Category: Spain/Egypt/Netherlands – 2024

The pyramids originally were covered in a smooth surface, as in the closeup view of the middle pyramid. Now, the building blocks are exposed and when you compare them to the people, it is inconceivable how the blocks were brought to Giza, placed higher and higher until they reached their peak.

There is an entrance in the Great Pyramid that you can enter but given that it was over 100F, and the inside is even warmer, we opted to pass on this visit. The day before we arrived, egyptologists found a new room in this pyramid.

The iconic Sphinx is there to guard the pyramids. Again, the size is immense and must have been a feat of amazing calculations how to create this.

Cairo

The Egyptian Museum is a marvel, filled with statues, sarcophagus of past pharoahs, and a variety of items found throughout Egypt with the largest collection of Egyptian antiquities in the world. The museum is in flux as some of the treasures and mummies have been transferred to the new, modern museum adjacent to Giza and the Pyramids. But what remains is still impressive. King Tutenkhamun statues and his sarcophagus are a big draw. However, there is so much more to see. The building itself is grand and well thought-out.

Although fine hotels and restaurants are located downtown in Cairo, most Egyptians live in squalid-looking high-rise buildings that were obviously not fitted with air conditioning when built. These buildings, some of which are half demolished by the government, are everywhere in a city of over ten million people. The city has grown and now almost invades the area of the Pyramids. There is a new satellite city that started about twenty years ago, called New Cairo. It is the home to Africa’s tallest tower and Middle East’s largest cathedral. It languished for many years, but is now flourishing, with new construction of homes (even single family), golf courses, shopping centers and more, planned for more than six million residents and designed to relieve traffic and other stresses on the crumbling infrastructure in Cairo.

The Fort (or Citadel) is a medieval Islamic-era fortification. It was the seat of government and the residence of its rulers for nearly 700 years, from the 13th century. It sits atop a hill for a view of the city incase of invaders.

Truthfully, I will not miss being in Cairo. I look forward to seeing more of what Egypt has to offer.

To make our 9:30 AM flight from Amsterdam to Madrid, we got up early and proceeded to walk to the Centraal Station. It was an easy walk and I was surprised at how alive the city was at 6:00 AM. Navigating the train station is a trip but we found the right train to the airport and were off.

A lovely retired Indian gentleman was seated next to us who told his that he has already visited 35 countries, with the goal of 50 countries. He has his goal mapped out and was determined to see it through. He is from a town outside of Mombai in the south of India and was charming.

The four-hour flight went quickly and we had a couple of hours in Madrid to await our next flight. Once on the plane, we had to sit on the tarmac for about an hour. When I asked the flight attendant, he said that we missed the route window for the trans-Atlantic flight and would have to wait for another window to open up. I never heard of this before but it makes sense.

Going, we flew over New York but returning, we flew almost straight to Mexico. I got some sleep on the 12-hour flight but Jim was awake watching several movies. We arrived around 8:00 PM to a very happy dog and a housesitter who enjoyed being with her. Now, the fun part… acclimating to the time change!

Although I have noted some of the good and bad we had on the trip (mainly good), the last post, not counting the one with all the pictures, will give you an overall view of our travels this time. I write this blog to jog our memories of our travels but hope that you enjoy reading about where we go and what we do.

This is our final day in Amsterdam. We pre-booked a tour of the Van Gogh Museum, which we regret. The guide was okay but the museum itself was disappointing. It is located in Museum Square, close to the Rijksmuseum. Other than some of his early self-portraits and the famous Sunflowers, most of his best-known paintings are either in other museums or in private collections. So, no Starry Night, no Water Lilies (although there was an earlier one on exhibit). For €192, skip this. You can just get an entry ticket for much less and rent headphones for €3.95 and get the same information. FYI…

On the way to the museum, with our trusty phones being used as navigation (as was everyone!), I tripped and fell. Fortunately, there wasn’t any significant damage but I must have bruised my ribs on the left side of my chest. I didn’t feel anything at all until later that night. There isn’t much you can do about ribs anyway, so I will just grin and bear it. Walking, sitting, or most activities (including eating) are not affected, so far).

After many recommendations from friends near and far, we made a reservation at an Indonesian restaurant for their famous rijstaffel. After either a soup or small appetizer skewers of meat, the dinner is a selection of small plates of food, both meat and vegetarian, that are part of a huge dinner. We had at least ten courses, most of which were unpronounceable and/or unrecognizable. The flavors were very mixed, from sweet and sour cucumber to a barbecued something.

