one thing i TRY to be is fair. it comes from teaching small ones. and it's not actually fair that i got to have my 30th birthday abroad, and ryan won't. so we decided to celebrate early. plus, then i'm not the only 30+ person i know in europe... so he got to pick the day.
first we saw this sign:
at first i thought it said OVER 30, but no. take that. and how fortuitous to see it today!
first we went to the houseboat museum. ryan has been fascinated by the houseboats since our honeymoon, and in fact has spent a god portion of the trip looking up prices. they're very expensive, fyi, and require tons of maintenance, and they can't be more than 3 meters above sidewalk level.
this one has been restored to look as it did when a family of 4, plus a servant, lived here in the early-mid 1900's. study, with cabinets. (there's LOTS of cabinets and shelving built into the walls and alcoves because you need every inch for storage)
the stove.
close up of desk. this is not actually the kitchen, but i think they ate in here.
KLOMPEN!
cabinets between the two berths. the 2 kids shared one berth, and the parents shared the slightly bigger one. when ryan saw these beds, he abandoned all dreams of buying a houseboat.
that's not a real cat. but it is really creepy.
the "kids corner" where kids can color a houseboat for free. grownups have to pay 10 cents for a copy of the houseboat. but all the kids she knows can have a copy for free....
shower. not too bad, for european standards, actually. no tub, but otherwise about as big as some hotel bathrooms we've had.
you can't actually go in there though.
this man grows his lawn ABOVE his house, thankyouverymuch.
another reason ryan can't live here.
fancy houseboats
this says, "smoke another one, be satisfied. ye shall surely live long".
living room.
ryan still not standing up straight.
top of the houseboat. he has boxed plants up here, but you can have patios, grills, lawn chairs, hammocks, potted trees, and all kinds of things on top.
my flower.
little water garden on the prow...
next ryan wanted to go to electric ladyland, which is the first and only museum of florescent art. it had some great press. we'd gone there before the houseboat, but it wasn't open yet....
it still wasn't open. 2 hours past the posted opening time. ryan is sad.
it would have looked something like this. on the other hand, it's owned and operated by these people....
so are you really surprised? i'm just saying. hippies.
then ryan wanted to stop by this meat shop that was next to a cheese shop we'd past one night, and have a picnic. so we did. (ps, i did not take pictures-- damn it all-- but i will return to do so, because that was the best cheese shop ever, ever, ever)
and this sandwich is dedicated to rosi, because it's rye sourdough and brie, and it reminded me of her. xoxo
our park.
where ryan painted a turquoise heart for me, no big deal.*
then we went for a walk all over (3.4 miles, actually), before heading for ryan's FAVORITE INDIAN FOOD EVER!!! don't be scared when you go to gandhi. it looks a little... well... shady:
it's right off the damrak, which is tourist central. you're sure it can't be any good.
and it shares space with a european spa. this is not looking very promising...
sauna? massage? steambath? or indian food?
ah. through these doors, you say?
oh! it actually looks just fine in there!
there's a nifty spiral staircase...
and indian prints on the wall.
but... what's on the tablecloths?? are those...
yup. italian recipes. in italian. ???
a look at the menu reveals entertaining translations... will you get fish or chicken with that pakora? ryan ordered it to find out...
and he says (as he does about almost everything he eats here) that it was the best fried fish he's ever, ever had.
i had chicken tikka masala, yes.....
the naan is actually the reason we've been here FOUR times now. the owner knows our names and everything.
ryan and a car that we should probably buy. 100% electric. 40% of the size.
and you can park it anywhere.
and when we got home, ryan had vanilla poundcake for his birthday cake. MWAH!
* not really, obviously. if we get arrested in europe, it won't be for graffiti. maybe deadly assault with a bicycle, but it wouldn't be intentional.
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