Hello again, Blogonauts! On Tuesday, I awoke in Amsterdam's pre-dawn darkness, ready again to test my railway acumen. The cab driver who picked me up at the hotel suggested that he drive me to all the way to Brussels, but I convinced him my train ticket was already paid for. This time my destination was Bruges (a.k.a. Brugge in Flemish, or as I prefer, Phlegmish). It is a medieval Belgian city that traces its glory to the days before the Crusades. Ringed by a c...

Here are some random notes from my Amsterdam stay. Lodging/Location: I chose the Owl Hotel for my home base while in Amsterdam, a choice based almost entirely on the reviews I found on Trip Advisor. Located only 2 blocks from Leidseplein and a 10-minute walk from the art museums, it was a convenient delight. The room was impeccably clean, comfortable, & quiet, the staff was very courteous & helpful, and the complementary breakfast was plentiful & t...

Haarlem was lovely. It's too bad it was closed. Monday morning I took a 15-minute train ride across Amsterdam's suburbs to Haarlem, an old, elegant town near the Dutch coast. Exiting the station and walking toward village center, things seemed oddly quiet. Even though it was nearly 10:30 AM, almost all the shops seemed closed, pedestrian and auto traffic was minimal, and the only activity seemed to be an occasional repairman working on a house or storefront. Wh...

Hello, Blogonauts! Touring Europe in general, and Amsterdam in particular, encourages learning how World War II shaped both the continent's boundaries and its citizens self-understanding. I visited several of the Amsterdam sites that keep the memory of that time alive. In May 1940, Nazi Germany invaded The Netherlands, which until that point had been neutral in the war. In order to limit further casualties after the Nazis bombed Rotterdam, the Dutch government ...

Hello again, Blogonauts! The Dutch are known worldwide for their contributions to the world of art. I am am a withering failure as art aficionado, but I enjoy learning about it. So I have devoted much of my Amsterdam trip to wandering through galleries with an English audio tour held to my ear. On Saturday I visited the Rijksmuseum (pronounced "ryks-museum"), which is currently under a major renovation. They have transferred the most important works of the Dutc...