There are also some amazing houses surrounding the park. As you go out into the residential area (I am told) there are Dutch versions of brownstones and the like. I believe I could live right there!
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| This shows the tilt forward on the buildings well. They do this and add the cantilevered hoists at the top in order to bring furnishings in through the windows to the upper floors without breaking windows in the process. |
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| This is a great shot of Keizersgracht. I only know that because it matches perfectly to a photo in my guide book. Notice the lean forward of the buildings. |
The gable (sometimes called necks) styles are also really interesting. They date to different periods, but come in three basic forms.
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| Simple triangle gable and also the smallest house ever. The bike is called a bakfiets. A bicycle (fiets) that comes with a box (bak, usually used to carry children) |
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| Bell gable. There are several different versions of these. This is the simplest. |
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| Stepped gable and also the home of Holland's "Norm" in the Canal Ring |
This picture was taken in the Jordaan area, if I remember correctly. You can see the various gable styles, but especially the giant winches that used pulley systems to move goods into and out of the buildings.
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| Draw bridge |
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| Canal bridge |
The bridges are also beautiful. The drawbridges are still used extensively in the Netherlands and, of course, let the large boats through the river Amstel. The canal bridges are absolutely beautiful, especially in the Jordaan area where you find smaller canals and more intimate spaces.
A chocolate duck? Well, the story is that we stopped at a local cafe/bar for an afternoon refreshment. We sat outside and were pretty quickly joined by an older gentleman. He was polite and asked if he could squeeze into the corner seat which was the most protected from the wind. Next thing we know, the waitress shows up with a glass of wine for him (that he hadn't ordered). This intrigued us and we discovered that he and his parents had owned the building and the few next door for many years. In fact, he had personally lived upstairs for over 50 years. He had sold the bar and the butcher shop below and still lived upstairs with his wife, who doesn't get out much. Apparently, he steals away in the afternoons for a complementary glass of wine. Life is Good!
The chocolate duck was perched on a cement post in the middle of the road (only in Europe do they have this sort of "traffic furniture"). Apparently someone had dropped or somehow lost him and there he was, left available for his rightful owners to return. I thought this was an amazing experiment in human nature. Because, I for one, would have LOVED some free chocolate about now! He lasted all of about 15 minutes before a young man on a bike swooped him up without even slowing down!
Sadly, we had to say good bye to Lisa and Beau in Amsterdam. We all had a fabulous time!
See you soon!!!!
