Wednesday, August 1, 2012

VOV19

Amsterdam and Beyond

This morning we took a 2 hour stroll through the green light district of Amsterdam also known as the shopping area.Juxtaposed in between the stately buildings and canals this is an area of gaudy souvenir stores, bars and cafes ( for pot not coffee ) and even a Madame Tussauds  wax emporium. We got a laugh at some of the items displayed in the stores and some of the characters in and around them. This area definitely outrivals the Entertainment District in Toronto or Clifton Hill In Niagara Falls.

We lost about 200 passengers this morning and gained 220 passengers this afternoon as this is our turn around port. This meant that we had to go through the safety drill again. Also, British customs agents came on board and processed our passports during sailaway, which means that we don’t have to get up early to go  through customs tomorrow in Southhampton.

The sailaway was great. We had perfect weather so I spent a lot of time on the forward deck taking pictures. Also there was a flotilla of boats  and people standing on the shore of the river waving as we passed by. They were taking pictures of us as were taking pictures of them.

Tonight we ended up in the showroom to hear a Scottish singer and player ( but no step dancers – too bad ) and to end a good day we get to set our clocks back 1 hour , so I’ll get an extra hour of sleep before the pilot boat wakes me up and I get up to see the White Cliffs of Dover.

Tomorrow: Southampton