Travelogue Amsterdam: Part VI - Sunday Evening

With my time dwindling, I have very few things left on my list that I wanted to do while here. The floating flower market was not something I had time to do. Nor was getting out to the country and looking for windmills. I guess that is something that will need to wait until another time, another visit.

I saw and did almost all the things I wanted to. I've had two full days and one full night. Tonight I am going to have Chinese and sit and watch people as they walk through the Red Light District. People have are so interesting to watch!

At least I was able to have a nice leisurely, if somewhat late, lunch this afternoon. It was fun. It was in a small café here in the Red Light District and as I lingered over my beer once my sandwich was gone, I watched the people go by. (I absolutely love watching people. Especially if they do not know that you are watching them!)

You can tell the puritanical American without too much trouble here in the Red Light District. They are the ones shooting the distasteful glances at the gay couples as they pass, the ones who snicker and point at some of the more graphic signs, and the ones that make lame attempts at humor as they pass the gay bars: "Hey, Bob, You wanna go in there for a beer?"

As the people in my adopted (albeit temporary) home would, no doubt observe at this point: What Wankers!

I did have a wonderfully unexpected thing happen to me this evening. I was standing on a bridge over a canal trying to get a self portrait for my blog entries. While I was there, a couple of cute little oriental girls walked by talking in something that I assume was Chinese. (At the risk of sounding racist, I'd have guessed Japanese but for the complete absence of cameras.)

I had just taken the picture to the right (the one I am happiest with) when one of the little girls (she could not have been more than a teen) ran back and in broken English asked "You want me make uh, picture for you?"

Now, I am one of those people who is always offering to do this for couples single people, families, whatever when I see them together especially in a vacation spot. Just today I had taken pictures for a couple guys on the main avenue (each taking turns snapping shots of each other with the same camera in front of signs, views, etc.), there was the couple last night, I took a picture of them as we left the restaurant. Then there was that family of Spanish tourists on the canal bus and the group of couples (three couples from Montana) over in the square this afternoon. But in all this time, nobody that I can remember has ever offered unilaterally to take my picture for me. I was touched.

She snapped the picture, handed back my camera, and asked "It is okay?"

"Yes, fine!" I said. "Thank you! Thank you very much!" I meant it. I was very touched. Satisfied, she ran away, giggling to join her friend and they walked giggling into the train station.

Perhaps I will take a tram ride out to one of the outlying districts after dinner. Who knows! The night is young!

I hope that wherever you are this evening, you have wonderful things ahead of you!

Don Bergquist - 17 February 2007 - Amsterdam, Holland, The Netherlands