disembarking on king's day

We had breakfast in the dining room and said our goodbyes to everyone before disembarking the beautiful Koningsdam. I guess by now there are new people in stateroom 11030. I hope they enjoy it as much as we did. Especially the shower - I wish I could take it home with me! It is always sad to swipe my keycard one final time before leaving the ship. It was a fantastic cruise - interesting ports, wonderful staff and of course we sailed with a great group of people.

The crew at the Dutch cafe this morning were all wearing orange crowns for King's Day. They warned us about the party that will be going on in Amsterdam.

Rome Cabs was waiting as we disembarked to take us to the airport. We were early for the flight so we looked around a bit. Unfortunately for my wallet I spotted a Fabriano shop. I love Fabriano paper/stationery supplies and it is so much cheaper here than at home. I showed restraint though and only bought one notebook. Lime green of course to go with my trip photo challenge. And a fountain pen. And some cartridges. That's all.

Our hotel (Parkview Hotel) in Amsterdam is close to Musemplein and overlooks Vondelpark. It's really nice and out of the craziness of King's Day. We ventured out to check out the celebrations. It was 6 pm by the time we got settled in the hotel so many of the family activities and concerts were over. But, we saw a lot of drunk young people in the streets and on boats in the canals. Looks fun if you are 20! There are street food vendors set up and we indulged in some poffertjes and fries before we found a place to eat.

It is quite chilly so we needed some hot beverages to warm up. We got used to the warm sun in the Mediterranean. After dinner James and I walked around Vondelpark. It's beautiful and huge! Apparently the same designer as Keukenhof Garden which we are visiting tomorrow. Lots of birds, flowers and dogs out for walks. We ventured in to the surrounding neighbourhoods. The buildings are stunning - wonderful architecture and very posh looking.

I love Amsterdam - it's so easy to explore by foot! And the bikes...