The best part was that we shared it with our friends from Ajijic, Bobbi and David Sherer, who landed from their cruise that morning. We planned this months ago. It was fun to catch up on their travels and ours. And, they still have weeks to go traveling all around the Mediterranean.

While on the cruise, Bobbi wasn’t feeling well, so David went to the ship restaurant and was seated with a couple. As they talked and David asked them where they are from, they said that they live in a little town in Mexico, south of Guadalajara. David played dumb and kept asking questions, without divulging that he also lives in Ajijic. He finally had to tell them and everyone laughed. What a coincidence!

It was now time to return to the hotel to pack up for our morning flight to Madrid, where we pick up our non-stop flight to Guadalajara. Only having a carry-on bag and an under seat bag, we did fret a bit about weight but so far, when we checked in at every airport, our bags were never weighed. Of course, the one place that may weigh your bag could be the one that says we are overweight. So, we pack accordingly, as if we would be weighed.

I spent the afternoon shopping at Primark, a department store that has locations throughout Europe. The one in Madrid is six stories tall with a central courtyard that fills the store with light. You can’t imagine what they have. The one in Amsterdam is only four stories tall but still full of merchandise that is so inexpensive and fun, you can’t resist.

After a fun time shopping, I decided to leave a number of items at the hotel to be replaced with the new items I purchased. I hope someone can use them. (That was in my mind before we left on the holiday.)

Tomorrow, we will walk the 20 minutes to the Centraal Train Station to go to the airport. By the way, when we arrived, we didn’t know how far we were from the hotel, so we took a taxi. Big mistake! It was €33 for the 7-minute ride. Lesson learned.

We are ready to go home…

Today, we walked to a meeting point to join a group on a bus going to Marken, Zaanse Schans, Edam, Volendam, and an area that still has windmills (although they are not functioning as they were used originally). As we drive to these towns, we go through an area in a relatively new part of what is called north Amsterdam, where once there were only farms that stretched for miles, but now have many housing options. Amsterdam, it seems, is too expensive so living just north of the city, a 10-minute train ride away, is an excellent option.

First, we stopped in Marken, a former island that is now connected via a short causeway. It is a charming town with neat, well-maintained homes and row houses. The people in this town are all Protestant for some reason, whereas the main religion throughout the Netherlands is Catholic.

We enjoyed meandering through the streets, with fewer bicycles to avoid. Next, we went to Zaanse Schans, where we visited a farm that raises mainly Jersey cattle, but also goats and sheep. The Henri Willig Cheese Farm is known for its amazing quality and variety of cheeses. The most amazing part of the visit was seeing how automated the farm is.

The cows can go in and out of the stables whenever they want, eating the various plants and grasses, then going to the milking station on their own when they need to. The pastures are not treated with chemical fertilizers or pesticides. In the barn, the floor is maintained by use of a giant iRobot that removes the manure constantly, without disturbing the cows. The Jersey breed is more productive in milk (and also has more fat and protein naturally), needs less food and produces significantly less manure. That is a good thing!

The cows also have a sensor tag around their neck that reports the amount of milk they produce when they go to the milking machines. Their stables has transparent sides and roof for more sunlight and a foot of fresh straw so the cows will be warm and comfortable. Rain water is collected and goes into troughs as drinking water, the cows can go to a large brush (like those in an automated car wash) to get a massage, which they apparently love. There is even a feeding robot so each cow can get a dose of concentrated food while they are in the milking robot (yes, there is such a thing), with a formula specifically for that cow based on the sensor on their collar.

This is definitely more information than you ever wanted to know about raising cattle for cheese-making but it was an eye-opening experience for us to see how automated this process can be.

When it comes to making the cheese, it is strictly hands-on. They have hundreds of varieties to select, from typical garlic and herb to black garlic, whisky, red or green pesto, beer, and lavender. If you are interested, they ship their cheeses worldwide. Go to www.henriwillig.com for all the information. By the way, the cheese tasting was amazing!

We then went to Edam, where this type of cheese is ubiquitous. No tasting here but a cute town. Volendam, on the sea across from Marken, was our next stop. It is a fun town where we had lunch and a stroll through the many shops. The food was delicious and the people-watching enjoyable!

Finally, we went to an almost extinct place to see the traditional windmills that used to grind grain, chocolate, and more. It had a Disney-like feel and was filled with tourists. For only 6 Euros, you can go into a windmill and climb to the top!

Back into town where we wandered across the street to have a wonderful Mediterranean dinner. All in all, it was a good day!

