Day 3 - 13 December 2019

Today is flora and fauna day.

In the morning, we visited Hortus Botanicus, which was first founded by the Amsterdam city council in 1638. As it was drizzling, there wasn’t many people and it was easy to navigate our way around the botanical garden. Most trees were “botak” during winter, otherwise the garden would have been gorgeous.

We were done at about late morning and proceeded to our next destination - ARTIS (ARTIS Amsterdam Royal Zoo) short for Natura Artis Magistra, which is the oldest zoo in the Netherlands and one of the oldest zoos of mainland Europe. According to history, it was first opened on 1 May 1838.

It was not crowded too. The kids ran around freely as well. The whole premise felt so natural. The buildings were heritage from the old days. One of the most impressive architecture I felt was the Aquarium; its internal resembles a concert theatre.

The two older boys were very well versed with the various types of animals that we saw along the way. Enthusiastically sharing their knowledge to our kids and to us, it sure made the visit a little more entertaining and educational. “Time flies when we are doing science”, quipped S. It was true; it was almost 4pm when we left the zoo.

We took the tram. Upon alighting, we did a bit of cheese shopping and buying of souvenirs before heading to our dinner place at Aneka Rasa (an Indonesian restaurant). It has similar concept like the Rice Table.

We went back to the hotel at about 7pm. Though it was early and felt like dinner time for some, the whole day of being out caused me to be so exhausted. From the aching body to the weary feet, I felt I could sleep almost in an instance. Rest, is most welcomed.