day thirteen: amsterdam

I am having trouble recalling this day right now. The "big blur effect" is really kicking in now. This is our last full day in Amsterdam (sniff sniff).

• I receive a text message from Rodney at 5:20am (i heard it but didn't read it till after 7). He wants to know if we are up for lunch later that day. He arrived Christmas Eve and his body refuses to adjust.
  
• I got up a little early so I could do one more trip to the "Wash-O-Matic". Almost all the restaurants in Amsterdam are completely devoid of any type of non-smoking section, so I want to head to London with as few articles of stinky clothes as possible.
  
• After breakfast in the studio we go for a more casual stroll through the huge market out the front door. The weather is slightly warmer and the sun is out today, although it stays so low we rarely see it except between buildings.
  
• We walk a zig-zag line towards Dam Square wandering past more touristy gift shops and new hidden alleys.
  
• We finally hook up with Rodney and Ursula. She takes us to what becomes Robin's most favorite lunch spot on this whole trip. Check back later, as she would like to expand on this experience.
  
• After we say goodbye to R & U, we walk back in the direction of the apartment through a, shall we say, neighborhood with a certain color scheme to the lighting.
  
• We spend a little relaxation time at home and begin packing for our trip back to London.
  
• On our way to dinner, we stop into another brown cafe and get a couple beers that are much darker than the lagers we had been getting used to in Holland.
  
• Golden Temple is an all-veggie restaurant not far from our studio. It has been on our list of places to hit, but didn't notice till halfway through the trip that we walk past it all the time. It serves Indian, Middle Eastern, and Mexican. Wahoo! We are glad we decided to save this for our last meal.

Up early tomorrow. Later.
Gavin