We again went to our favorite grocery store around the corner and were able to get delicious food for breakfast. We found a sunny bench and enjoyed coffee, tea, croissants and even breakfast burritos. it was very enjoyable.

Afterward, our first stop of the day was a 25 minute walk to the Rijksmuseum, an amazing venue known for its extensive collection of Rembrandt Van Rijn and Vermeer paintings. The museum was founded in 1798 and first opened in 1885. In 2013, after a ten-year renovation at a cost of €375 million, it is the most visited museum in the Netherlands  with record numbers of 2.2 million and 2.47 million visitors. It is also the largest  art museum in the country. You could literally spend days there and not see its vast collection of art.

Suffice it to say, we spent the majority of our time there seeing the Rembrandt paintings of which The Night Watch is one of his most famous paintings, as well as The Jewish Bride. His attention to detail is unrivaled.

The museum also had a current exhibition of Franz Hals paintings. He was not appreciated until later in his life because he moved away from the traditional way of depicting subjects using fine brush strokes so the paintings looked almost like a photograph. Later, his brush strokes were considered “rough,” meaning that they were visible and more like the impressionists of his time. That school of painting evolved, with one of its most famous artists, Van Gogh among others. He also painted his subjects in more realistic poses, even smiling instead of looking grim, as was the custom. We enjoyed seeing the best of both painters. The next time we are in Amsterdam, we will visit again and hope to see more.

We are becoming acquainted with the area now, especially after walking over 20,000 steps today. There are many unique shops to see, even a rubber ducky store with hundreds and hundreds of ducks, of all sizes and characters. There was a store with only rainwear and items that are rain resistant, such as hats, backpacks, and purses. Many of the popular stores are here, as well a lots of designer brands. FYI, Amsterdam gets a lot of rain, but the people who use bicycles as their main mode of transportation, are undeterred by the rain.

Speaking of bicycles, everyone rides bikes here. The bike lanes are super highways and you have to make sure to look left and right before crossing any street. That is why you see mainly fit people here, of all ages. Some are on e-bikes but most are not. So, leg power is important.

Some bikes have a large attachment on the front, either to carry their children or for shopping. Parkinga car in Amsterdam is quite expensive, around €8 per hour, so bikes are definitely the way to go. Another option is a minuscule electric car that fits one or two smallish people, but don’t bring a large purse! It will not fit! They can park parallel or perpendicular to the sidewalk. Even Amazon delivers on a bike fitted with a larger box to hold the items. Jim noticed that the bike lanes are red because of the blood of the bikers when they crash! We never saw one crash or one accident. The bikes are like silent cicadas… everywhere you look!

One interesting experience we had today was seeing a glassed enclosed garage-sized building on the sidewalk of an up-scale row of homes. It seems that if you own a home/townhouse in this neighborhood, it comes with an underground parking place. You go to the computer screen on the outside of the “garage,” put in some information, pull your car into the building once the door has opened, go out of the garage, and press the correct buttons. Then, the car goes down to a lower level while on the elevator floor. Once down, there is some kind of mechanism that takes the car to the correct parking spot. It is magic (and I am sure not a cheap addition to the purchase of one of these beautiful homes but included in the price). We spoke with a couple of car owners about this. With such limited parking options, this is a little piece of heaven.

Getting back to our day, we had hours to relax before our end of day tickets to see the Anne Frank House. When I visited Amsterdam so long ago, you could go to any of the museums or tourist destinations either for free or pay a nominal amount when you arrived. Not so now… We booked visits and excursions many weeks in advance and the cost was far from nominal. If you try to be spontaneous, you will never get into any of the museums or tours.

When we arrived at 8:30 PM, there was a large group assigned to that time. We had a preliminary overview when we went on the Jewish Walking Tour a couple of days ago but nothing prepares you to see how eight people lived in an attic for two years, trying to keep quiet during the day so the factory workers below would not hear them and give their existence away. No walks outside. No looking out of the painted-over windows to have the sun warm their faces. Relying on a few people who would smuggle in food and other necessities, this was their lives.

When they were ultimately taken away, it was on the last train from Amsterdam, only days before liberation by the Allies. Anne’s father would be the only survivor. He searched for his family, only to find that they all perished, either in the gas chambers or from typhus. It still boggles the mind and I had heard many of the stories my whole life from my mother,  a Holocaust survivor of Auschwitz.

The sun doesn’t set here until about 10:30 PM, so the walk back to our hotel is in full daylight. Another good day in Amsterdam. Logged over 26,000 steps!

