Easter in Amsterdam

I was still sad about Kitty by the time Easter rolled around, but I was feeling a lot better compared to before she died. I stopped bursting into tears and managed to make peace with my decision to let her go. I realised that it was for the better, and the idea that she was no longer suffering or in pain soothed me more than anything else.

It was a welcome distraction when we took off for Amsterdam for Easter weekend. 

We landed at the airport quite late and hopped into a cab to the hotel, the Andaz, on Prinsengracht. I was glad we had paid a bit more for the canal view - I felt like I could see the essence of Amsterdam right outside my window.



We didn't have much time before it got dark, but J knew that I was itching to see the Anne Frank House so we walked quickly in the general direction. By the time we got there, the museum was near closing and the queue was so long that it was clear that we wouldn't get in by the time the museum closed its doors. We decided to try again on another day, but at least I got to see the same church that Anne looked out at when she was in hiding. I remember reading how its ringing would keep her up at night.

Disappointed and cold, we headed back to the hotel to have a quick bite to eat before settling in for the night. The hotel itself is quite beautiful and modern. It's got lots of modern artistic touches and little nods to its past history as a public library. For example, our room was stocked with books, and the lobby has a library. I love that!

We woke up the next day raring to go, and we headed straight to the Anne Frank House again before opening hours. You wouldn't believe the queue - it serpentined around until it was difficult to see where it ended! We decided to head back to the hotel for breakfast and try again later that evening.

After a so-so breakfast, we headed over to the Rijksmuseum, which had just reopened after a long renovation. The building was absolutely beautiful, and we had bought tickets beforehand, which meant we could skip the queue. Yay!



We went in and explored for quite a bit. We made sure to check out one of the museum's most famous offerings, Rembrandt's The Night's Watch, which had a large crowded surrounding it. It felt like trying to see the Mona Lisa at the Louvre all over again. J and I love museums so we spent a good chunk of time here before we decided to break for lunch at the indoor café, and then we headed out to check out the streets of Amsterdam.



It really is true about the bicycles, they're everywhere and they will mow you down if you don't get out of their way!



We wandered around the more touristy areas close to the train station, and we got near the infamous Red Light District but didn't actually enter the area. It seemed like a depressing kind of place and a bit odd to ogle people selling their bodies on storefronts. We stopped by the Rembrandt plaza to check out a sculpture of Rembrandt looking over his most famous painting, which I thought was quite nice!

Later, we walked over to the famous tulip market sitting on the canal.



We ended up returning to our neighbourhood in Prinsengracht, which was a lot more peaceful, to walk around and take in the sights without the crowds.



There are canals everywhere, and it's quite peaceful watching the many boats just cruising along. There are also loads of boats moored alongside the street, and I spotted some homes and restaurants. I love the thought of living on a boat, but J, not so much.



It was a long day of sightseeing, and I think J and I were both happy to sit down at Brasserie Vlaming for one of the best meals we've ever had. It's a teeny restaurant with great service, and I'm serious when I say that we would come back to Amsterdam to eat here again!, 

And we got the added treat of a wonderful sunset on the walk back to the hotel. All in all, a pretty good end to a day that didn't start as well.

Easter in Dubai

The weather in London's has been pretty miserable, so I was really looking forward to our long weekend getaway to Dubai. It's been pretty grim, and even though it's supposed to be spring, it definitely doesn't feel like it.

Dubai is a bit farther than I would've liked (7 hour flight), but it was the closest place that we could wear flip flops and not have to wrap up in a jacket or two. We booked a red-eye and got to our hotel, Le Royal Meridien Resort, freakishly early.

The hotel was booked solid, so they couldn't grant our request for an early check-in, but they did comp us a free breakfast, which they didn't have to do and was really nice of them. We switched over to the tea lounge while we waited for our room to be ready. I quite liked their method of keeping my tea warm - much more effective than a tea cosy!

The wait for the room was totally worth it - the room itself was huge, and they upgraded us to a beach view that we could enjoy from our fab balcony!

We changed into our bathing suits and went off to explore the hotel grounds and the pools (four that I could see). We found a kiddy playground, and I even managed to convince J to hop on the swings with me. It's been too long - I couldn't really get much momentum going and needed J to push me.

After the swings, we saw a path leading straight to the beach, and of course, I had to investigate.

The water was beautiful but cold! I couldn't get over the sight of the high-rises built right up to the sand. Another odd note - Dubai's public beaches have a dress code! Luckily, we were on the hotel's private beach where it doesn't apply, but we did see quite a few ladies in burkinis.

Once we were in our bathing suits, we pretty much stayed in them for the rest of the weekend. We spent most of the time lolling by the pool with the occasional dip in the water to cool off. I can tell we've been in the UK for too long as both of us got pretty bad sunburns despite staying in the shade! I don't even know how that happens!

The hotel service was amazing! There were waiters circulating constantly to bring drinks and food, and others were passing out eucalyptus-scented towels and spritz bottles filled with ice water to cool off. J and I have stayed in some nice places during our travels, but nothing beats the service we had in Dubai.

We did manage to escape the pool a few times to check out the Mall of the Emirates. Dubai is famous for its shopping, but a mall is just a mall. I wasn't that impressed, other than by its sheer size (there's a ski slope in the mall), and we left empty-handed other than with a sun hat for me.

Our visit to the mall was the only time we saw the natives, and I noticed that most of the service people we encountered were from South Asia and the Philippines. I wondered why that is. We also saw a bit of the fabulous wealth of the country with the high-end shops filled with women in burkas and loads fancy cars parked in the valet driveway.

It wasn't really an exploring kind of vacation as all of Dubai seems to be made up of new built high-rises. The architecture there is very different from other major cities, and we caught a faraway glimpse of Burj al Arab, the tallest building in the world. I particularly liked this sign. Tee hee.

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Our weekend ended much too quickly, and J and I are now back in London with smarting sunburns and hopefully, enough sun to last us through April since the weather forecast isn't looking too cheerful.