A Day At Sea Onboard Celebrity Silhouette

After several days running around Amsterdam, on Tuesday we relaxed onboard while our ship sailed the English Channel on the way to our first port of call in France. Jim enjoyed a workout in the ship's well-equipped gym while Dan attended a lecture focusing on our various destinations. There were various entertainments throughout the day including some fun games at the large indoor pool, and a late afternoon "tea dance" with a military theme, which is always popular with Atlantis passengers. Wednesday we will arrive in France and enjoy a visit to the town of Bordeaux.

Photos: Top photo shows our cabin door decorated with photos from previous trips, etc.; one includes Katie dog with us taken at GLBTQ Pride Parade in Cherry Grove in June. The next photo shows the Solarium pool on the ship. Next is our stateroom, followed by a photo of the "dog tag" tea dance, and a photo of Jim and a friend at the tea dance. Finally, the last two photos show the bartenders at the Martini Bar juggling 24 shakers at one time, pouring simultaneously...quite a feat!

Farewell Amsterdam, And Welcome Onboard!

After a delicious breakfast at the art deco Banks Mansion hotel, we saw our last sights in Amsterdam on Monday. First was the Art Nouveau Theater Tuchinsky, a marvelous fantasy from 1921. We took an extensive tour of Jacob Van Campen's neo-classical 17th century masterpiece, The Royal Palace. Even though it was built in the 17th century, and as an imposing Town Hall, it was converted into a royal palace for King Louis Bonaparte, a sibling of Napoleon, in the early 19th century, so the palace has the largest collection of Empire-style furniture outside of France. We then explored the Old Church of Gothic fame, built in the 14th century. Some of its wooden ceilings feature old paintings and 12,000 we buried under its stone floors. We had lunch at the Rijks Restaurant before boarding the Silhouette at 2 pm. - Dan

More Treasures Of Amsterdam

Sunday morning we visited the wonderful Van Gogh Museum. The paintings are inspiring, full of unique movement, rhythms and brilliant colors. One also always learns more about the tragic life of this great genius. After an hour at the museum we headed to the Concert Gebouw, Amsterdam's famed and revered concert hall to hear the Dusseldorf Symphony, led by a vibrant young Frenchman, Alexandre Bloch. The program was all Tchaikovsky, his violin concerto and "Romeo And Juliet" overture. As usual, his moody Russian melodies soared. A young Russian soloist, Elena Baeva, poured energy and delicacy into her playing. Since we sat on the podium near the orchestra we enjoyed the orchestra's energy more than if we had been in the orchestra seats. After lunch on Rembrandt Square, and a rest at the hotel, we visited the modern Jewish Historical Museum. The most interesting part of this complex is the restored Great Synagogue with its monumental ark and beautiful old silver Menorah. For dinner we dined at another Dutch restaurant, The Herrengracht, which is located on the canal by the same name, as is our hotel. - Dan

Side Trips To The Hague And Utrecht

Saturday morning after breakfast at our hotel, the lovely Banks Mansion, we took a train to Holland's capital, The Hague. At the high quality Mauritshuis Museum we saw some of the country's greatest art works including several Rembrandts; the most famous painting by this master in the museum is "The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp," which brought the artist early fame. Another gem is "Saul And David," (see photo below.) Carl Fabritius' "Goldfinch" inspired a long novel, and the most famous painting by Vermeer in the Hague, "Girl With Pearl Earring" inspired both a fine novel and film. Two other Vermeers in the museum are outstanding; his "View Of Delft" is his extraordinary landscape. There are also masterpieces by many others, including Jan Steen's moral lesson "As The Old Sing, So Pipe The Young." After a good lunch in the museum's brasserie, we took a train to Utrecht. There we visited the Dutch National Railway Museum, seeing all sorts of old and remarkable trains. After touring the Catherine Convent Museum of Medieval Art, we walked to the center of Utrecht. This is a fascinating city with many old houses on side streets, a large Gothic Cathedral (closed currently,) and a leading Dutch University. The train to Amsterdam brought us back to the hotel for a respite before dinner at a French restaurant, Le Lion Noir. - Dan

The Fabulous Rijks Museum

Friday we saw the greatest collection of Dutch art anywhere. From the Golden Age there are the largest number of Rembrandts anywhere, including "The Night Watch" (see photo,) "The Jewish Bride," and many others; three Vermeers are subtle indeed, including "Little Street, Delft," and other masters such as Ruysdael, Metsu, Hals, and Hobbema. We also explored "The Age Of Enlightenment" (18t Century Art) and saw the incredible and large cabinet house (like a doll house on a grand scale) of Petronella Oortman from the 17th century. This cabinet is a main prop in Jessie Burton's novel "The Miniaturist," a wonderful read, comparable to "Girl With The Pearl Earring," (for Carole, if you read this: my copy is falling apart, but see if its on Amazon, a winner.) Dinner Friday evening was riverside at the Terrace Brasserie of the Hotel L'Europe. - Dan

Of Memories And Amsterdam

Can one revisit the past? Well, Thursday in Amsterdam after three years, we returned to two of our favorite places. After checking in at the Banks Mansion Hotel, we walked to a new attraction, the Amsterdam Museum, which highlights the history of the city. The gigantic statue of Goliath (1648) and the photo of the first GLBTQ marriage in the world (2001) show the enormous diversity found in this amazing city. Then we returned to a favorite restaurant, Haesje Claes, for its authentic Dutch food. Jim had the seafood stock pot, with salmon, shrimp, and mussels, while Dan ordered the codfish, pan fried. Then it was on to the Willet-Holthuysen house, a museum of a wealthy 19th century art collecting couple, who left all to the city. Our final visit for our first day was a return to the Rembrandt House. Though we'd visited this museum many years ago, it has greatly expanded its collections of objects Rembrandt might have collected (including a stuffed armadillo!), plaster casts of statues, his prints, and paintings by his contemporaries. It was the best attraction of the day. In the evening we dined at Sumo, a favorite Japanese restaurant just across from our hotel. - Dan