Delayed Honeymoon - Amsterdam

Kevin and I knew that if we were going to take a honeymoon, there was no way it could be right after our wedding (thank you West Chester University).  And if we were going to delay our honeymoon, we wanted it to be worth the wait. 

We ended up with the following timeline for our trip:
Thursday - Leave PHL
Friday & Saturday - Amsterdam
Sunday to Wednesday - Paris
Thursday to Sunday - Mougins/Cannes

I'm not going to lie and say it was a perfect trip, but we'll hit those bumps as we review the trip.  So, let's start with Day 0 and Day 1.

Day 0: Our flight left PHL at 6pm, and we were at the airport at 3pm.  Hello 3 hours at Chickie & Pete's.  Thank you stool-neighbor for those shots of Jager! Flight was fine, they fed us, I got to sit next to Kevin, but I did not sleep.  I was not a beautiful sight by the time we made it to Amsterdam, after something like 27 hours with no sleep. 

Day 1: After our night with no sleep, landing in Amsterdam started Day 1.  Thanks to the train, we hopped right from the airport to Central Station.  There were a few lost blocks, but we finally found the Renaissance.  Except, our room wasn't ready. So, off to the Heineken Experience we went! Yes, no sleep and beer - this was bound to be a wonderful idea, right?

Bright and early, but hubby is happy! We had purchased tickets in advance, and thank goodness that this was at least easy to find, and there wasn't any line! The introduction video was quite informative, and gave me a much better understanding of where we were spending our day!

The tasting part was obviously the most fun, and the guys showing us the proper way to pour a Heineken was also pretty fun.  I will admit, the most enjoyable part of the entire experience was the store at the end.  If you can make it, they'll print Heineken on it (example of my husband below):





It was somewhere around 2pm by the time we finished, so we hiked back across Amsterdam, and found our way back to the Renaissance, where we promptly passed out for a nap! 

Naptime over, we woke up in time to visit the Anne Frank House. Thank god for the fact that we bought timed tickets online, because the line was somewhere around an hour along (no thank you. I hate lines anyway, and a cranky Jess, no way Jose). The house is so educational, and was even interesting for Kevin. I can't say I agree with one thing though. Anne's father decided not to return any of the furniture to the apartment after it was all taken when the family was removed. It allows for more space for tourists, but I would have loved to have seen the actual furniture that they lived with.

Please ignore the sun - To the right (where all the glass is) is the actual tourist center.  The home in front of the man in the blue shirt (third house in from the right) is where the Frank family lived. 

Dinner Friday night was relatively low-key, and I was happy to relax with Kevin and enjoy some great food. Oh, and something very American followed us over -

I'll save Friday evening's walk around the city for the next post - this one involves red, blue, and purple lights - so stay tuned :)

<3 J