travelphotoblogger

It  happens every time : I race around at home  getting work completed and preparing to leave; get in a state because I’m afraid of flying; spend the entire flight mentally willing the plane to stay in the sky and be free from terrorist attack…..and am a crazy wreck by the time I land the plane safely. As we touched down in Amsterdam yesterday, I was totally exhausted but very grateful for the flight crews’ skills.

Schiphol Airport got my suitcase (weighing exactly the allowed 23 kg; loaded with tripod, any camera gear that could survive checked luggage, and a few clothes) to me in record time and I headed to buy my train ticket to get into Amsterdam’s centre. Now as some of you know, prior to any trip I scour the internet and travel books for the savy tips which will get me to places more efficiently and less expensively…I had a couple of ‘good clues’ for the train ticket scenario…which ended up costing me an extra half hour of wandering and saving me nothing…(Thank you Trip Advisor)…The train did get me to the central station, which I knew from my web-combing was just over a km from my little (‘little’ in no way equals ’boutique’) hotel in the Red Light (RL) district. I spent that distance trying to lessen the racket my wheeled suitcase and carry-on were making on the cobbled roads…I’m sure the population of Amsterdam just loves tourists with pull-y luggage.

There was no doubt when I had reached the RL district…By 4 pm the store front windows were starting to fill with women of every shape and appearance…clad in bra and underpants..I don’t know if the underwear thing gets lost after dark…I will spare everyone from my political rant about the sexual exploitation of women…..

I make all my room booking arrangements at least a couple of months before the trip. My goal is to find interesting, slightly quirky, places which meet two criteria: clean and cheap. With a little searching these places do exist. The Royal Taste Hotel faces one of Amsterdam’s many canals; check-in happens at the ground floor pub…Choosing a single room in this kind of set-up often means a room on the top floor, which predictably is only accessible by flights of steep stairs…The Royal Taste has outdone itself…Tugging my gear up steps that steepened and narrowed with every floor was a joy. However, at the top was my clean bed, so once I caught my breath all was forgiven.

After a straight 21 hours of sleep, with  jet-lag behind me; time to explore. My new rain poncho worked well in the  afternoon’s downpour…a good buy: protect your camera, but have it ready when needed…Perhaps not the ultimate fashion statement, but functional.

I wandered over to Dam Square, which is a popular meeting spot in the old town.  It houses the Royal Palace, the National War Monument, and a few very nice looking hotels…Today there was also a small fair complete with ferris wheel, and a scary house….The old world architecture and ‘new’ world carnival rides were an interesting mix. Lots of bikes and tiny cars, people with umbrellas, enticing snackeries and slippery cobblestone. A couple of blocks away,  nearer my hotel, the main businesses are overwhelmingly sex and porn showrooms with the odd marijuana/coffee shop establishment.

The rain limited my shooting…but hopefully the images give you a sense of atmosphere, and how bloody steep those stairs to my room are.