

We were on the Metro for eleven, glorious, time-consuming stops, minutes that added up for some much needed relief.  At the palace, we grabbed a pamphlet that delineated the different priced tours and amenities access.  Unfortunately, photography is prohibited inside, therefore; we decided to pass on the idea of frivolously spending money.  We were content with exploring the  massive grounds of the Schönbrunn, the grandiose summer residence of the former Imperial Crown (Hofburg Palace was the winter residence).  Our time in Vienna was drawing to a close, but we still had enough time for one last activity.  We returned to the Hofburg District and enjoyed some coffee and Viennese pastries at Cafe Hawelka before heading back to the airport to catch our flight back to Germany.

Cafe Hawelka

Round two

One last site before leaving

Jesuit Church ceiling

Organ pipes

Wien and Double Dare's Final Obstacle Course

Having abstained from travel the last two weekends, our drought ends with a trifecta of trips in the coming weeks.  First up, Wien, or as it is commonly known, Vienna.  We have set foot inside Austria once before, but barely constitutes a visit because we stopped to take pictures along the Lech River on our return trip to Garmisch-Partenkirchen from Neuschwanstein Castle.  The day before our flight, we spoke with a neighbor who was in Vienna nearly thirty years ago.  When we told him we would be there for the weekend - he laughed , and now we know why.  Wien is similar to the final obstacle course of Double Dare*,  there is so much to do, but not enough time.  Our neighbor was absolutely right, however; we still accomplished a lot given our limited time.

Stephansdom

Inside looking at something religious

Tiled roof

After the hour-long flight, we boarded the train downtown to a station where we would switch to the Metro; oddly, the transfer had us walk through a mall.  The shopping mecca was hosting a modeling contest when we arrived, but there wasn't an over-30 division - sadly disqualifying both of us from consideration.  We briefly shopped at a grocery store to purchase water and our first taste of the local Wein in Wien.  By the time we checked-in and settled in our room, it was time for dinner.  Ultimately, we decided on a sushi restaurant near Karlskirche in the Karlsplatz District.  Later, we complied a list of top attractions - knowing it would be impossible to see it all in a weekend.  Regardless, we would make our best effort to accomplish everything.

Unassuming Dominikaner Kirche

Sensory overload

More religious things and such

Stitched panoramic of ceiling of Dominican Church (Church of Saint Maria Rotunda)

Following breakfast in the morning, we began our sightseeing by traveling to the closest site, Stephansdom (St. Stephen's Cathedral).  The tiled roof is one of the most notable sights in the city and reminded us of the similarly decorated Saint Matthias Church in Budapest.  As we walked through the district's streets, we passed one of Mozart's apartments and stumbled upon Dominikaner Kirche (Dominican Church/Church of Saint Maria Rotunda).  This church has one of the most beautiful interiors of any we have seen throughout Europe - and we have seen an ungodly amount.  Continuing southwest, we entered the neighboring Hofburg District and made our way to Michaelerplatz.

Kirche St. Michael

Organ of Saint Michael's Church

Fountain at Hofburg Palace

Our arrival to the Hofburg Palace was a sensory overload; an imposing, ornate structure surrounded by a sea of tourists.  Escaping the masses, we briefly visited Kirche St. Michael, opposite the former Imperial Palace.  Entering the archways of the Hofburg, we stopped by the Spanische Hofreitschule (Spanish Riding School), but unfortunately missed the start of the 11:00 show.  However, we were able to garner standing room tickets for Sunday's performance.  Behind the main facade lies the courtyard where the Imperial Gate can be found.  Located through the gate is Burgkapelle - the chapel where the Vienna Boys Choir perform at the weekly Sunday mass.  Maintaining our southwest course, we passed the National Library and proceeded to the Museum Quarter.

Facade facing Michaelerplatz

Hofburg Palace

Imperial Gate

Panoramic taken early Sunday morning, hence, less people

The weather took an ominous change for the worse and started to rain on our parade.  Being surrounded by large buildings, we took shelter in the closest one, the Museum of Fine Arts.  When the rain subsided, we headed towards the Rathaus and Votivkirche.  The Rathausplatz was lively, playing host to an unknown festival where Schlager could be heard from the quaint beer houses and traditional Tracht was the outfit of choice.  Following a transient tour of the church, we boarded the nearby Metro and continued to our next destination, the Belvedere District.

Rathaus

Museum of Natural History through gate

Votivkirche

Taking the regional train to Wien Rennweg, we quickly found the Belvedere Garten, but there didn't appear to be a viable shortcut to the upper and lower residences.  While we walked around the park, we became engrossed with the beauty and architecture of the Belvedere Palace(s).  To finish the sightseeing portion of the day, we strolled over to Karlskirche.  This famous landmark unfortunately carried an €8 admission fee, €8 more than we were willing to spend.  Instead, we were content to take pictures outside before moving on with our day.  Lastly, we foraged for an early dinner because we had tickets to the evening's opera.

Gates of Belvedere

Upper Palace

Closer view

View from lower palace

We arrived to the Staatsoper about a half-hour before the show and wanted to give ourselves plenty of time to walk around the theater to explore the opulent rooms.  The performance of L'italiana in Algeri was much better than our first opera experience in Budapest.  There, during Die Frau ohne Schatten, Barak the Dyer - tirelessly pushed an over-sized tire around the stage for unknown reasons (not to mention, but really mention, the ("blind/sunglasses wearing") unborn children aimlessly meandering around the stage).  To end our day, one thing was blatantly clear; between the palaces, the gardens, the pristine landscaping, and the architecture - Wien quickly rose on the list of our favorite cities.

Ah whaaa?  A picture of us.

Karlskirche

And again.

*Double Dare Final Obstacle Course