Up at 7 a.m., shaved with the bathroom door open because you couldn't get to the sink with it closed and enjoyed an instant espresso on the balcony. Weather was a bit cool but a bluebird sky. We slept well even though we both had a few brief wakeups during the night. We had been warned that the noise from the street below could be a bit bothersome but no problem there. However, Lee did mention that she heard some commotion from a couple of late arrivals next door at two in the morning. No big deal though.

  

Went for a bite in the Breakfast Room an hour after getting up. The fare was croissants, toast, jam, cheese, juice and coffee. We were supposed to meet Bert and Laverne there but they were late showing up. We thought they were late because they both tried to use their bathroom facility at the same time and got stuck. Lee volunteered to take up a can of WD-40 to unstick them, but it wasn't necessary as they finally graced us with their presence at 9:30, after having a much needed sleep-in.

After breakfast we all put on our walking shoes and ventured forth again, this time our destination was the Anne Frank house that is adjacent to the Westerkerk only two blocks away. What we found upon arriving was a long lineup, so we went over to the Delft store directly across the canal. After making a few purchases, we wandered over to the Steve Bloom wildlife photo display outside of Westerkerk. The quality and composure of these poster size photos were spectacular to say the least.

    
  

At noon, the four of us wandered back down to town center, through Dam Square and into the Red Light District. This is the oldest section of Amsterdam and in the early days was known as the Mariner's Quarter or Semen (sic) Quarter. To our surprise, we passed by some scantily dressed ladies lounging behind red-lit windows as we made our way past Oude Kerk (Old Church). Most of these ladies were not very attractive, but Bert figured they didn't have to be as there didn't seem to be much action at that time of the day anyway.

  

From the Red Light District we made our way over to the Nieumarkt (New Market) Square where we had a lunch of toasted Brie and bacon sandwiches and beer. Across the square from our café was the De Waag. This is the original Amsterdam gate built around 1481 and now houses a restaurant.

  

After lunch, we continued on our leisurely walk down St. Antoniesbree Straat to the Waterloo Plein (Park) where Amsterdam's largest flea market is located. Lots of junk for sale and one grumpy old man who chased off Bert and I after we inquired about an old Arab sword he had. From there, it was past the very large and very modern Muziektheatre, across the Binnen-Amstel canal (the widest in Amsterdam) and down to Rembrandt Plein (Park), where there is a rather large bronze statue of the late artist. After a brief stop for an ice cream at the Haagen-Dazs across the street, it was back up to Dam Square and home by 5:00 p.m.

    
    

A couple of hours later, we all walked up the street in the opposite direction from Dam Square and enjoyed a Wienerschnitzel and Amstel beer at a sidewalk café along the way. Finishing up, we had started back towards our hotel when we noticed quite a few police officers congregated down the street on foot and bicycle. As we walked by the commotion, several cops were giving out tickets to what appeared to be illegally parked bicycles. And the owners were smiling! Go figure.

After a stop in an Albert's grocery store (Bert liked the name) for some pop, bottles of wine and junk food, we arrived back to the Nadia at 9:00 for an evening on our balcony with Bert and Laverne. Laverne treated us to our favorite treat for desert, Ole Magnum ice cream bars. After a couple of pops, it was off to bed at midnight.