Steamy Amsterdam

Yesterday's weather gamble paid off, today.... well, not so much! For most of the day we were glad to not be dragging our jackets along with us. It was 83F (about 28C) and humid for most of the day. As the afternoon came on, it got noticeably more humid. This is not something that us Arizonan's are very good at handling ;-)

We started the day at the Noordermarkt - a regular market that takes place next to the Noorderkerk, in the Jordan area of Amsterdam.

You would need an aerial shot to show just how big this market is. Besides surrounding the church, today it went down another street for so many blocks that we didn't see it all.

Next to the market is Winkel 43 - known for the best apple tart in town. The crowds certainly attested to how good it was!

One of the best things was the cashier - not only cheerful and helpful, but willing to playfully teach you some Dutch as part of the transaction. I told him that he'd missed his calling and should have a sign out front that advertised Dutch lessons within.

Today was pretty free-form. After the market, we wandered "The 9 Streets" - a nearby collection of streets that have a lot of shopping that's fun to wander past.

The sticky weather made the Westerkerk a welcome spot for a rest. The church was definitely cooler than the weather outside, and they sell chilled bottled water so it was a wonderful respite. Too bad that no one was playing the organ today.

We had heard that a restaurant called "The Pantry" was a great place to eat for traditional dutch food. It's a good thing that Linda grabbed a photo before it all disappeared! The pea soup was so good, that it disappeared too fast for a photo. We each had the Menu 1 selection:

Starter
Pea-Soup with rye bread and smoked bacon 
Main
Combination of Hutspot, zuurkool- en boerenkoolstamppot served with a smoked sausage or a meatball Dessert
Vlaflip (vanilla custard with yoghurt and syrup)

 Our waiter spoke 5 languages and was a delight to talk with. The restaurant was just "unbusy" enough to allow some conversation with him.

He also came to our rescue. During dinner the steamy weather turned to outright rain - and no gentle shower either. Our next stop was a yarn shop, which was about a 20 minute walk away. As we were contemplating Google Maps to pick a route, he came out and not only suggested a better way, but insisted that we take a couple of umbrellas which had been abandoned by previous customers. We were very thankful!

The last stop of the day was a yarn shop called  "Stephen & Penelope". Linda found a wonderful wool, dyed in Ireland, called "Hedgehog" that will make for a great project. She also found this shop sample of a shawl that she really liked. It will be available on Ravelry tomorrow!

Here's a few other shots from our day in Amsterdam:

The Dutch have a thing for Nutella. Ellie would fit in well here.

Wondering what that thing is on the left side of those stairs? Why it's a track for your bicycle so that you can avoid bouncing it down the stairs on your way to the metro!