We opted to have breakfast in the hotel, for only €16.50 per person. Yes, it was very nice and there were lots of options, but no more! There must be some less expensive options out there.

This morning, we took a lovely cruise on the canals that run all around the center of Amsterdam, with audio accompaniment to point out the highlights of each area. This is a very photogenic city. I will have a difficult time sorting through all the pictures but will work to put them into a separate post by day and activity.

After we returned to our hotel, we walked to meet our guide for our walking tour of the formerly very active Jewish area of Amsterdam. The history of Jewish life here goes back to the 1600’s, when Sephardic Jews came to Amsterdam to escape the Inquisition in Spain. They were highly educated and entrepreneurs, which made them very welcome. They built two synagogues, one of which is still in use today. They hold services daily in Hebrew and Ladino (a cross between Spanish and other languages). I considered attending Shabbat services on Saturday morning but the Ladino part was a little daunting. The building is quite large but there are no markings of it being a synagogue.

In the 1800’s, Ashkenazi Jews from eastern Europe and Russia flooded Amsterdam. They weren’t as welcome because they were largely uneducated peasants fleeing the pogroms and the Sephardim weren’t thrilled to have them. However, by the time WWII came, no matter where the Jews came from, they were marked with the yellow star and ultimately not allowed to leave their neighborhood. It was fenced in like a ghetto. Jews, along with Gypsies, gays, and other non-Christian religions, were starved and those who survived, were sent to concentration or work camps, eventually marked for death.

Near the large synagogue is a memorial to these Jews. Each brick is inscribed with the name of someone who was taken away, over 100,000 that is known. There is one wall that has blank bricks, awaiting names that are being researched to add. The Hebrew letters on the entry wall are also shaped into mirrors that face skyward and can be seen from above. The names of each person who would be sent away has a brick. In some cases, the brick only has their first name, along with their original home town, their date of birth, their age, and the date they were taken away (and most likely their date of death). In some cases, their age was 0 because the mother was pregnant and the baby never had a chance to be born.

We ended the tour outside of the Anne Frank House. Our tickets to see the inside is scheduled for tomorrow, but just seeing this nondescript pectin factory that was Otto Frank’s business, provides even more evidence that they were able to hide for years from the authorities who were hell-bent on finding Jews and doing whatever they wanted to change their lives.

On streets where Jews used to live, our guide showed us brass plaques in the sidewalk indicating similar details about the former residents, including their names, dates of birth, and the date they died. We found more as we walked the neighborhood.

Around the corner from our hotel, there is a flea market, where Jewish merchants would sell all kinds of goods. It gave new immigrants an opportunity make a living doing what they could do. Most of these immigrants only knew their native language, or perhaps Yiddish. Taking away their means of supporting their families was just one of the many injustices experienced by the Jews during WWII. Currently, the market has booths run by people from all over the world, selling used clothing, Indian and Chinese jewelry, and cheap, low-quality items.

The rest of the day was on our own and it was very pleasant, although it could have been a bit warmer. Going from Egypt where it hovered at 100F to Amsterdam with temps in the low 60’s was challenging. We wore all our layers and Jim proclaimed that he will never go anywhere without his fleece jacket! At least we had no rain to contend with.

We had a light, unremarkable meal and fell into bed, exhausted from walking over 15,000 steps. Tomorrow, more fun!

The last time I was in Amsterdam was in 1969, a mere 55 years ago! My roommate and I took a 10-week trip through the UK and Europe as a college graduation gift to ourselves with the book, Europe on $5 a Day, tearing out the pages as we finished with a particular country or city to lighten the load. There have been many changes here, but the charm of the canals, the tall, narrow buildings, and the warm people has never diminished.

We arrived in good shape, worked our way to the train in the airport to get to the Centraal Station, and finally a taxi to our hotel. We purchased a lot of these online before departing from Mexico. That made for quite a savings and ease of travel by having our tickets ahead of time.

Again, we stayed at a hotel in the same chain as the one in Madrid, Motel One. The rooms are compact (read small) but very nice, with a comfortable lobby for breakfast, if you choose, and drinks during the day. The staff is extremely friendly and helpful.

After check-in and a little relaxation, we wandered down the street to an Italian restaurant and shared a delicious pizza. The owner and his wife are actually Egyptian and were so pleased to hear about our travels there. It was a delightful end to a long day.

Tomorrow, we start with a cruise through the canals of this beautiful city and a tour of the Jewish synagogues and a walking tour of the Jewish area, which happens to be a block from where are staying. this should be very interesting.

