The Keukenhof Gardens and Flower-fields

As our coach approached the town of Lisse, just southwest of Amsterdam,  we could see the striped fields of rainbow colors in the distance.  Rick planned this weekend trip to Amsterdam at peak Tulip season and the Keukenhof Gardens and Flower-fields were calling us!

The gardens are only open from mid-March until mid-May.  7 million bulbs, not just tulips, are planted over 32 hectares - undoubtably the world's most beautiful spring garden!  Enjoy a few of the highlights!

If you use your imagination you can almost smell the blue hyacinth and hear the bees buzzing and the quiet water fountains.  (I won't mention the crowds of tourist from around the world!)

I can't think of a better way to welcome Spring!  

I Am.sterdam!

My first trip to Amsterdam and I'm left with  conflicting impressions....
The first,
intimate streets and canals, lined with bicycles, boats, and outdoor cafes. The 17th century architecture with it's slightly leaning buildings, peaked roof lines, and brightly painted shutters was charming.

We stayed in a fabulous Hotel - Andaz Amsterdam - part of the quirky new Hyatt Hotel chain.  It was new and funky and in the best location, between the Anne Frank House, Old Town, and the Rijks Museum.

This was our room...the fish represents Dutch industry, the back is a Delft tulip pot, stitched together with the 3 orange crosses- symbols of Amsterdam.  Very cool Hotel!

The first thing we did was find the Hop on-Hop Off canal cruise near the Central Station.  It was the ideal way to see the highlights of Amsterdam.  

Traffic on the canals could get a little crazy on a warm spring day! 

If you are a fan of Van Gogh you will recognise this!  I did get Rick to go to the Van Gogh Museum.  It was interesting to see how the artist's life and artwork changed throughout his life.  

My conflicting views of Amsterdam come from our tour of the red-light district, brimming with legal prostitution, sex-shops and "Coffee" Houses.  Our guide was VERY interesting - a "retired" hooker, actually from Oklahoma.  She was 30 minutes late, looked stoned, and a little shaky but she knew the back alleys and window lanes of the Red Light district and they all seemed to know her! Of course photos of the women are discouraged  but this is one of the famous coffee houses....Baba's.   

Complete with "cannabis" in all forms!

In contrast to the Red Light District and Old Town it was good to return to the quieter neighborhoods on the canals! 

    

Thames Path and Sunday Roast

A short walk from the Hammersmith Station, a world away from noisy buses, round-abouts and crowded Tubes is the Thames River Path, anchored by the stately green Hammersmith Bridge. In anticipation of 'sunny' Spring days we have spent the last few Sundays exploring different pubs along the river. On nicer days the wide river path fills with families, runners, and bike riders but yesterday it was quiet ... even the longboats moored along the banks were buttoned-up.

This Sunday we shared 'Roast' at the Old Ship with Ray, Maria, Ken, and Kelly ... all part of our EY family in London! 

It was a windy day but perfect for the sailors making manoeuvres in preparation for the race to begin.

We saw quite a few boats tip over but the sailors were experienced and knew how to recover quickly.

Still on our list of Pubs to try are the Blue Anchor and The Dove, where it's claimed that "Rule Britannia" was penned in an upstairs room. 

Afternoon Tea Parties

I have recently been to some scrumptious Tea Parties in London.

 At the Milestone, a 5-star boutique hotel  overlooking Kensington Palace and Gardens, we said farewell to Lynne in style with champagne and tea in this lovely black and white observatory.  This was my own tower of gluten free goodies!

















We will miss Lynne and her "British Historical Fiction Book Club" meetings whenever she was in town. The discussion was always lively, but not necessarily historical!

The annual AWC Founder's Day event this year was a Mad Hatter Tea Party at Dartmouth House on Charles Street near Green Park.

The bidding for auction items was competitive and everyone looked lovely in afternoon dress and hats!  My favorite was this Boston cap to honor those who were at the Boston Marathon just days before. 

And yesterday, we said farewell to Lynda London with an Afternoon Tea at the Pelham Hotel in South Kensington.  She is one of those ladies who has only been here for a few years but you feel as though you have known her your whole life.  Her smile always lights up a room!

As I look back through these photos, I notice that there is not much "Tea" drinking going on.  No wonder we enjoy our Afternoon Tea Parties so much!  

A Welcoming Place

Finally, Spring!

*Note to self - "April is not spring, April is not Spring!"  

With the month of May around the corner we discovered this simple quiet oasis just 2 blocks from our flat.......

Ebury Square Gardens 

Ahhhh...soaking up a little Saturday sunshine!  

An evening of Flamenco

After an afternoon of shopping for traditional costumes for Christy and Haley...just kidding!.....
we found a quiet restaurant willing to serve us an early meal before our evening of exciting Flamenco dance, song and guitar.

For dinner?  A huge pan of Paella and the best pitcher of Sangria to quench our thirst!

I can not claim these fantastic action shots of our entertainment. The lights were low and we were not allowed to use a flash but one of our travel buddies shared these with us.  Ole'!