Time for bed…

Today, we actually have NOTHING planned. We decided to visit some of the nearby shops, as this would be our last chance to buy something at a bargain price. The shops have everything with a designer logos – totally authentic, I am sure. The quality seems good but it is overwhelming. I found a couple of things that will not add weight or bulk in my suitcase.

Once I got back to the resort, we had lunch and decided to be lazy by the adult pool in the afternoon. The water was still just about freezing, despite the heat of the day outside. A “nothing to do day” is always a good thing.

We booked a reservation at the Chinese specialty restaurant, for a change. It was just okay, maybe a small increment better than the regular buffet service. Maybe we are too picky about getting excellent food because most people seemed to load their plates and gobble it all down.

We went to reception to order a to-go breakfast box, since we would be picked up at 4:00 AM tomorrow. While there, two GIANT bears came out to either delight or frighten the myriad of children in the building. Some ran up to be cuddled and others just burst out in tears. They were very intimidating and had to have been dying from the heat inside these giant suits.

With our packing completed, we went to bed early for our 3:00 AM wake up to go to the Hurghada Airport.

We heard that the reefs in the Red Sea were awesome and we weren’t disappointed. We met our group at the Dive Center where we picked up our snorkeling fins and mask. About a third of our group went diving. We walked out to a very long pier to board the boat. The tide was out, so there was no water near the beach for about a half a kilometer.

The boat has two levels and was comfortable as we made our way to the first reef site. The temperature was in the mid-90’s and the water was supposed to be 30-32 C or 86-88 F. When we jumped in, it felt cooler than that but quickly, it felt comfortable.

The reefs here, unlike at Australia’s Barrier Reef, were huge, with colors ranging from a yellow-green to dark green to brilliant blue. And, there were thousands of fish to see. Most were small but some about 6” long. We saw schools of pencil fish (they look like thin eels), striped sargent-major fish, fluorescent colored fish, and some gorgeous blue fish. The water was choppy but once our faces were under the waves, it was calm.

There was a photographer to document our adventure, taking stills and videos. Truthfully, with a mask on, you couldn’t tell if it was us or someone else. We opted to not buy the package of shots, although many did.

Time for lunch onboard. The food was pretty standard fare, consisting of pasta, potatoes, kofta, chicken wings, and salads. We then moved to relax on one of the nearby islands. I fell asleep instantly. The name of the area on the island where we landed was called… are you ready?… Magawish! Too funny!

Next, we moved onto a different site to snorkel. It was equally amazing. The reefs almost reached to the surface of the water, with canyons in between, where we could swim through. More fish to see.

Time to return to the resort to take a shower and return our hair to a normal texture instead of feeling like straw. That is what the wind and water do to your hair. But, i was worth it.

Dinner, then bed!

We got up early in Luxor, just in time to see the day’s balloons hovering over the Nile. It was an awesome sight. None of them landed on the east side of the river as ours did. That occurrence is not typical and we were happy to have experienced it.

We started our touring today at the Colossi of Memnon, which consists of two huge statues that have the strange ability to emit whistling sounds every sunrise. Ancient people were amazed by this, causing the site to be visited by the ancient peoples in an effort to hear this unique sound.

Our next stop was The Valley of the Kings, a huge area of sun-blasted red rock that houses the tombs of 63 of the most important pharaohs in the history of ancient Egypt. Used as a burial chamber for nearly 500 years, from the 16th to the 11th century BC, it houses the kings, their families, and their possessions. In 1979, it became a World Heritage Site.

The paintings inside range from almost gone to vivid in color. The most well known is Ramses II, although there are many Ramses pharaohs. When they are born, they are given a birth name. when they become the pharaoh, they adopt another name, often the same name with a new number.

Our final stop was the Temple of Hatshepsut, a mortuary temple dating from 1478 to 1458 BC. This area has been sacred to the goddess Hathor. It is nestled at the foot of a natural bay on the west bank of Luxor. After the introduction of Christianity, this temple was used as a monestary.

Time for lunch at a typical Egyptian restaurant. We had a choice of mixed grill, which typically consists of chicken and kofta kabobs, rice, French fries, chopped salad, babaganoush, and eggplant. The meal ended with a little honey cake. Time to go to our hotel in Luxor.

Luxor is a beautiful city, quite different from many others we visited. It is amazingly clean, welcoming, unlike many other areas of Egypt we visited. For example, Edfu was extremely dirty and chaotic. Aswan is stark and very desert-like. Even away from the tourist areas and hotels in Luxor, the neighborhoods for the every-day people looked well-kept.

We had a light dinner at the hotel and fell into bed.